A depraved father and son have been locked up for a total of 23 years for “gross” sexual abuse.

Peter Reed raped one young girl and also abused another girl. He and his father Gordon molested one of the girls as they watched pornography.

Peter Reed, 42, of Albany Road, Chatham, was sentenced to 16 years yesterday after a judge said the offending fell into “the grossest possible category”.

Retired road sweeper Gordon Reed, 71, of the same address, was sentenced to seven years.

Judge Michael Carroll told him: “In some ways although you do not face as many charges, or as serious a charge, in one way your criminality is greater.

“You are the senior and what you did in the presence of your son is beyond belief.”

Peter Reed denied rape, causing or inciting child prostitution or pornography, sexual assault of a child and engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child.

His father denied sexual assault of a child and engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child.

They were convicted of all offences after trial in April. Peter Reed still maintains his innocence.

A jury at Maidstone Crown Court heard the pair sat either side of a girl and molested her while performing sex acts on themselves.

In separate abuse Peter Reed raped the girl and filmed another young girl touching herself intimately. The film was found on his mobile phone.

"In one way your criminality is greater. You are the senior and what you did in the presence of your son is beyond belief..." - Judge Michael Carroll to Gordon Reed

He denied he was responsible for it and claimed other people had access to his phone. He also denied knowing the video was on the phone.

Judge Carroll rejected a submission by Gordon Reed’s lawyer Imran Mahmood that he could be “safely managed” by a suspended prison sentence.

“This is not just sexual assault, it is the whole scenario of sexual assault,” he said. “In my book that is not suspended sentence country.

“It is not a dangerousness case, but it is a punishment case.”

The judge told Peter Reed the rape victim was particularly vulnerable because of her extreme youth, adding: “She had no idea what was going on.”

He continued: “The overall picture is one of extreme seriousness and you will receive the appropriate sentence for that.”

The names of the father and son will appear on the sex offenders’ register and a sexual harm prevention order was imposed, both indefinitely.

They will also be barred from working with children or vulnerable adults.

Michael Haynes, for Peter Reed, said the rape was “a one-off act - an opportunistic occasion”.

He added: “What happened that night is, perhaps, impossible to understand. He succumbed to that behaviour.

“While he hasn’t been able to accept he is responsible for the acts he has been found guilty of, he has reacted positively to being locked up.”

Imran Mahmood, for Gordon Reed, said his client came from a generation where a good character and work record were important. He had worked since the age of 15.

“Although prison has been a shock, he has adapted,” added Mr Mahmood.