Parents of Alice da Silva Aguiar release photo of daughter at Southport Taylor Swift event

A picture of Alice da Silva Aguiar eagerly waiting to get into the Taylor Swift themed dance class where she was fatally stabbed has been released by her grieving family.

The smiling nine-year-old is seen standing next to a cardboard cutout of the American singer at the Hart Space community centre, in Southport, on the morning of Monday, 29 July.

Within hours of the photo being taken, a knifeman entered the summer holiday dance class and stabbed several children and two adults.

Two girls - Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven - both died at the scene and Alice passed away the following day in Alder Hey Hospital.

Her parents, Sergio and Alexandra, originally from Madeira in Portugal, released several new photos of their "perfect dream child" as hundreds gathered for the girl's funeral.

Some of the photos show her as a much younger girl, dressed in a tutu at ballet classes, while another shows her outside school. In all of the photos, Alice is smiling at the camera.

Hundreds of people lined a street of Southport on Sunday, 11 August, to watch as a horse drawn carriage transported Alice's coffin to the service at St Patrick’s Catholic Church.

They were joined by some of the paramedics and firefighters who responded to the deadly attack as well as police officers and Merseyside Police Chief Constable Serena Kennedy.

In a statement read out on their behalf at the service, Alice's parents said: "You were our perfect dream child, everything was perfect from the moment you arrived.

"A good girl, with strong values and a kind nature, a lover of animals and an environmentalist in the making. You moved our world with your confidence and empathy.

"Playful, energetic, friendly and always so respectful...no shouting is a house rule you applied, a big task for a small girl, especially in a Portuguese household.

"Being around you was a privilege, we cherished every milestone, you completed us...we loved cuddling you every night for almost nine years, apart from sleepovers and nights away with your friends, we were never apart."

They went on to say: “We feel shocked, unimaginable pain, we miss you.

“From time to time, the pin drops. When mommy says ‘good night, Sergio, good night Alice’ and then it hits us all over again. We don’t hear you back.

“Moving forward will be hard. Some days are better than others, but none will be perfect.

“Some moments we are weak and we say wild things. But we made a promise to always be there for each other in moments of despair, a pinky promise.

“We share a strong bond and we’ll always have each other to rely on. We won’t be alone."

The couple thanked the "wonderful community" of Southport for their support and ended the statement with: “For now, our beloved Angel, keep dancing, mummy and daddy will always, always love you.”

Alice's parents were praised by a senior police officer for their “courage” in calling for violent riots to stop after their daughter’s death.

Serena Kennedy, Chief Constable of Merseyside Police, was among those who addressed mourners at the funeral.

She said she was “ashamed” that the family had to “consider” the riots while planning the service, saying she hoped those involved are “hanging their head in shame”.

Ms Kennedy 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.

“I am ashamed and I’m so sorry that you had to even consider this in the planning of the funeral of your beautiful daughter, Alice."

She continued to say: "I hope that anyone who has taken part in the violent disorder on our streets over the past 13 days is hanging their head in shame at the pain that they have caused you, a grieving family.

“I know that you asked that there is no more violence and that you are now given time as a family to grieve in peace.

“And that our traumatised community is allowed time to heal, the time it needs to start to heal.”

Eight children who were injured in the attack have all have now been discharged from hospital and are recovering at home.

Axel Rudakubana, 18, has been charged with three counts of murder, the attempted murder of yoga class instructor Leanne Lucas, businessman John Hayes, and eight children, and possession of a kitchen knife with a curved blade.

Want more on the issues affecting the North? Our podcast, From the North answers the questions that matter to our region.