Being together brings us closer to our girls, say Southport families

According to three girls' families who were killed at a dance class in Southport last year, spending time together has helped them cope with their grief. For the past nine months as part of a documentary that will be shown on BBC One on Tuesday, a small group of journalists from BBC Breakfast has been following the families closely. They detail how they have grieved for their children and created legacy projects in their names in this book.

We've been together in some of the most difficult conversations,

Jenni Stancombe, mother of Elsie. "We'll all seem to pull the light [of the darkness] together, together. Elsie, seven years old, Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, and Bebe King, six, died at a Taylor Swift-themed dance workshop in July 2024.

The girls' parents' interviews were extremely personal, and the BBC has for the first time shared family footage of their children. The three families' names were used to create lasting legacies in their girls' names, according to the show. It shows how they trained for and competed in the London Marathon as well as the opening of a new playground at the school attended by two of the girls. The families didn't know each other before the tragedy, but Lauren King, Bebe's mother, says being together since they died has been crucial to our survival and a blessing.We can talk about our girls, and the similarities,

she says, referring to the girls' shared passion for dance and performing.

When I'm with Alice, I feel more connected to them,Alice's mum Alexandra Aguiar says.I feel more connected to the girls. "I'll never forget Alex's visit to tell me that Alice is a real mother figure and she'll be mothering [Elsie and Bebe], wherever they are. She was like, 'I promise you she'll be looking after them.

The film features home videos of the girls performing and joking.

You don't have to buy a smile, just bring up your face,

Elsie says in one.

She was determined to master something, using Elsie's example.

When she was focused on something, she was determined.

Hello, it's me! Alice says in another clip as she filmes herself.She danced

rather than describing his daughter, Sergio Aguiar tells us that Alice did not walk somewhere. Bebe's one clip shows her mucking about at home in an enormous hat when carrying a backpack. According to her parents, she lit up every room she entered.

She was completely selfless,

her dad Ben King says. Both families also mentioned how much their children were looking forward to the dance class before they died. Mrs King:

I saw [the class] and booked it as a surprise.

Alice knew all the songs, she was singing and dancing [to them],

Mrs Aguiar says.

The reason [Elsie] went was because the class, which would have been Taylor Swift-themed,

Mrs Stancombe says. "She only went to dance and make bracelets; never came home.

Mr and Mrs Stancombe told the BBC how they felt when meeting the Aguiar and King families for the first time. I felt their pain for them when I first met them.What they're going through [to know],Mrs Stancombe says, her voice trailing off.We'd prefer not to have met under these circumstances, but we're so happy that we have,says Mrs King.We try to help each other,Mr Aguiar says.We are all different, but we are very special to each other,his wife says.The Legacy Projects for each of the girls include Alice's WonderDance, which was created by the Aguiars to assist young performers with uniforms, classes, and transportation. The Stancombes have founded Elsie's Story, a charitable trust that gives grants to youth and those in the Southport area. Bebe's Hive, a royal center that provides assistance to grieving children, is one of the many initiatives they have funded.