Southport attack inquiry launched

The first phase of the inquiry into the Southport attack has begun, with Rt Hon Sir Adrian Fulford appointed as chair.

The home secretary announced in January that an inquiry would be launched to examine what went wrong in this case and how services should respond to fixated youth violence.

Following consultations the victims and families of those killed or affected by the attacks, Sir Adrian Fulford has been appointed chair. He plans to travel to meet those affected as a first priority. Sir Adrian is a retired Lord Justice of Appeal and former judge of the International Criminal Court 2003 to 2012. Previously, he was the Vice-President of the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) in 2019 and was the first Investigatory Powers Commissioner between 2017 to 2019.

The inquiry will be statutory and will take place in two phases. The first phase will thoroughly investigate the circumstances surrounding the attack and the events leading up to it. This will include examining an overall timeline of the perpetrator’s history and interactions with various public bodies including criminal justice, education, social care, and healthcare, as well as decision-making and information-sharing by local services and agencies.

The second phase is expected to focus on the wider issues of children and young people being drawn into extreme violence.

Home secretary Yvette Cooper said: "The brutal murder of three young girls: Bebe, Elsie and Alice in Southport was an unimaginable tragedy – we owe it to their families, and all those affected on that terrible day to quickly understand what went wrong, answer difficult questions and do everything in our power to prevent something like this from happening again.

"The Southport Inquiry will provide insights into any failings that allowed a young man with a previous history of violence, to commit this horrendous attack.

"Sir Adrian Fulford will bring a wealth of legal and criminal justice expertise to this role, and I am pleased he has agreed to chair the inquiry."