A paedophile has been jailed after police found indecent images of children as young as 10-years-old on his tablet computer.

James Bainbridge, who was a registered sex offender following a previous conviction, admitted charges of sending and making an indecent image of a child.

The 26-year-old of Hartslock Drive in the Abbey Wood area of Bexley, was jailed to three years in prison during a hearing at Woolwich Crown Court yesterday.

He also pleaded guilty to breaching a sexual harm prevention order which had been imposed as part of a previous sentence in October 2020.

The two-year suspended prison term was handed down after he attempted to meet a teenage girl he had been speaking to online.

The order also meant Bainbridge's use of technology was restricted and stopped him having unsupervised access to children.

On July 6 last year, officers from the Met Police's specialist unit for monitoring sex offenders were made aware of suspicious activity on the defendant's tablet.

Police visited his home address and found evidence of Bainbridge breaching the sexual harm prevention order and he was arrested.

The device was also seized for forensic examination.

Detectives found he had been using the device to view indecent images of young children.

PC Jemma Morgan from the Met's South East Jigsaw Unit, said: "Bainbridge was being closely monitored by officers due to previous offending and it was through this monitoring that this offending came to light.

“This type of crime is completely unacceptable and we take strong action when we receive reports of this nature, to protect children and young people from harm.”

Speaking after the trial, a spokesman for the NSPCC said: "As this case shows, children continue to face harm online, with offenders like Bainbridge targeting young people to groom and sexually exploit, as well as sharing and viewing indecent images.

"The NSPCC will continue to lobby the Government to ensure the proposed Online Safety Bill is not only robust and effective, but has the safety of children at its heart."

Children can contact Childline on 0800 1111 and adults with concerns about the wellbeing of a child can phone the NSPCC helpline on 0808 8005000 or email help@nspcc.org.uk