'Beloved angel' Southport says goodbye to Alice, nine

Slowly, as the hundreds of mourners who had lined the streets bowed their heads and applauded, the white coffin of nineyear-old Alice da Silva Aguiar made its way by horsedrawn carriage to St Patrick's Catholic church in Southport.

- Donna Ferguson

"Let her dance to heaven," was the fervent wish of her parents, Sérgio and Alexandra, as they gathered to pay their last respects to their "beloved angel", who was killed in the mass stabbing at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class nearly a fortnight ago.

Dressed in white and holding pink and white flowers, members of the funeral cortege walked in the bright summer sunshine behind the white carriage, which was drawn by two white horses sporting pink plumes.

The mourners walked solemnly behind the coffin, past pink ribbons and balloons tied to lamp-posts and garden walls, while 30 uniformed police officers and a large crowd of bystanders clapped and released bubbles to show their support.

Hundreds of people then packed the church to attend the funeral, entering as the choir began to sing, while more listened outside as the service was relayed on loudspeakers.

Serena Kennedy, the chief constable of Merseyside police, was among those in attendance, along with several police officers, paramedics and other members of the emergency services.

Kennedy told the congregation that Alice's parents had asked her to deliver a public appeal for calm, following weeks of far-right rioting.

Acknowledging the little girl's family, she said: "You have shown great courage in asking me to be here today... to give a message from you, Alice's family, to say that you do not want there to be any more violence on the streets of the United Kingdom in the name of your daughter.