Father Assaults Children

The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was alone at home with his children when he "lost it" because three of them were making a noise upstairs.

Worthing magistrates gave the 38-year-old 150 hours' community punishment after he pleaded guilty to three counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

He hit each of the three boys, all aged under 10, with a piece of MDF wood he was using to make a shelf when they wouldn't be quiet, magistrates heard.

Another of his children witnessed the shocking assaults.

Prosecuting, Catherine Davies told the court the man also shouted at the children, smacked them and dragged one of them from his bed, seriously bruising his arm.

The man's wife alerted police when she returned from a shopping trip to see her children in a distressed state, suffering injuries.

Mrs Davies said the man told police he "flipped" because he was depressed and grieving for his grandmother, who had died recently.

Mrs Davies said it was "an explosion of anger" which led to the violent outburst.

In mitigation, Jo Nisbet said the man, who accepted he had "anger management problems" realised "the catastrophic consequences of his actions and went to his GP, who immediately referred him for anger management therapy."

He is now living away from the family home and social services are monitoring the situation.

Mrs Nesbit, handing a number of character references to the magistrates, said: "My client appears before you a broken man.

"He now plans on concentrating all of his energy into helping his children."

The defendant was also ordered to pay 118 costs.