The family of Olivia Wood have spoken movingly of the pain, loss and strength they have felt in the months since her death, after her killer Kieron Goodwin was jailed for life.

Olivia, 29, was murdered in the early hours of Tuesday 30 July 2024 by Goodwin, a man she had been in a relationship with for fewer than three months. During his sentencing at Bristol Crown Court this week, her mother and sisters paid tribute to Olivia's character and condemned the harm caused by her killer.

Her mother, Astrid Wood, described Olivia as a "loving, hardworking and helpful" daughter whose compassion extended to the smallest creatures.

"She gave me purpose," she said. "She was beautiful and confident walking her path, she knew where she wanted to be.

"I miss her voice, her laugh, her warmth, her stories from work, her experiences with the little animals that she loved so much. There was always a beetle or a bumblebee to rescue."

Speaking directly about her daughter's murder, she added: "A hole has been severed and bitten out of my heart, out of my womb. It hurts. I feel sick. I am limping inside with pain. I gave life to Olivia and no-one, no person on this earth was allowed to take her life away."

Olivia's sister Tamara said: "Our lives have always been deeply entwined. She is one of us, and we are one of her.

"This loss will never leave me. A deep empty chasm sits in my heart like a heavy black stone. This shouldn't have happened. She was too young, taken far too soon."

Their eldest sister, Kyra, said Olivia's kindness had made her vulnerable to someone who manipulated her compassion.

"The defendant lied and lied. He preyed on Olivia's good nature," she said. "He knew she couldn't drive away from anyone who might harm themselves. She turned around.

"Olivia's kindness has inadvertently saved another woman from her death."

Family friend Soscha Seymour also addressed the court, criticising Goodwin for dragging the family through a five-week trial rather than admitting to his actions.

"If the defendant had any decency, he would have admitted to his actions and prevented what we have all had to endure," she said.

"He instead chose cowardice and a disgusting, misogynistic assassination of Olivia's character. Not only has her life been taken by this monster, but her reputation too.

"I want this to be my opportunity to say loud and clear that Olivia was not this person and her memory does not deserve to be tarnished by the allegations made during this trial."

Alongside the life sentence handed down for Olivia's murder, Goodwin – from Frome, Somerset – was convicted of multiple other offences against three other women, including rape, controlling and coercive behaviour, and sexual assault. He was also made the subject of indefinite restraining orders preventing him from contacting them.

All three women submitted victim personal statements to the court. One said she had spent years in survival mode and now struggled to process the full scale of what she experienced.

"The aftermath has been the most devastating," she said. "I feel very trapped in my current life and still feel overwhelmed and anxious about what the future holds for me."

Another said the trauma had shaped her life in ways she still lives with every day: "It has affected my mental health, my ability to work full time, my relationships, my trust in people, and my sense of safety in the world.

"He may have moved on to harm others, but I am still carrying the weight of what he did to me."

The third woman told the court: "He made his abuse so discreet to the outside world that no one would ever have known what went on behind closed doors, so I felt alone.

"I now know that I am stronger than I ever gave myself credit for, and so are his other victims. For the first time since I met Kieron, I have felt believed, validated, and supported – and that is the one thing he can't take away from me."

Detective Superintendent Lorett Spierenburg, the senior investigating officer, praised the courage of all the women involved in the case.

"Olivia's loss has left a hole in her family that will never be filled," she said. "Despite that, they have had to sit in court for more than a month while Goodwin refused to admit to her murder.

"Not only did he manipulate and abuse Olivia, but he did the same to the victims whose courage in coming forward has undoubtedly protected other women."

She added: "They should be so proud of themselves and how they have not only stood up against Goodwin but also stood up for women everywhere."