Mourners told Elsie filled life with 'love and joy'

Elsie's family walked behind the carriage in a procession from their home

Mourners at the funeral of Southport stabbing victim Elsie Dot Stancombe heard she had brought "light, love and joy to so many lives".

A eulogy read on behalf of her parents to the packed St John's Church in Birkdale said the seven year old had "brought them nothing but happiness".

Hundreds had lined the streets around the church in advance of the service, which her family said they wanted to be known as "Elsie's special day".

Her parents urged people to wear bright colours and help make the day a celebration of her life.

Elsie Dot Stancombe died alongside Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, and six-year-old Bebe King

"From the moment her parents knew of her existence she has brought them nothing but happiness and the life she has lived has been a true reflection of the love they have all shared together," the congregation was told.

The poem I Am Not Really Gone by Kayleigh Simmons was read "from Elsie's perspective" by the Reverend Canon Anne Taylor from St Peter's Church, Formby.

It included the lines: "I am not really gone so many parts of me remain, I want to send you a reminder anytime you are in pain.

"When you hear the laughter of my friends and the words of my favourite song, When you look up at the sparkling stars, I have been here all along."

People lined the streets as the cortege proceeded through Birkdale

The white horse drawn carriage outside St John's Church in Birkdale

The family of Elsie Dot Stancombe asked people to give their daughter "the best possible celebration”

Katie Sykes, from Farnborough Road School, paid tribute at the service.

"When Elsie first arrived at school, on her dad's shoulders, she quickly made an impression.

"She wasn't just Elsie, she was Elsie Dot. With her hands on her hips and her usual sassy shimmer she explained, ‘that's my name because my mummy says I'm just like a little dot’."

Ms Sykes also shared tributes from her friends at school which described how they had played and laughed together and how much they loved her.

Farnborough Road School Infants head teacher Jennie Sephton read the poem We Only Wanted You, by Vicky Holder.

Children have been laying flowers outside the Atkinson arts centre in Southport this morning

Flowers outside the gates at Farnborough Road School where Elsie attended

In a statement released by Elsie's family earlier they said they would be celebrating her life "with positivity, hope and love".

"‘We are the four best friends in the whole wide world – and that mantra will remain with us for the rest of our lives, sound in the knowledge that Elsie is here with us and forever will be in our hearts," they said.

As well as those gathered in the church, others watched the service on screens at the church hall and Liverpool Road Methodist Church.

After the service, a funeral procession passed the site of floral tributes outside the Atkinson arts centre in Southport, with a tribute as part of the cortege from Royal Mail, where Elsie's father, David, works.

Crowds pay tribute to Elsie as the cortege passed along Lord Street in Southport

Royal Mail, where Elsie's father, David, works also paid tribute in the form of a convoy

Among the people who had come to pay their respects was local resident Linda Wright who said she wanted to show the family "we are there for them".

"The loss of three little girls, and the way that they've been lost, has impacted on us as a community," she said.

"You've just got to come out because you feel it so much in your heart, that you want to support the family, you want the family to know that you are there for them, and we are there for them."

Elsie's family will hold a private service for her this afternoon.

Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, and six-year-old Bebe King, were also killed in the attack. Their funerals took place earlier this month.