Hi Citygirl...
One thing the last couple of years has shown us is that asking for advice from the 'experts' doesn't always pay dividends...
Shares are always a gamble no matter how solid the company seems, we have seen that with many companies the last few years such as with our main banks, as well as banks abroad.
Banks were regarded as safe as houses up to this year.
The stock market is in a state of volatility...that means large one day falls and large one day rises.
In this scenario, it would be like your mother betting her money on the toss of a coin.
No-one can predict the short/medium term future re shares and so if I personally was in your mother's position I would take the cash, because none of us know when the bottom of the share/banking crisis will be hit.