Nearly 1,000 cases of child sex abuse were recorded by police in Kent last year.

In more than a quarter of these cases the children were aged 10 or under.

The figures, obtained by the NSPCC under the Freedom of Information Act also show that 29 offences were committed against children aged three or under, with 11 aged two, five aged one and four under one-year old.

In total, there were 924 incidents where under-18s were recorded as victims of sex crimes, including rape, gross indecency and incest.

In all, 111 offenders aged between 12 and 78 were cautioned by Kent police for sex offences against children in 2007-2008.

NSPCC director of public policy Phillip Noyes said: "These shocking figures reveal just how young many of the reported victims of sex abuse are, with even one-year-olds being at risk, although the highest numbers of offences were against children in their early teens. It's a grim picture but this is only a snapshot, as our research indicates there are many more abused children whose suffering never comes to light."

"Clearly, very young children who are sexually abused can't speak out and it's currently very difficult to get a clear understanding of how many child sex abuse victims there are. If we are able to get these details every year it will start to build a more accurate picture of what is happening and we can make more concerted efforts to protect children."