A man has been jailed for almost a decade after he stabbed a father in the neck in front of his young children.

Matthew Richardson, 39, barged into a home in Cyril Child Close on Colchester’s Greenstead estate after a man answered a knock at the door of his mother’s home.

The victim, 32, was visiting his mother on March 23 last year with his sons, then aged five and six.

During the afternoon the victim spoke with Richardson’s mother after part of a toy his sons were playing with hit her car. The boys apologised and the family returned home.

But at 6.20pm Richardson, who lives in the same street, knocked on the door and then forced entry, stabbing the dad in the neck and head-butted him.

Richardson had initially denied charges of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm on the man and assault causing actual bodily harm on his mother, who lived at the address, but changed his plea to guilty during a hearing at Chelmsford Crown Court on Tuesday.

He was jailed for nine years for the wounding charge and six months, to run consecutively, for the ABH.

After the hearing the resident, 57, said: “He forced his way in through our front door and I didn’t realise immediately he had a knife.

“I had a broken arm and wrist at the time and I had to jump on his back to get him off my son.”

She was knocked to the floor and suffered bruising to the side of her body.

The attack was witnessed by the children.

Detective Constable Alison Cotter said: “The lengthy jail term handed to Richardson sends out a very strong warning to anyone who wants to carry a knife and use it – offenders will be brought to justice and dealt with severely.

“This violent, unprovoked attack has had a devastating impact on the victim and his family and they are still suffering the effects today, and will do for some time.

“I want to thank them for their patience and willingness to assist Essex Police with this investigation.”

The resident added she was pleased the case is now over and hoped it would now bring the family closure.