CAMPAIGNERS reacted with fury last night after a primary school teacher was jailed for only six months after admitting a string of child porn offences.

Andrew Guffick, 34, formerly of Commercial Street, Ferryhill Station, County Durham, pleaded guilty at Teesside Crown Court to nine counts of downloading pornographic images of children from the Internet.

The maximum jail term for the offence is ten years.

Detectives who searched the home of Guffick, a former teacher at Chilton Junior School, discovered 107 computer disks containing images of a sexual nature involving young children.

David Hines, of the North of England Victims' Association, said: "The sentence does not match the crime. This man could be out in two or three months. "

Isobel Porter, of the NSPCC, said: "Using this dangerous and degrading material on the Internet is a growing problem.

"We must never forget that these horrific images are real children who have suffered terrible abuse."

Guffick, who had no previous convictions, resigned from his post at Chilton Junior School in March, after the offences came to light. His wife left him shortly afterwards.

He also worked as a supply teacher at several schools in Darlington between May and July 2000. Guffick was an assistant scout leader in Darlington from 1991 to 1993.

The headteacher at Chilton Junior School, Dave Wallace, said: "No evidence was found, either by the police or myself, that Mr Guffick engaged in any sort of improper or illegal conduct or activity while on school premises.

"Nothing has come to my notice since this incident first came to light that would suggest that children here were in any way put at risk because of his presence."

The court heard yesterday that the images, seized at Guffick's home, were only for his personal use.

Judge David Bryant took into account Guffick's previous good character.