A CHILDREN'S protection charity has described the actions of two parents who subjected their teenage girls to a campaign of physical abuse as "unacceptable".

It comes after the husband and wife pair, who cannot be identified in order to protect the identity of the victims, were jailed for a total of almost six years following the abuse, which was said to have involved the use of belts.

Now children's protection charity the NSPCC has commented on the case.

A spokesperson for the charity said: “Violence against children is never acceptable and it is an upsetting fact that these girls believed the horrific acts they were subjected to may have been their fault.

“Abuse is always the fault of the abuser, not the abused.

“Adults with concerns about the safety of a child can speak to the NSPCC Helpline on 0808 800 5000, while Childline is there for young people on 0800 1111 or www.childline.org.uk.”

As previously reported in the Daily Echo, the court heard how the mother subjected the two teenagers to the “sustained and prolonged” abuse between 2014 and February 2018.

The court was told how the mother used weapons, including belts and a coat hanger.

Meanwhile, the father subjected the girls to abuse, also involving belts, between February and April last year.

The court heard one of the incidents took place in the hallway of their Southampton accommodation and was recorded on CCTV.

Their abuse was also brought to light by bruises and marks on the two girls, which were noticed by school officials.

Both girls and the couple’s two other children have since been taken into care.

In a victim impact statement, read out in court, one of the girls said the abuse had left her “unable to trust people”.

She said: “What my dad did has really impacted me. I can’t trust people because when I trusted my dad he broke it.

“He broke the only bond I will ever have between a father and a daughter.”

In her victim impact statement, also read out in court, the other girl said: “My family has been completely split apart as a result of this.”

The father, who pleaded guilty to guilty to one count of child abuse and was found guilty of another two multiple incident counts of child abuse, was sentenced to three years in prison.

The mother, who pleaded guilty to two multiple incident counts of child abuse, was sentenced to 30 months in prison.