Priti Patel under pressure as Hillsborough survivors seek engagement over disaster’s legacy

The home secretary last month wrote to the bereaved families of the 96 people who were unlawfully killed, but failed to contact any of the survivors

The Hillsborough Survivors Support Association (HSA) has today written to Priti Patel demanding representation in the next phase of the government’s response to the 1989 disaster. The group is determined to play a part in defining the legacy of British football’s worst catastrophe.

The home secretary last month wrote to the bereaved families of the 96 people who were unlawfully killed at the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, asking them to participate in “work to improve the experience of individuals who suffer in such tragedies”. The relatives were asked to respond to the letter by tomorrow.

There has been no contact with survivors. This omission disappointed campaigners, whose suffering in the 32 years since the tragedy has been largely overlooked.

“Survivors suffered the life-threatening experience of pens 3 and 4 which killed so many and initiated the rescue which saved so many more lives,” the HSA’s letter to Patel says.

“Our experiences on the day, and since, are central to the disaster. The subsequent investigations, inquiries and inquests all included contributions from survivors.

“However, despite our involvement and insight our interactions were often conducted and/or cast in a negative manner. Furthermore, in all these processes survivors have never been seen, or afforded the opportunity to be represented, as an interested party.”

The letter comes at an emotional time for those affected by the disaster. Last month Andrew Devine, who suffered significant, life-changing injuries on the Leppings Lane End, died. He was ruled by the coroner to be the 97th victim of Hillsborough.

The 55-year-old was the most high-profile and severely injured long-term casualty of the crush on the terraces but many more of those who suffered on the day and witnessed the carnage have struggled with the psychological impact.

The home secretary, Priti Patel, is under pressure to contact the survivors of the Hillsborough disaster (Getty)

“In the 25-plus years it took for the full and true circumstances of the Hillsborough disaster to come to light survivors were caused an enormous amount of unnecessary anguish,” the HSA letter says. “So much so that some, one as recently as June this year, were driven to take their own life.”

The HSA has at its core four survivors of pen three: Adrian Tempany, Richie Greaves, Tim Knowles and Nick Braley. They were part of a group that requested interested party status during the coroner’s summing up towards the end of the second inquests five years ago.

Although the application was refused, the intervention had a clear impact on the coroner’s approach.

Patel’s letter to the families says: “It is incredibly important that lessons are learnt from your experiences so that that (sic) pain and suffering are not repeated.”

The final criminal cases connected with the disaster collapsed in May. Despite the evidence of the Hillsborough Independent Panel (HIP) in 2012 and the verdicts of the longest inquest in British history five years ago, there have been renewed attempts by some to cast the fans as culpable even though it has been conclusively proved that this was not the case.

The government intends to respond to Bishop James Jones’s 2017 report into the treatment of the families. The bishop supported calls for a “duty of candour,” which would require public authorities to tell the truth in investigations, court proceedings and inquiries.

The Home Office also wants to discuss “the long-term retention and storage of material (i.e. artefacts, evidence, statements, etc) arising from the Hillsborough investigations.”

The HSA letter also picks up this point and asks for the Hillsborough archive to be put back online immediately. The exhaustive cataloguing of documents was compiled by the HIP and taken offline five years ago because of the looming criminal trials. “These archives were a tremendous help for survivors trying to understand the circumstances and processes of the disaster,” the HSA letter says.

Tributes laid around the memorial to those who were killed in the 1989 Hillsborough Stadium disaster (AFP)

There is considerable scepticism about the Home Office’s motives but if Ms Patel is serious, survivors believe that they have a part to play.

“If the legislative legacy of Hillsborough is to be addressed and the formal processes of investigation, inquest and inquiry are to be improved then it is imperative that the experiences and engagement of survivors is truly and fully valued in these processes,” the HSA letter says. “We urge and implore you to begin that change by giving survivors the opportunity to contribute to your considerations.”

Mr Greaves, a HSA founder member, endorsed that view: “If they are determined to learn lessons, we survivors have to be involved.

“We were standing next to the people who died, attempted to save them and witnessed the breakdown of the emergency services. After that we were blamed by the police and the media and had to suffer accusations that had no basis for more than 20 years. Any future discussion of Hillsborough and its consequences needs to include the voices of the survivors.”