Teacher wounded in Southport knife attack says she has been ostracised, inquiry hears

A teacher seriously injured in the Southport knife attack told a public inquiry on Wednesday that she has been shunned by parts of the seaside community where she built her life, saying she now avoids local events for fear her presence could trigger children who survived the massacre.

Leanne Lucas, 36, who was repeatedly stabbed while trying to shepherd children to safety during the July 29 attack at a Taylor Swift–themed dance class, said her physical scars have healed but her psychological wounds remain "raw." She told the hearing at Liverpool Town Hall that she felt "excluded and ostracised" and had moved back in with her parents because she has been unable to live alone since the attack.

Three young girls — Alice da Silva Aguiar, 9; Bebe King, 6; and Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7 — were killed when Axel Rudakubana went on a stabbing rampage at the Hart Space dance studio last July. Rudakubana admitted murder and was sentenced in January to a minimum of 52 years in prison.

Ms. Lucas, who organised the summer club session alongside fellow teacher Heidi Liddle, said she had deliberately stayed away from local gatherings because "there has been indication that my presence is a trigger, and so I stay away." She said she no longer attends community events and felt she could not "heal alongside or within my community."

She described receiving online abuse, being alternately labelled a "hero" and a "villain," and losing the ability to carry out her former work as a primary school teacher and as a yoga instructor. "I feel as if my identity as a teacher, as a woman living independently, as someone who inspired children and supported families was stolen from me in those moments," she said. "Words like 'resilient' are thrown at me, but I do not feel resilient. Survivors don’t get to choose resilience. We simply have no choice."

Ms. Lucas told the inquiry she had qualified as a counsellor and launched a campaign against knife crime since the attack, and said she wanted the panel to understand that the harm had continued long after the event itself: "It is every day since. It has touched every part of my life — my work, my home, my health, my relationships, my peace of mind."

The inquiry, chaired by retired judge Sir Adrian Fulford, is examining why several agencies that had contact with Rudakubana — including the police, courts, the NHS and social services — did not identify or act upon the risk he posed, and whether the attack could have been prevented. Sir Adrian said it was "truly critical" that the inquiry secured answers for the victims' families and produced recommendations to reduce the risk of similar attacks.

Witnesses have described chaotic scenes on the day of the attack, including accounts from parents that, while teachers helped some children, others were left to save themselves in the immediate aftermath. One mother of a critically injured survivor told the inquiry that, although she believed the teachers' actions saved lives, her daughter had nonetheless been left alone to escape.

The hearing is considering whether courts should be able to impose restrictions on people suspected of planning serious violent offences before a crime is committed, and whether measures such as curfews, electronic tags, internet bans or social media restrictions should be made available in such circumstances. The inquiry is not examining the widespread rioting and civil unrest that followed the murders.

The panel is due to hear from the parents of Alice, Bebe and Elsie later in the week as the inquiry continues to take evidence and prepare recommendations aimed at preventing similar tragedies in future.

"The truth is, we are all hurting, each in our own way," Ms. Lucas told the inquiry. "I offer my words only to show the impact on my life, not to take away from theirs."