The memorial service dedicated to the 96 Liverpool supporters who died at Hillsborough will be held for the final time at Anfield this year, the Hillsborough Family Support Group has announced.
The HFSG has organised every service staged at Liverpool’s stadium since the 1989 disaster but, with the unanimous agreement of the families, has decided this year’s event on Friday 15 April will be the last. The announcement comes a day after the pathology evidence on all 96 people who died at Hillsborough was completed at a new inquest in Warrington. The jury is expected to begin considering its verdict from 22 February.
The chair of the HFSG, Margaret Aspinall, said: “The 96 will never be forgotten. It is likely that the inquests will be concluded before the anniversary so this final memorial service will provide the families with some closure. The HFSG would like to thank everyone for all the support the families have received over the past 27 years and all those people who have attended the service at Anfield each year.
“We would also like to extend our thanks to Liverpool Football Club for their continued support over the past 27 years and for hosting the service each year at Anfield. We hope that the public and fans respect the decision of the HFSG and will continue to remember the 96 in their own perhaps more private way.”
