Hollie Gazzard's father honoured for domestic abuse awareness work

Nick Gazzard was honoured for his work in increasing awareness of domestic abuse

The father of a woman killed by her ex-partner has been honoured for his work in combating domestic abuse.

Nick Gazzard's daughter Hollie, 20, was stabbed to death in the Gloucester salon where she worked in 2014.

Her father founded the Hollie Gazzard Trust in her memory and said the trust had "saved lives" through its work.

Mr Gazzard said he was "honoured" to receive an honorary fellowship from the University of Gloucestershire.

'Real privilege'

He was among 10 people at the ceremony who the university said had made an outstanding contribution in Gloucestershire, nationally or on the international stage.

"For me, it was a real privilege and I am very proud to receive the award, particularly from the University of Gloucestershire where I studied in 1982," he said.

"From the outset when I set up the trust, it was always my intention to help others and prevent others going through what we went through.

"I can focus my intention on the issues Hollie faced and deliver education workshops in schools. It's about providing education to young people in particular," he added.

Hollie Gazzard's killer was jailed for 24 years in 2014

As well as overseeing the Hollie Gazzard Trust, Mr Gazzard is also a guest lecturer at the University of Gloucestershire on various courses, including paramedic science, policing and criminology.

He said: "I use Hollie's story as an example, it brings it to life and bridges the gap between the theory and the real world and understand what can happen.

"We get a lot of feedback from individuals to say 'the trust has helped me'.

"We, as a trust, have saved a lot of people."

The ceremony was presided over by the Bishop of Gloucester, the Right Reverend Rachel Treweek, pro-chancellor of the university, and Lord Michael Bichard, chancellor of the university.