ANDREW GARDNER – CARLISLE A PARTON man (now in Carlisle) who subjected two scho…

❌ANDREW GARDNER – CARLISLE❌

A PARTON man (now in Carlisle) who subjected two schoolgirls to years of sexual abuse has been jailed for 10 years.

Andrew Gardner, 46, of Seven Acres, was ordered to register as a sex offender for life.

He was also banned from ever working with children and from having unsupervised contact with anyone under 18.

Gardner pleaded guilty at Carlisle Crown Court to offences including sexual assault and taking indecent photographs of one of his victims.

Judge Paul Batty QC described the case as “truly revolting”.

Prosecuting counsel Hilary Manley said Gardner had started grooming one of the girls for sex and carried on for more than two years.

He began by touching her intimately, then moved on to other sexual offences with her before having full intercourse.

He even took pornographic photos of her in sexual poses, which he kept on his computer, she said.

Ms Manley said Gardner also abused another girl.

“She was afraid to tell anyone because she thought he might hurt her,” she said.

Ms Manley said the abuse had had “a grave impact” on both girls.

One girl, in particular, felt her life had been ruined and thought she was worthless.

“She feels there is nothing to live for,” she said. “She hates him and wants him to go to prison.”

Greg Hoare, defending, said Gardner’s only mitigation was that he had pleaded guilty – although he accepted that he had done so only three weeks before he had been due to go on trial, when the girls would have had to give evidence against him.

“He is now a broken man,” he said.

“He is a man whose future has been shattered.

“He has deep feelings of sorrow and regret for his victims.

“He knows he has blighted their childhoods and, no doubt, their future lives too to a significant degree.”

Judge Batty said it was impossible to imagine the damage Gardner had done to his victims.

“This is a truly revolting case,” he said.