A pervert smacked the bottoms of young girls for his sexual gratification after getting work at riding stables so he could have contact with children, a Court heard.

Michael Wootton, 32, even spanked one of his victims with a riding crop, Leeds Crown Court was told yesterday.

Jailing him for 21 months, Judge Rodney Grant told Wootton: “What you did to these young children involved the inflicting of pain in order to gain sexual gratification for yourself.

“One does not know the psychological harm which your behaviour towards these children will have caused them in future life. You deliberately placed yourself in circumstances where you would have access to small children.”

Wootton, of The Lanes, Pudsey, had pleaded guilty, on the day of trial, to four counts of sexual assault of a child under 13.

Prosecutor Andrew Kershaw said Wootton had worked informally at stables in West and South Yorkshire.

His first victim was nine. He would smack her backside over her clothes under the pretext of disciplining her, Mr Kershaw said. He progressed to persuading the girl to lower her trousers to be smacked. The abuse went on for several months.

The second victim was seven. During the early part of 2007 the girl was having riding lessons. Later that year it emerged Wootton had smacked her on the bottom in a bedroom. On one occasion he used a riding crop on her and took a photograph.

Kirsty Watson, mitigating, said no actual injury was caused to the girls and the offences were at the lower end of seriousness.

But Judge Grant said the girls were clearly distressed. He said there would be a Sexual Offences Prevention Order and ordered Wootton to sign on the sex offenders’ register for ten years. He was banned from being involved with riding stables or kennels for ten years.