A religious education teacher who became romantically involved with a girl and met up with her in woods on "one disastrous night" has been placed on a three-year community order.

A court heard married Kevin Ford had already been cautioned over his contact with the 15-year-old, but saw her just a matter of weeks later.

Ford, 29, hugged, passionately kissed her and put a hand on her back, under clothing in woods at Darwen.

He had been an RE teacher at Bedes RC High, Blackburn, but has now been banned from working with children for ten years and told must be on the sex offenders list for five years.

The teacher, of Beverley Gardens, Thingwall, Wirral admitted two charges of sexual activity with a child. A judge at Preston Crown Court sentenced him to a community order to include supervision by the probation service and a requirement to do a sex offenders programme.

Sara Dodds, prosecuting, said there had been e-mails and text messages from the defendant to the girl towards the end of last year.

In January this year he was cautioned for inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, regarding the girl. Then on February 7 he contacted her and they met up in some woods.

The defendant was arrested in April. He accepted having instigated the meeting in the woods. He spoke of them loving each other and he wanted a serious relationship with her later.

Ford was a man of previous good character. Suzanne Goddard, defending, said he entirely accepted that as an adult man and as a teacher in a position of trust, he had known perfectly well not to form any sort of relationship with the girl.

In no way did he seek to blame her for what happened, she said.

She said: "To his regret, in spite of realising this was something he had to nip in the bud and explain to her they could no longer e-mail each other, he felt very flattered by it. He acknowledges now he did develop an obsession about her.

Miss Goddard stressed that at no time had there been any sexual contact, nor had there been a sexual relationship and said: "He was going to wait for her until she was older, to form a long lasting relationship."

The defendant himself had put it "It was a situation that got out of control. If I would have been thinking clearly, I would have stopped it right at the beginning."

His wife had now ended their relationship and there was no prospect of a reconciliation. He lost his job and was currently on medication for depression.

Judge Edward Slinger said Ford had wrecked his background and character. There had been "one disastrous night".

He told him "Part of your training is to warn you of the dangers of youngsters falling for you and having crushes upon you.

You are very much aware, as part of your training and professional responsibility, that you must deal with temptation of that kind both firmly and with sympathy."

He said a custodial sentence would normally follow and although it would punish him and deter others, he would be released within a short time.

It was a wholly exceptional case and therefore he was making a three-year community order.