THE deputy head teacher of a Merseyside girls’ school has admitted his role in a paedophile ring.

Greenbank High School teacher Patrick Lennon pleaded guilty to encouraging another man to rape a three-year-old girl.

Lennon, 59, also admitted making nearly 1,800 obscene pictures of children and further allegations relating to “extreme pornography”.

Liverpool Crown Court heard those charges related to disgusting images of people performing sexual acts on a horse.

Lennon, of Warwick Avenue, Crosby, appeared at the court via video-link from Walton prison, while two other men, John Hawley and Phillip Skitt, appeared in the dock.

The three men were accused of a total of 73 child sex offences, with Lennon alone accused of 29 charges.

Wearing an open-necked shirt and speaking in a loud voice Lennon pleaded guilty to 23 of the offences.

He pleaded guilty to two offences of encouraging or assisting Hawley to rape a three-year-old girl, believing it would be committed on November 16.

He then pleaded guilty to 15 offences of making indecent images of children between November 2004 and March 10, 2010. Lennon also admitted six offences of possessing extreme pornography between January 26, 2009, and September 2, 2009.

He denied two offences of incitement to rape a child, another of incitement to sexually assault a child and three offences of encouraging or assisting an offence, believing it would be committed.

Lennon has worked at Greenbank girls school, which is attended by 890 girls aged 11-16, since the 1970s.

He was suspended in September. None of the charges are connected in any way with the school. Bolton man Hawley was charged with 30 charges.

The 37-year-old, of Boundary Street, Halliwell, admitted three charges of rape between January 2008 and January 2010.