John,

One year ago, three girls – Alice, Elsie and Bebe – were murdered at a children’s dance workshop in Southport.

The country was in mourning. But online, Britain’s far right was already twisting the tragedy and spreading disinformation — fuelling the biggest outbreak of racist rioting in post-war Britain, driven by hate, lies and division.

And the same far-right narratives that fuelled that unrest are resurfacing again in new flashpoints.

In Epping last week, protests outside The Bell Hotel, housing asylum seekers, escalated into violence, as far-right agitators hijacked the demonstrations. Now we are closely monitoring copycat demonstrations planned across the UK.

One clear lesson from 2024 is how quickly a rumour or allegation can take hold, be whipped up and radicalised by the far right – with devastating consequences.

But there are many more lessons to learn, and urgent action is needed to address the real problems facing communities across the UK.

That’s why today, we’ve published a series of reflections on what happened last summer, why it happened, and what must come next.

Here’s what we’ve covered:

• Seven Days that Rocked Britain: how the riots unfolded, who was involved, and how it spread.

• Southport: A New Form of Terror: the truth behind the lies spread about the attacker, and what it means for how we define terrorism today.

• Holding On to Hope: the communities who stood up, fought back, and looked after one another.

• The Lingering Lessons: what still hasn’t been fixed and how we stop this from happening again.

John, the threat is real and growing, and we have to stay vigilant.

Last year, with your support, we briefed MPs, community leaders, and those at risk of far-right violence. We lifted up stories of community resilience and pushed for investment in areas vulnerable to hate. And our researchers worked around the clock to identify and hold to account those behind the violence.

But we need to be ready for what comes next.

If you can, please chip in today to help us monitor the far right, expose their lies, and support communities to resist hate:

Thank you for standing with us

Nick,

CEO at HOPE not hate