A lovelorn husband broke into the former family home and started a small fire while his estranged wife and son were asleep upstairs.

Then Michael Hill left the property in Lower Road, Staple after the smoke alarms had been triggered and stood outside.

Now a judge has ruled the reason that the 32-year-old was waiting nearby was to ensure Lucy Hill and their nine-year-old son were safe.

Judge Heather Norton told him: “I have no doubt that you genuinely love your wife and you stayed there to check on their safety.”

Hill, who has no fixed address, was jailed for 22 months after admitting reckless arson and possessing a knife – which was later found in his car parked nearby.

Mrs Hill, in a victim impact statement, said her estranged husband “was not a bad person and had never been violent”.

She added that he was “a hard-working, caring, supportive and a good dad and she had never before felt intimidated.

She said "it was only in his darkest moments that things got out of hand” and she blamed the incident on his drink and drug issues.

Prosecutor Don Ramble said the fitter claimed he had put out the fire before leaving the property.

But the judge rejected that account, saying: “I take the view he did not have any clear intention of starting the fire before arriving; although he had no right to be inside the house.

“He was just someone who had found it difficult to leave the family home. And while he was intoxicated had made his way to the house and climbed in through a window.

“I take the view that the chair was deliberately burned and while he was there burning fabric had fallen to the floor and the room was still alight as Mrs Hill came downstairs.

“Fortunately the damage was minimal and the fire was alright only a short period of time before being discovered.

“He stayed outside and my view was he was keeping an eye on what was happening to his wife and child. If he had genuinely thought the fire was out he would have left.

“Although the fire was started deliberately it was an act borne out of alcohol and heightened emotions and one which he subsequently regretted," she added.

John Barker, defending, said that the father-of-two was “plainly a decent man who had been acting out of character".

“He was depressed and ashamed of his depression,” he added.