Western Australia counsellor admits to touching two boys

A Perth counsellor has admitted to inappropriately touching two boys while struggling to deal with his homosexuality, but denied sexually abusing other boys in his care.

Allan Keith Huggins, 68, is on trial in the West Australian District Court, charged with 49 offences stemming from when he was an education officer at the Warminda school-to-work program in 1990 and 1991.

He testified on Monday that he had told two clinical psychologists at the time he was attracted to teenage boys and had touched two youths unrelated to this trial.

"I was in therapy and I was trying to unburden myself," he said.

Huggins told the court he was having difficulty adjusting to being gay and did not want to hurt his wife and children.

He also attributed some of his desire for boys to having been abused when he was aged between seven and 12.

"I just sucked it up and lived with it all my life, but I was aware that it had created a problem," Huggins said.

But he denied the crimes for which he was on trial, including touching, masturbation, sexual penetration and oral sex.

Huggins rejected allegations put to him by prosecutor Bernard Standish, including performing oral sex on one boy and repeatedly telling him to be brave.

"I don't think so, no, not at all," he said.

Huggins also rejected the assertion he swam in a pool with two boys and touched the genitals of one boy before threatening them not to tell anyone.

"I'm not the threatening type," Huggins said.

When Mr Standish suggested the boys in the program needed help because of their troubled childhoods, Huggins replied: "Absolutely, and I was on their side."

The trial continues.