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Town turns yellow in boost for Southport service

Jenny Coleman
BBC News, Liverpool
BBC Cardboard cut outs of yellow bees are displayed windows with white window frames and blue blinds behind.BBC
Shop fronts and windows were all decorated with bees

Swathes of Southport have turned yellow in support of a new service for grieving children set up in memory of Bebe King, one of three girls killed in the knife attack in the Merseyside town.

Bebe, 6, Alice Aguiar, 9, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, all died in the murders at a Taylor Swift-themed dance workshop last July.

Called Bebe's Hive, the group was launched by Bebe's parents to provide creative sessions using art, music and storytelling to help bereaved children. The yellow colour was also chosen to coincide with World Bee Day.

"Bees always had such a special meaning to Bebe, so we just had to do something," Bebe's aunt Lydia Wainwright said.

Stand Up For Southport Yellow ribbons tied to wooden bollards in a village street with black and white buildings in the background.Stand Up For Southport
Churchtown village has been decorated with yellow ribbons

"What started as just a gentle invitation on Instagram to wear yellow or add something yellow to your school or business has just exploded into something much bigger than we could have ever imagined."

In a post on the Bebe's Hive fundraising page, her family said the service would be "a space full of care and hope".

"After losing her, we saw how deeply grief affects children," they said.

"We also saw what was missing: a safe, child-led space for healing. So we're creating one - rooted in love, creativity, and connection.

"At its heart, Bebe's Hive reflects who Bebe was: warm, inclusive, curious, and endlessly creative. Every part of what we're building carries her kindness and her spark."

Stand Up For Southport Nine people stood in a row outside a stone building front. They are wearing a mix of wearing yellow outfits in a variety of shades.Stand Up For Southport
Staff at United Legal Assistance in Southport wore yellow in support of Bebe's Hive
The Southport Strollers A large group of runners dressed in yellow t-shirts are lined up in front of the Southport Splash World water park with their arms in the air.The Southport Strollers
The Southport Strollers wore yellow as they ran on Tuesday evening

Churchtown village was decorated with yellow ribbons and people across the area wore yellow.

Workers at United Legal Assistance and Birkdale Insurance in Southport also shared photographs of staff wearing yellow for the day and the Southport Strollers running club wore yellow as they ran on Tuesday evening.

Meanwhile, The Atkinson arts centre, Southport Town Hall and Bootle Town Hall were all lit yellow on Tuesday evening.

Bebe's Hive is supported by Elsie's Story Charitable Trust which was set up by Elsie Dot Stancombe's parents.

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