Derek Packham has been sentenced to a total of 13 and a half years, eight and a half of which will be in prison, for a string of serious sex offences.

Packham, 50, of Chippenham, pleaded guilty to nine counts of sexual assault, nine counts of sexual activity with a child, one count of inciting a child to commit sexual activity of making indecent images of children and one count of having indecent images on his phone.

He was sentenced yesterday to eight and a half years in prison and a further five years on extended licence at Swindon Crown Court.

Packham pleaded guilty at the same court on July 9, 2015, and all the offences in the case took place at the original home address of the defendant in Corsham.

Following the sentencing, Detective Constable Julia Dickson, from Wiltshire Police, said: “Wiltshire Police welcome today’s sentencing as it reflects the seriousness of these offences and the impact they have on the children involved.

“Derek Packham preyed on his young victims; he became their friend, he groomed them by purchasing them gifts and providing alcohol, he gained the children’s trust.

“His actions have had a huge impact on these children - local agencies will be working hard to give his victims as much support as possible while they come to terms with what he did to them.

“Wiltshire Police would like to thank each of the victims for their bravery in coming forward and recounting what is obviously a very distressing and traumatic time in their lives.

“We are also not ruling out the possibility that there are more victims out there – if that is you or someone you know then please come forward.

"You will be dealt with sensitively by one of our specially trained officers and I can assure you that any information you give will be treated in the utmost confidence and will be followed up.

"We are determined to catch anyone who carries out such crimes.

Blair Keltie, Child Sexual Exploitation Manager at Wiltshire Council, also welcomed the sentence and praised local schools for their support of the victims.

She said: “We work with our partners to do everything we can to stop and prevent CSE, and this case gives a clear message that this will not be tolerated in Wiltshire.

“I would also like to give great credit to the local schools who have supported their children through what has been an extremely distressing time.”"

Anyone wishing to contact Wiltshire Police can do so by calling 101 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.