Southport Attack Inquiry Report Due April 2026

The first report from the public inquiry into the July 29, 2024, knife attack in Southport is scheduled for release on April 13, 2026. The inquiry was established to examine the circumstances surrounding the attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance workshop, which resulted in the deaths of three children.

The attack occurred shortly before midday on July 29, 2024, at the Hart Space studio in the Merseyside town of Southport. Alice da Silva Aguiar, aged nine, Elsie Dot Stancombe, aged seven, and Bebe King, aged six, were killed. Ten other people, including eight children and two adults, were seriously injured during the indiscriminate attack.

The perpetrator, Axel Rudakubana, was handed a minimum prison sentence of 52 years at Liverpool Crown Court in January 2025.

Scope of the Southport Inquiry

Commissioned by then Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, the Southport Inquiry was designed to investigate the overall timeline of the killer’s history and his interactions with various public bodies. The inquiry sought to identify failings that allowed a young man with a previous history of violence to carry out the attack.

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The investigation, chaired by retired High Court judge Sir Adrian Fulford, examined how Rudakubana’s parents reportedly minimised or hid his disturbing behaviour. The inquiry looked into how the teenager was able to obtain a cache of dangerous weapons.

The formal process began on April 7, 2025, when the Home Secretary issued the terms of reference. In a statement at the time, 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.

Yvette Cooper

The inquiry’s hearings began on July 8, 2025, for two days, before reconvening on September 8, 2025. Over the following nine weeks, the inquiry heard evidence from witnesses, surviving victims, and the bereaved parents of the three girls.

Phases and Future Findings

The inquiry has been divided into distinct phases. The first phase, which concluded in November 2025, focused on establishing a definitive account of the events at the Hart Space dance studios and analyzing the precursor events leading up to the attack.

A second phase is scheduled to begin in 2026. This subsequent stage will examine the broader systemic question of how young people become drawn into extreme violence.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has stated that the government intends to act on the recommendations provided in the inquiry’s findings.

This, for me, is a matter of principle. It’s absolutely right that we act on the findings of this

Keir Starmer

When questioned about whether specific organisations should be held accountable for the failings identified, Starmer stated that there should always be accountability and affirmed that the government would follow through on its word to act on the report.