Mr Justice Goose says that he is satisfied that for some time "Rudakubana had planned to kill as many as he could".

He says that Rudakubana bought the knife, with a particularly sharp point, that he wanted to use.

He had read information on how to stab people, saw the publicity for children's party at Southport Heart Space Dance School and decided to kill as many as could, targeting very young children.

The judge says he "must accept" that there was no evidence Axel Rudakubana had any terrorist cause, but added his culpability is "equivalent to terrorist matters, whatever its purpose".

Continuing his remarks, Mr Justice Goose says that the harm caused to each child, family and community is "profound" and "permanent".

He adds that the families of the three children who died will "never recover" and the lives of the other children will "never be the same".

He also references the defendant's comments in the police station - calling them "deeply disturbing".

Warning: This post contains distressing details.

Mr Justice Goose goes on to say that Rudakubana "savagely killed" three of the children over 15 minutes.

"It was such extreme violence of the upmost and exceptionally high seriousness that is difficult to comprehend why it was done," he says.

The judge goes on to say that he is sure Rudakubana had a settled and determined intention to carry out the offence, and that if had he been able to he would've killed all the children and adults who got in his way.

Mr Justice Goose has begun his sentencing remarks by describing the setting to the attack. He says the defendant knew there would be "very young girls" there at an "organised party"

He says the 26 children present were "all happy and enjoying themselves".

Rudakubana targeted them for the "horrific" and "extreme" violence he was intent upon.

"His intention was to murder as many of them as he physically could."

As a reminder, the feed from court will be suspended occasionally for legal reasons.

The sentencing of Axel Rudakubana is about to begin.

Stan Reiz KC, for the defence, says: "The defendant does not want to re-enter the room and if he is forced he will be disruptive."

As a reminder, Rudakubana has pleaded guilty to 16 charges, including the murder of three girls, and the attempted murder of ten other people.

We'll bring you the key lines as we get them from our reporters in court. You can also watch live at the top of this page - there's a short delay in the feed from court.

Warning: The feed from court will contain graphic details.

Daniel Sandford
Reporting from Liverpool Crown Court

We're now hearing mitigation from Rudakubana's lawyer, Stan Reiz KC.

He tells the court: "Something changed in him when he reached the age of 13.

"He was soon after excluded from school...and he never settled in any other school.

"Efforts to support him were unsuccessful... he became more detached and reclusive...had a level of maturity that fell far below his age."

Daniel Sandford
Reporting from Liverpool Crown Court

The court is now hearing the concluding statements from Deanna Heer KC of the prosecution, who says that for it to be terrorism, the use or threat has to be made for the purpose of advancing a political, religious, racial or ideological cause.

"It is not possible for the prosecution to identify any particular terrorist cause," says Heer.

"Rather, the evidence suggests that the defendant’s purpose was the commission of mass murder as an end in itself."

This concludes the statements from the prosecution.

The court is now hearing from the mother of one of the surviving victims - who hid in the toilet with Heidi Liddle, the instructor who was running the class with Leanne Lucas on the day of the attack.

When I arrived to collect her, I arrived to chaos. I abandoned my car and ran to find one of the event leaders, Leanne, covered in cuts and blood and saying, "he just came in and stabbed us".

As I approached the house where the kids ran to for safety, all I could hear were screams. My daughter wasn't there, and it quickly became apparent she was still in the building with the knifeman.

Following the arrival of the emergency services, I ran into the building after them to be with my daughter who I already believed was seriously injured or dead. The police told me I couldn't go in the room.

To my relief I turned around .. and saw her standing there with the other event leader, Heidi.

Heidi saved my girl that day by following her to the toilet after she headed there instead of down the stairs and out the door with the other children.

The court is now hearing a statement read on behalf of the parents of two sisters who survived the attack. Here's some of what the court heard:

It was the worst day of our lives. Both of our daughters suffered horrendous injuries…the girls are resilient but the injuries they sustained still affect them.

Since the incident the girls can’t be alone. They don’t leave their parents' side. They sleep with their parents. They are unable to walk to school without feeling scared.

They won’t get out of the car if it’s dark outside. Any slight noise can alarm them. They struggle with simple things that weren’t a problem before, like taking a shower and brushing teeth.

