A man who sexually touched two young girls at a Macarthur Street playground will avoid prison.
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Fraser Shillington, 21, was sentenced in the Ballarat Magistrates' Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to two charges.
He received a two-year community corrections order, ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid community work.
He will also need to complete mental health assessments and treatment, and offender behaviour programs - these programs can contribute to up to 50 hours of the unpaid work.
He will be placed on the Sexual Offenders Register for eight years.
The sentence was without conviction, with Magistrate Tim Walsh pointing out Shillington's youth and prospects of rehabilitation.
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"Significantly, you have recognised almost immediately there was something wrong, and have taken a number of steps to facilitate your rehabilitation," he told Shillington.
"For that reason I don't propose to record a conviction against you - I must, however, denounce your conduct, you must be punished justly for it."
Mr Walsh said it was "serious and concerning offending".
"I have read the victim impact statements ... they are scared, confused, more than a little unsettled," he said.
"I can't help but wonder if their parents will allow them to ever again be out of their sight given what happened."
Pleading guilty earlier this month, Shillington said it was 'like something in his brain switched and it wasn't me' when he saw the 10-year-old and 12-year-old and went over to sexually touch them.
He parked his car and walked past the girls at the Soldiers Hill park, then stopped, turned around and went back to the girls who were playing in the tunnel.
Shillington asked the girls if they had seen his lost dog, then sexually assaulted the two girls over their clothes.
He went back to his car and drove away and the girls left the park to tell their parents.
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