Former Sussex teacher admits child sex offences

Sussex Police said Nick Baldock – formerly of Lancing College – has also been convicted of ‘sharing personal data of some pupils’.

The 46-year-old was charged with sexual assault after ‘indecently touching a teenager’, police said.

A spokesperson added: “Baldock contacted the victim after the incident, under the guise of apologising, but made inappropriate sexual comments about younger boys.

“He was arrested and a number of digital devices were seized.

“These were found to contain several indecent images of children, including one of the most serious Category A images. None of these were of current or former pupils at Lancing College.”

Police said messages that Baldock had with other users – on the Telegram messaging app – also indicated a sexual interest in teenage boys.

"The investigation showed that Baldock was found to have sent some non-indecent pictures of boys to other like-minded individuals, some of which had been downloaded from the school database,” the police spokesperson added.

"He was subsequently charged with sexual assault and two counts of publishing an obscene article, as well as three counts of knowingly disclosing personal data without consent.

“He was also charged with three counts of making an indecent photograph of a child. These images did not to relate children at the school.”

Baldock pleaded guilty to all charges at Crawley Magistrates’ Court on Friday (August 30), police said.

Police said he was released on conditional court bail and was made subject to notification to the Sex Offenders Register, prior to sentencing at a court to be confirmed on September 27.

Detective Sergeant Paul Hitchcock – of Sussex Police’s OCAT (Online Child Abuse Team) – said Baldock used his position to ‘pursue his disturbing sexual interest in young boys’.

The detective thanked the victim for their bravery in reporting the sexual assault – which ‘allowed us to discover the wider scale of Baldock’s offending’. He added: “We will now look ahead to sentencing towards the end of this month.”