A TEACHER who admitted downloading child pornography on his home computer "will never work in his profession again", a court heard.Ipswich Crown Court was told yesterdaythat David Jordan, who taught IT at a middle school in Lowestoft for four years, was "finished" after pleading guilty to the crimes.

A TEACHER who admitted downloading child pornography on his home computer "will never work in his profession again", a court heard.

Ipswich Crown Court was told yesterdaythat David Jordan, who taught IT at a middle school in Lowestoft for four years, was "finished" after pleading guilty to the crimes.

The 37-year-old, of Teesdale, Carlton Colville, admitted five charges of making indecent photographs of children, dating back to 1999, at an earlier hearing.

Robert Sadd, prosecuting, told the court how Jordan had been trapped as part of Operation Ore – a national crackdown on child porn –when he used his credit card to access an American internet site.

"When the police attended his home address they had to force entry," said Mr Sadd.

"He was away with his wife overseeing a school trip. Officers found the monitor and the keyboard for his computer in the house but the tower unit was no longer there.

"However, one of the officers looked in the garage and found it next to the dustbin ready for collection.

"It appears that, having heard reports in the press about Operation Ore, the defendant was forewarned and, had he been a few more names down the list, he may have got away with it.

"He had gone to considerable lengths to try and get away with what he did."

Jordan had wiped all the child porn images from his computer using sophisticated software – yet the file names and sizes remained, allowing police to trace just one image, deemed as level two.

"It can be seen from analysis of the defendant's computer that he was searching for and obtaining child porn," Mr Sadd added.

"We can't say quite what would have been on there had the specialist software not been used. However, there were over 50 file names which leave little to the imagination."

Mitigating for Jordan, Christopher Morgan said his client had no contact with the children pictured on the images, but simply downloaded them for "personal viewing."

Mr Morgan added: "He is a finished individual. His plans to emigrate with his wife are at an end; he will never work in his profession again and he has lost his public reputation.

"He has lost his home down to circumstances of this case. The net result is that he is now unemployed and unemployable."

Sentencing Jordan to a three-year community rehabilitation order, Judge Peter Thompson said that it was a "stroke of good fortune" that his wife was standing by him.

Jordan was then told to attend a sex offender treatment programme and sign the sex offenders' register for five years. An order was also made for the forfeiture of his computer tower unit.

After the hearing, Sue Boardman, senior education officer at Suffolk County Council, said: "We would like to re-assure parents that Mr Jordan is no longer employed by the county council as a teacher and his conduct will be reported to the relevant authorities.

"The school concerned and the local education authority had no knowledge of these offences, or reason to have any knowledge, until the criminal investigation began, when all the appropriate steps were taken."