A man repeatedly kicked his partner with steel toe-capped shoes over a row about their relationship.

Southampton Crown Court heard how Henry Cooper, 47, turned on his partner at her home when he accused her of sleeping with their neighbour.

He kicked her in the head and ribs, leaving the 'vulnerable' woman feeling nauseous and in pain with 'quite significant swelling' around her head and left eye.

Prosecuting, Keely Harvey said: “There had been problems with drinking and when drunk he had assaulted her several times before.”

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But mitigating, Annabel Hazlitt described Cooper as a 'man who is struggling with life', adding that he has severe learning difficulties and cannot read or write.

The court heard how Cooper left home after the attack but when he came back, the front door was locked and his partner was on the phone to police.

So while she spoke to a call handler, Cooper broke a window to get back in - grabbing her phone and throwing it to the floor.

But it was too late, as police rushed to the property and arrested Cooper.

On his way to the police van, he kicked out multiple times, catching one of the police officers.

Ms Harvey said officers could tell by the smell of alcohol on him that he had been drinking.

He was arrested and interviewed but remained mostly quiet.

He did however accept that he had been wearing the heavy-duty footwear.

Cooper, of Dinham Road, New Milton, went on to plead guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm, criminal damage and assault of an emergency worker.

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Ms Hazlitt said he 'understands the consequences of his actions' and had been angry at the time when he committed the offence with 'no planning or pre-meditation'.

Cooper was jailed for six months.

He has already served two months on remand since the incident on July 17.

Judge Christopher Parker KC said he could have caused her more serious injury or death adding that he 'did try to prevent her from reporting [him] to the police by damaging her telephone'.

“If you do bad things to other people then there will be consequences for you," he said.