The grandfather of a girl who survived 's murderous rampage in Southport last year says the victim's families were left “abandoned” as the focus quickly shifted to .

He also claimed families were let down by who failed to spot the signs triple killer Rudakubana was a threat to society, demanding from those who knew of his obsession with violence to be sacked.

The 18-year-old pleaded guilty on Monday to the murders of Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, after he broke into a -themed party in July last year and launched a frenzied knife attack. He also admitted to the attempted murders of another eight children, as well as two adults, Leanne Lucas and Jonathan Hayes.

Rudakubana, who had been reported to the government's Prevent counter scheme at least three times, also pleaded guilty to production of a biological toxin, ricin, and possession of an Al Qaeda training manual - information that was not made public until October 29.

The grandfather, who cannot be identified as all surviving children have been granted anonymity, told : "We were not looked after - we were pushed by the wayside. It became all about the riots and what happened to us was forgotten. We were abandoned."

It has also emerged that Rudakubana was expelled when he was 13 for bringing a knife into Range High School in Formby and then attacking pupils with a hockey stick.

While these details were released months after the attack, the grandad claims families of the Southport victims immediately suspected terrorism. He said: "Some of the families were suspicious from the start but they were gaslit. Others thought we should trust the authorities. For all of us, there was a lot of supposition and guesswork. But when things started coming in, and we realised that everything people had suspected was true, it made all of us wonder why it was hidden."

Addressing the nation in an , Prime Minister said Britain is facing a "new threat", and that "terrorism has changed". He added the law may need to be changed to acknowledge the threat posed by "loners, misfits, young men in their bedroom" accessing violent material online.

But the grandfather said the atrocity "should never have happened", adding: "There were too many missed opportunities, organisations were not communicating with each other, there was a lack of qualified staff and people were walking on eggshells around political correctness rather than dealing with him."