A man from Nelson has been re-sentenced after he failed to comply with his sexual prevention order on numerous occasions.

Reece Ashurst, 27, of Forest Street, Nelson, pleaded guilty to sexual communication with a child in May 2023.

Burnley Magistrates' Court, acting as Burnley Crown Court, heard how later that year he received a community sexual prevention order at Manchester Crown Court for two years.

The court heard Ashurst had been messaging a decoy account that he believed was a 13 year old child, sending topless pictures of himself, engaging in conversations about oral sex, and suggesting he would pick the decoy up in his car.

Prosecutor Claire Larton told the court in October 2023 Ashurst failed to update the police of his new living address in Forest Street, a direct breach of his sexual prevention order.

He had also failed to attend his unpaid working hours, telling the Probation Service he "was in employment", and failed to attend 12 appointments according to his community order.

But when the Probation Service checked with his employer that he was attending work, they said he had not been working for them for "quite some time".

Other breaches included owning an unregistered mobile phone, using WhatsApp, deleting a message on WhatsApp, and entering a premises where a child was located.

In mitigation, Phil Holden told the court these were minor breaches, and the defendant had been arrested in December 2023 for the breaches, meaning he had already been in in custody for more than three months.

He said: "This is the first time he has been in custody and is equal to an eight months sentence.

"Even the Probation Service has said this has had a dramatic effect on him, which they do not use lightly.

"He was living a chaotic life at the time and wishes to move on with his life, gaining a maths qualification in custody and finding work to be able to support his young daughter, whom he hopes to have a relationship with in the future."

Ashurst pleaded guilty to four counts of breaching a sexual harm prevention order, and two counts of failure to comply with notifications of sexual offences.

Judge Sara Dodd sentenced him to 12 months in custody, suspended for 21 months.

She said: "You have been before me for breaches in the past and find yourself here again.

"I cannot simply look at this breach without looking at the history of your offending.

"You have now had a taste of custody for the first time, and I hope that it is the final incentive for you to engage as you should during this order."