Sophie Lancaster: Funeral held for mother of murdered woman

A funeral has been held for a woman who campaigned "tirelessly" against hate crime after her daughter was murdered.

Sylvia Lancaster, who died in April, founded the Sophie Lancaster Foundation (SLF) after the 20-year-old was killed because she was dressed as a Goth.

A service was held in Whitworth to "celebrate a truly remarkable woman".

Actress Julie Hesmondhalgh, who played Sylvia in a BBC film about Sophie's murder, was among those paying tribute at the service.

She said Sylvia was "fierce, smart and uncompromising", an "eclectic lover of music", and someone who "loved and valued the company of young people, especially the outsiders, the alternatives".

She had an "extraordinary legacy" and her work against hate crime since Sophie's death was "astonishing", she added.

In the service streamed online, celebrant Neil Overton described Sylvia as "caring, kind, funny and strong" who "never got over the cruel sad loss of Sophie", but worked "tirelessly to educate and support countless others in the hope of making a better world".

Sophie died 13 days after being beaten by teenagers Ryan Herbert and Brendan Harris while trying to protect her boyfriend Robert Maltby in Bacup's Stubbylee Park in August 2007.

Both boys were jailed for life, but in March, it was reported Herbert had served his minimum term and was due to be freed from prison.

At the time, Sylvia Lancaster said it showed "we have a justice system that fails to deliver justice".

The SLF is inviting people to send messages of condolence to a "truly remarkable woman" through the charity's website after international requests from people who wanted to pay their respects.

"Sylvia's determination to do all she could to stop prejudice and hate ruining lives, struck a chord across the world," the charity said.

"Her passion in not just accepting difference, but loving it, was genuine."

It said Sylvia was "feisty, formidable and unforgettable" and she had made it her "life's work" to stop what happened to her daughter happening to anyone else.

In 2014 Ms Lancaster was awarded an OBE in recognition of her work against hate and prejudice.

In 2017 a BBC film about Sophie's murder was broadcast on BBC Four and is included in the BBC's Personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) online educational resources for secondary school children.

Speaking after her death Assistant chief Constable Ian Dawson, of Lancashire Police, said the determination Ms Lancaster showed after Sophie's death "to forge a positive legacy" was "truly inspiring".

Ms Lancaster is being buried alongside her daughter at Whitworth Cemetery.

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