A BRADFORD man has been jailed for three years after admitting sex offences involving an under-age girl.

Joseph Harrison, 24, of Shirley Manor Gardens, Wyke, was sentenced at Leeds Crown Court by Recorder Jeremy Hill-Baker after pleading guilty to eight offences, involving the same girl, who was aged under 13.

Harrison admitted three offences of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child and two of intentionally causing a child to look at pornographic images.

He also pleaded guilty to one offence of sexually touching the girl, one of making an indecent image of the girl – a topless picture – and one of inciting her to engage in sexual activity by sending an indecent image of herself. The court heard the offences took place at times between September 2012 and May 2015.

Police said the majority of the offending took place when the girl was aged 11.

As well as imposing a custodial sentence, the judge made Harrison the subject of a Sexual Offences Prevention Order, banning him from approaching the victim and preventing him from having unsupervised contact with a child.

Harrison had admitted his offending immediately to police and pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity.

After the case, the girl’s mother and her husband said it had had a major impact on her and themselves.

They said they had noticed changes in the girl’s behaviour but had not known why. She had damaged curtains and walls in her room.

She had had help from a learning mentor at school and had now been referred by her doctor for urgent counselling or psychiatric help.

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