Police raided Aimen Touati’s home in Houghton in April last year and seized his internet devices after a tip-off about his activity on Facebook.
Newcastle Crown Court heard a total of 239 pictures and three videos were found on the married dad’s mobile phone.
Prosecutor Neil Jones told the court the images were across all three categories of seriousness and said: “The age of the children contained in the images ranges from six-months old to 15-years old.”
Touati, 41, now of Clifton Road, Newcastle, admitted three charges of making indecent photographs of children.
The court heard Touati has never been in trouble before and is employed at the Department of Work and Pensions, in an office-based role.
Sophie Johnstone, defending, said Touati’s mental health was in decline at the time of the offending and told the court: “This is unsavoury offending and this is a man who is acutely aware of that.
“This time three years ago he would never have thought this would be his life. He had everything he ever wanted but he has, by his own doing, lost that now.”
Miss Johnstone said Touati has not yet told his bosses about his offending but does plan to!.
The court heard Touati is now separated from his wife and was told to leave the family home. He may also lose his job.
Mr Recorder David Gordon told the court: “Sometimes it is said that offending of this sort is criminal offending but without a victim.
“That is completely untrue.
“All of the children in each one of these images and movies is very likely to have experienced significant psychological, physical and sexual harm as a result of their experiences.”
Recorder Gordon said the damage done to the victims is likely to be “serious and lifelong” and told Touati: “If it weren’t for those people such as yourself, with an appetite for and deprived interest in such images and prepared to download them from the internet, perhaps those who abuse the children and take the images of the children being abused would be less inclined to do so.”
Recorder Gordon said he accepted Touati is “genuinely ashamed” and said he has a good prospect of rehabilitation in the community.
Touati was sentenced to 12 months, suspended for two years, with rehabilitation requirements and 200 hours unpaid work.
He was ordered to sign the sex offenders register and abide by a sexual harm prevention order for ten years.