On 29 July 2024, a mass stabbing targeting young girls occurred at the Hart Space, a dance studio in the Meols Cop area of Southport, Merseyside, United Kingdom.

After Rudakubana's guilty pleas, it emerged that he had a history of violent and concerning behaviour and had been referred to the anti-extremism programme Prevent three times between 2019 and 2021, but was not accepted into the scheme as no terrorist ideology was identified.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer promised to overhaul terrorism laws to include non-ideological acts of violence, and appointed David Anderson to lead a review of the Prevent programme.

[6][7] Lucas announced the class in an Instagram post on 7 July, advertised as a yoga, dance, and bracelet making workshop themed around the music of Taylor Swift.

[14][15] Wearing a surgical mask and green hoodie and armed with a 20-centimetre-long (8 in) kitchen knife, Rudakubana entered the building at 11:45 through the front door, which was unlocked for fire safety reasons, and walked up the flight of stairs to the studio.

[23] Jonathan Hayes, who was working in an office in the same building, ran into the studio after hearing screams and encountered Rudakubana on the landing, crouching over the body of a child.

"[56] In November 2019, Rudakubana was referred to the anti-extremism Prevent scheme for researching school shootings during an IT class – the first of what would eventually be three referrals over the following eighteen months.

[57][58][59] On 11 December 2019, Rudakubana booked a taxi to take him back to Range High, where he threatened pupils and teachers with a hockey stick on which he had written their names.

[56] He was referred to Prevent twice more in early 2021; once in February for uploading two images of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi to Instagram, and again in April after a teacher noticed he had left two internet tabs open researching the London Bridge terror attacks on a school computer during a lesson.

[61] From September 2022, he was enrolled for sixth form at Presfield High School & Specialist College in Churchtown, mostly via home visits by staff, who were sometimes accompanied by the police.

[62] The prosecution later assessed that the circumstances were "unlikely to be a coincidence" and that Rudakubana had originally planned an attack at Range High School but the attempt was foiled by his father.

In England and Wales reporting restrictions in place at the time of the attack prevented the public disclosure of the identity of a suspect aged under 18 (unless or until authorised by a court).

The recorder overturning the restrictions stated that continuing to prevent reporting of Rudakubana's name risked more unrest when he turned 18 on 7 August and his identity would have become publicly available.

[71][72][61] Graphic images of dead bodies, victims of torture and beheadings; and cartoons depicting killing, violence and rape, or which insulted or mocked different religions – including Islam, Judaism and Christianity – were also found on his devices.

[74] Speaking outside court after Rudakubana had pleaded guilty, Ursula Doyle of the Crown Prosecution Service called the attack a "meticulously planned rampage" that had left an enduring mark on the local community and the nation for "its savagery and senselessness".

It was revealed that he had been referred on three occasions to the Prevent scheme due to his interest in violence but, although his behaviour was considered to be of concern, he was not accepted onto the programme as there was no evidence of terrorist ideology.

[77] It also emerged that, in the five years preceding the attack, the police, the youth justice system, social care authorities and mental health services had been involved with him.

[90][91] On 15 February Attorney General Lord Hermer announced that he would not be referring the case to the Court of Appeal, despite following multiple requests for the sentence to be reviewed.

[92][93] On 16 February, it was announced that the FBI and the United States Department of Justice had joined the investigation and were reported to be helping UK police recover Rudakubana's deleted internet search history.

[96] Speaking in the House of Commons, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper stated that she was concerned by the incident and described the emergency services' response as courageous.

[97] Patrick Hurley, the Labour MP for Southport, stated that he was deeply concerned and hoped for the best possible outcomes to the casualties as well as praising local organisations that "stepped up to the plate" and urging against any online speculation over the event.

[106] King Charles visited Southport on 20 August, meeting with survivors of the attack and their families, local politicians, and emergency workers who responded to the incident.

[109] After Rudakubana's guilty plea on 20 January 2025, Home Secretary Cooper announced a public inquiry, stating that the victims' families "needed answers about what had happened leading up to the attack".

[110] This was followed by Prime Minister Starmer's promise to overhaul terrorism laws to reflect the type of non-ideological killings characterised by individuals like Rudakubana, stressing the threat from “acts of extreme violence perpetrated by loners, misfits, young men in their bedroom, accessing all manner of material online, desperate for notoriety, sometimes inspired by traditional terrorist groups, but fixated on that extreme violence, seemingly for its own sake”.

Although an emergency review found that Prevent had followed correct procedures on each referral, Cooper concluded "that too much weight was placed on the absence of ideology" in the programme.

The families said that they disagreed with the live televising of the judge's sentencing remarks, as they believed that it was inappropriate to broadcast details of the girls' injuries beyond the courtroom.

[121] Taylor Swift responded: "The horror of yesterday's attack in Southport is washing over me continuously and I'm just completely in shock [...] These were just little kids at a dance class.

The protest quickly turned violent and people began attacking the mosque with bricks, bottles, and rocks,[135] set a police vehicle on fire, and looted a corner shop.

[136] Merseyside Police believed the group to be supporters of the English Defence League,[137] although the EDL has ceased to exist in a formal sense since 2013.

Starmer said in a post on X that the group had "hijacked the vigil for the victims with violence and thuggery" and "insulted the community as it grieves", and that those involved would "feel the full force of the law".