A former primary school teacher prepared lessons in the evening while searching for indecent images of children, a court has heard.

Pervert Michael Hardgrave trawled through the Internet after searching the term "jailbait".

Now the 66-year-old married schoolmaster has admitted downloading 800 illegal pictures, some of which he stored on his laptop computer, Maidstone Crown Court has heard.

But Hardgrave, of Lorimar Court, Sittingbourne has escaped an immediate jail sentence after admitting six charges of having movies and photos across all three categories of vile child images.

Prosecutor Alexander Williams told how police raided his home in Sittingbourne in June where he lived with his wife.

"He told the officers he was aware why police were there because he was the one who had accessed indecent images.

"He said he had watched [indecent videos] containing children under the age of 18 in the past, " he added.

A forensic investigation of his laptop and hard drive revealed he had searched for images using the terms "jailbait", and "schoolgirl princess".

The court heard how when he was questioned by officers in February this year he denied having a sexual interest in children.

Mr Williams said: "He said he was unsure as to why he was viewing children being abused.

"He said his work as a teacher, from which he has retired, had a bad work-life balance and he would spend a long time at night planning lessons and would look at the images whilst doing his work."

Hardgrave broke down during the police interview telling the officers he was disgusted with himself.

"He said he had never had his own children and was interested in what children looked like naked," the prosecutor added.

Now Hardgrave has been put on the sex offenders list and is banned from working with children for 10 years.

Defence barrister Paul Jackson said that after his arrest the defendant had registered with Stop It Now - a charity which helps paedophiles tackle porn addiction.

He added that Hardgrave had also suffered because members of his own family are shunning him.

He was given a six-month jail sentence suspended for 18 months and ordered to do 40 rehabilitation sessions.

Judge Julian Smith told him that his arrest had been shocking and humiliating for Hardgrave and his wife.

He said: "You were searching for this material on a regular basis over the course of months."

He said Hardgrave's interest in accessing the images was sexually motivated - despite his denials.

The ex-teacher is also subject now to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order - which means police will monitor where he lives and what he sees on his computer.

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