A former teacher and scout leader from Romford has been jailed for 10 years for a series of sexual offences against children.

Michael Costin, 46, of Lincoln Avenue, was found guilty at Oxford Crown Court on Wednesday October 26 of seven counts of sexual activity with a boy aged between 13 and 15 years old, four counts of sexual activity with a 15-year-old girl and sexual assault on a 17-year-old boy.

The offences, involving children from the Vale of White Horse area of Oxfordshire, happened between 2007 and 2010.

Police said Costin took the victims on camping trips before plying them with alcohol and cannabis and abusing them.

Costin, a former teacher in Suffolk and scout leader was also convicted of similar offences at Ipswich Crown Court in 1996 and sentenced to two years imprisonment and made to sign the sex offenders’ register for 10 years.

Costin had previously been chairman of the Millwall Rugby Club in the Docklands but was expelled following his arrest.

A club spokesman at the time emphasised that Costin had no involvement with the youth section of the club.

On Wednesday Costin was given an indeterminate sentence of 10 years imprisonment, made to sign the sex offenders’ register for life and disqualified from working with children indefinitely.

He will serve a minimum four years behind bars before being considered for parole.

After the hearing, Thames Valley Det Con Peter Semczyszyn said: “I am obviously very pleased with this sentence as Michael Costin is a devious and manipulative individual who gets himself in a position of trust before abusing his victims.

“I would like to pay tribute to the bravery of these young people and their families and I would hope this sentence brings them some sort of closure to what has been a very distressing time.”