It’s like having babies again.

The court now hears from another of the surviving children.

I first thought that the man who stabbed me was a cleaner and when I saw him and what was happening I thought it was a prank.

I realised it wasn't a prank when I saw blood coming out of me.

I remember everything being fuzzy and everything that was going through my mind was about my family and friends. I was thinking "I don't want to die, I have got to get out of here."

I was so scared and worried but there are no words to really describe what happened on that day.

The mother of one of the surviving children - "Child A" (surviving children can't be named due to a court order) - is now sharing some thoughts from her daughter.

Child A thought the attack was a prank and when Axel Rudakubana approached her with the knife, she told him she "didn't want one" - she "didn't want to play". Rudakubana then attacked her.

"Our world collapsed in that moment and we are still trying to rebuild it," the girl's mother says.

"When she woke up [from surgery] she lunged forward and reached her arms out - reaching for her best friend... still believing she was in danger, trying to get to her."

"They were separated in the most terrifying way," her mother adds.

A statement is now being read on behalf of Heidi Liddle - the instructor who was running the class with Leanne Lucas on the day of the attack. Here is some of it:

I was in tears constantly and didn't feel safe in my own home.

It got to the point that the front and back door had to remain locked at all times - however all of the doors inside of the house had to be left open as I found it difficult to be in enclosed spaces and I was petrified of what would be on the other side of the door.

I replayed the incident over and over in my mind, changing the sequence of events.

I struggled mentally with not being physically injured and felt guilty for this.

Judith Moritz
Reporting from Liverpool Crown Court

The court next hears a statement from Jenny Stancombe, Elsie Dot Stancombe's mother, who directs some of her remarks at Axel Rudakubana. Read out by prosecution lawyer Deanna Heer KC, here's some of what she wanted to say:

We are not going to stand here and list everything you have taken away from us, because we refuse to give you the satisfaction of hearing it.

We will not let you know anything about [Elsie] because you don't deserve to know the extraordinary person she was.

You know what you have done, and we hope the weight of that knowledge haunts you every single day.

What you did was not only cruel and pure evil, it was the act of a coward.

Though you have stolen our daughter from us, you will not take away our determination to honour her memory. We will carry her love, positivity and her legacy forward, no matter how much pain you have caused.

• As a reminder: Elsie, 7, was one of the three girls killed on 29 July. Alice da Silva Aguiar, 9, and Bebe King, 6, were the other two murdered. Ten more people were injured.

A statement is now being read by the parents of Alice da Silva Aguiar, 9, who was killed in the attack by Axel Rudakubana. Here's some of what they wanted the court to hear:

Alice was always very kind. A world of possibilities awaited her. She was a beautiful girl. She was a strong and confident preteen with a world of dreams.

That summer’s day she was so excited to go to the dance workshop. In a matter of minutes our lives were shattered and turned upside down we kept up hope every second of her 14-hour fight, but when she lost her fight we lost our lives. It’s shattered our souls.

It feels like we’re stuck in a 5D horror movie with moving pictures and moments being relived. We can’t get out. Some moments are easier than others but every day is the same. Alice is not here when we wake up and she never will be.

There’s a sense of loss of foundation too. Alice was our purpose for living.

So what do we do now?

Image source, Family photograph

The court's just heard another statement - this time from a teenage survivor. Here's a section from it:

I watched you stab someone and then I saw you coming for me.

It was like slow motion.

You stabbed me in the arm and instinctively I turned and that’s when you continued to stab me in the back although I didn’t feel it at the time.

All I could heard was the screams. I was so scared of what you were doing and I was in a blind panic.

Image source, Instagram / Leanne Lucas

Leanne Lucas - who was stabbed five times during the attack - has just read this statement to the court:

As a 36-year-old woman, I cannot stay in my own home alone. As a 36-year-old woman I cannot go to work. As a 36-year-old woman I cannot walk down the street without holding my breath as I bypass a person and then glance back to see if they’ve attempted to stab me.

As a 36-year-old woman I cannot enter a public place without considering how I will get out in the event of an emergency. As a 36-year-old woman I cannot give myself compassion or accept praise, as how can I live knowing I survived when children died.

