Five men aged between 26 and 50 have been arrested in the past month as part of police's ongoing child sex offences investigation.

The five men were arrested in relation to sharing indecent images of children.

Police from the Digital Media Investigation Unit (DMIU) went to six addresses, five in the north and one in west of Cumbria, after receiving information about online child sex offences.

The five men have now been bailed as police investigate the 48 digital exhibits that were seized across the six addresses.

This week police have been publicising how they help protect children online and have offered advice on ways to ensure their safety.

Officers in the dedicated DMIU respond to information from members of the public, victims, police intelligence and packages from other agencies, including the National Crime Agency. They then investigate and assess information before deciding whether to raid homes.

Detective Inspector Jenny Beattie said: “This week’s campaign has been a great opportunity to engage with the public of the dangers online. There are people online who are actively looking to groom children and sexually abuse them.

“Everyone can take steps in order to ensure that their child is not a victim of such abuse.

“The DMIU are currently in the process of developing new intelligence and will continue to actively seek out those committing online child sex offences in order to protect children and bring offenders to justice.”

Police and crime commissioner, Peter McCall, welcomed the campaign to highlight the importance of keeping children safe online.

He said: “The message is simple if you are accessing images or videos that constitute a criminal offence we will find these on whatever device you have them stored or viewed."

As part of the campaign, police have produced an educational video with key advice to parents about how they can help protect their children online.