Girls who survived Southport attack meet again: It was like having big sisters'

A group of young girls gathered for a normal playdate, chatting and practicing pilates while listening to Harry Styles. The parents were later shaken by memories of the Southport attack on 29 July 2024, when a hooded teenager turned a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club into a mass stabbing. Three children were murdered and others, along with adults, were stabbed repeatedly, with some critically injured. Nearly two years later, parents of five surviving girls spoke about their daughters’ heroism. They described how primary school children protected others by shielding them from the attacker, even while fleeing and being injured. Families changed names to protect identities and expressed concern that the girls’ courage may be forgotten.

"The last time these girls shared a room was on 29 July 2024. That day, they fled in fear as a hooded teenager turned a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club in Southport into one of the most horrific attacks on children in modern British history. Three girls Elsie Dot Stancombe, aged seven, Bebe King, six, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine were murdered and eight other children and two adults were stabbed repeatedly, some critically injured."

"Only now, nearly two years on, the parents of five of those girls are ready to speak. Over nearly four hours of interviews, they told the Guardian of their daughters' heroism that day, when girls of primary school age saved lives by shielding others from the attacker, and how they feel their courage risks being forgotten. None of the families can be identified so their names have been changed in this article."

"Daisy was seven when she and her best friend went to the Hart Space for what should have been a highlight of their summer. Many of the girls were making bracelets, minutes away from being picked up by their parents, when an older boy walked in carrying a 20cm knife. At first, some thought it was a prank. She put her arms around the girls as he started to attack them."

"As they fled, some falling over, Daisy helped one girl down the stairs and shielded another by crouching over her as the attack continued. CCTV footage showed Daisy staggering outside, only to be grabbed by the killer and dragged back inside. She was stabbed 33 times and lost her entire blood volume, leaving her in a coma for five days."

Read at www.theguardian.com