There was a long period of time after the incident where I felt I had no trust in society. I am trying to see the goodness in the world however the badness has been evidentially proven to me to exist, in plain sight, on our doorsteps, in our community.

You never think this is going to happen to you, I never thought this was going to happen to me and now my mindset has been altered to it could happen to you and it will probably happen to you. I feel that I have lost the ability to accept people now as they are. I worked with teenagers, I never would have considered that they would hurt me or hurt younger children.

I spent many months thinking about the incident 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Just when I felt I could settle and try to move forward, the trauma of that day is now back at the forefront. I constantly see his face; new memories have appeared, and this will continue to happen for the rest of my life.

My role in Southport was to help others, mainly children and their families. My work was a safe haven for those who needed it the most.

All I wanted to do was make a positive impact and highlight goodness and positivity. Families felt a part of a community I had built, from scratch, being self-employed. I have now lost my role, my purpose and my job as I can no longer provide that guidance and reassurance to anyone.

I feel like I can no longer be trusted again, I know people will disagree and say that is not true however his actions have proven I can never feel that level of responsibility again where there may be dangers to others. On that day I received several injuries that have not only affected me physically, but also mentally. I, as do the girls, have scars we cannot unsee, scars we cannot move on from.

Visual daily reminders of not only what he has done to us, but a stark reminder of what others can still do to us. I endured three hospital stays where I undertook multiple surgeries and received treatment for my injuries.

At a time where home comforts may have helped me, I sat staring at a hospital wall further impacting my mental health.

My family and friends suffered during this whole period of time, not being able to process what had been done because they were sat by my bed side trying to support me. The trauma of being both a victim and a witness has been horrendous. There are times when I will spiral into trauma and the effect this has had on those close to me is unforgivable.

The impact this has had on me can be summed up by one word: trauma. He targeted us because we were women and girls, vulnerable and easy prey. To discover that he had always set out to hurt the vulnerable is beyond comprehensible. For Alice, Elsie, Bebe, Heidi and the surviving girls, I’m surviving for you.

Judith Moritz
Reporting from Liverpool Crown Court

Deanna Heer has finished outlining the facts and is beginning to introduce the victims' personal statements.

First is a statement being read by the father of one of the surviving children - he says he asked his nine-year-old daughter to explain the impact the events had on her.

The girl says: "It has been very hard to deal with what happened to me at Hart Space. I struggle with my emotions, and I have scars that I know will be with me forever, but I want to look forward.

"When people in school asked me 'do you wish you weren’t there that day' I said that, in some ways, I wish I wasn’t, but also, if I wasn’t there, someone else would have been stabbed and they could have died, so I’m glad I might have stopped someone else getting hurt."

Her father continues, saying that "her words both horrify us and make us immeasurably proud. Our daughter is strong. Our daughter is positive. Our daughter is brave.

"Our daughter is everything that Axel Rudakubana is not. She is our hero."

Judith Moritz
Reporting from Liverpool Crown Court

The court turns now to the week before the attack on 29 July last year.

Heer, for the prosecution, describes how a few days after Axel Rudakubana purchased knives on 22 July 2024, he booked a taxi in the name "Simon" to take him to The Range High School.

On this occasion, Heer continues, it seems that he was spotted by his father. As the car was about to set off, the defendant’s father ran out of the house and pleaded with the driver not to take him.

The defendant got out of the car after an argument.

Heer says: "It is unlikely to be a coincidence - the prosecution say - that this was the last day of term, with students due to leave the school premises at 12:30 for the summer. The court may infer that this was an earlier attempt to commit offences similar to those he was to carry out at The Hart Space a week later."

Judith Moritz
Reporting from Liverpool Crown Court

Heer, for the prosecution, says Rudakubana was referred three times to Prevent (the anti-extremism programme) from 2019-2021.

The first, in November 2019, was for researching school shootings during an Information Technology class.

The next two referrals, in 2021, were after he uploaded to Instagram two images of Colonel Gadaffi, and had been found researching the London Bridge terror attack.

Following reports of incidents at home, Rudakubana stopped attending school in May 2021. Later, in March 2022, a place was found for him at Presfield High School, but he did not attend.