Grieving relatives looked on aghast as learner driver Denise Williams-Yelbert maintained a wall of silence while facing charges over the death of cyclist Ian Ward, on the day he would have turned 38.

Ms Williams-Yelbert, 31, from Morden, pleaded not guilty at Staines Magistrates' Court on Monday to driving without due care and attention, driving without insurance and driving on a provisional licence without supervision.

She spoke only to confirm her name, address and not guilty plea and left the court without making a statement.

It follows an inquest last month when the Woking coroner was forced to record an open verdict because Ms Williams-Yelbert refused to answer any questions on the accident, which crash scene investigators alleged happened when she was speeding on a straight road on a clear day and inside a cycle lane.

After the hearing, Ian's father Stanley said: "Today would have been his birthday. It's a disgrace that she has only been charged with driving without due care.

"And by staying silent, what is she putting us through?"

Mr Ward, a mechanic and cycling enthusiast from Chessington, was hit in Long Ditton on May 6 last year as he cycled towards Esher on the A309 on his way to collect a car.

Last month's inquest heard that Williams-Yelbert also refused to answer any questions in a police interview in July last year, but on the day of the crash signed a statement claiming that Mr Ward was "swerving from left to right".

It was alleged at the inquest that William-Yelbert's Volkswagen Golf was travelling between 51 and 62 mph in the 50mph zone. The day was clear and bright and the road was straight for 350 metres before the point of impact.

Skid marks on the road showed the car collided with Mr Ward's bike 1.6 metres inside the coloured cycle lane, it was alleged at the inquest, killing him at the scene.

Williams-Yelbert's solicitor Mr Morris told the magistrates that the defence team would be sending an expert to the crash site to compile its own accident report before her trial.

She will reappear at Staines Magistrates' Court on April 17 when a date for trial will be set.