Phillip turned his life around due to a comment from his daughter

A man who suffered domestic violence as he was growing up, and admits to spending much of his own life fighting, is setting up an organisation to stop anti-social behaviour in society.

A chat with his daughter, Georgia-Louise, on her graduation day, finally persuaded Phillip Sard, 46, from Newport, to take a different view on his own life.
Phillip said: “I grew up on a council estate in Shanklin. I had a very hard upbringing and I was subjected to a lot of physical violence. My mother was also a victim of domestic abuse.
“It had a real effect on me at school and my education, and I spent pretty much most of my life fighting. If I saw someone was being hurt on the street I would protect them – I spent a great deal of time getting into trouble.”

However, Phillip, who has been married to Helen for 25 years and has four children, finally realised he had to change his ways when his daughter, Georgia-Louise, graduated from university in 2018 with a first class honours degree in law and Chinese.
He said: “I was so proud of Georgia-Louise and, after her graduation, I said to her: ‘I have failed you as a father.’

“But she said she believed in me and this started me thinking about a new outlook on life. I thought about it for three or four weeks and decided I was going to change my life. Not only that, I was going to change other peoples’ lives. After 40 years in violence, I have gathered a lot of wisdom and knowledge. I want to use this in a positive way to steer others away from violent conduct.”
Phillip is in the process of setting up a new company, called Violence Resolutions UK Ltd, in an attempt to help others to cut down on anti-social behaviour.
He added: “I am working with the Hampshire and IW Police and its Violence Reduction Unit. I want to motivate people and encourage them in their lives. You don’t have to be violent or abusive; it’s a question of getting people to know they have the mechanisms to control their anger.

“By doing this, it’s breaking the cycle of violence. If someone grows up in that situation, it affects the next generation. A lot of what happens behind closed doors is not reported. It’s alarming and has to stop.
“I’m lucky. I have changed my life. I’m so happy and settled and my relationship goes from strength to strength and I am looking forward to my journey ahead.”
Phillip has now registered Violence Resolutions UK Ltd and is in the process of organising a business account and getting involved with a nationwide organisation. He said: “I’m looking forward to give anyone the chance to change their lives. Violence is on the increase and that’s alarming. I’m here to help.”

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