A MAN has appeared in court after being charged with four offences of indecent assault against a seven-year-old girl in Alveston, near Thornbury, more than 36 years ago.

Andrew Hocking, 56, of Gorse Close, Copthorne, Sussex, is accused of committing the offences during 1976 and 1977.

He has also been charged with 11 offences of making indecent images of children between 2009 and 2011 and with one offence of possessing an extreme pornographic image in 2011. Those offences were alleged to have been committed in West Sussex.

Hocking appeared in custody at Crawley Magistrates' Court on Friday, November 22. He was granted bail and the case was adjourned for a preliminary hearing at Lewes Crown Court on Monday, December 23.

The prosecution, authorised by the Crown Prosecution Service, followed a proactive intelligence-led investigation by the Paedophile On Line Investigation Team (POLIT) of Sussex Police.