The dad of Ava White has today, Friday 3 December, issued the following statement.
Robert Martin said, “We would like to say thank you to everybody for their ongoing support during this devastating time.
“Thank you to every one of you for your kind messages and donations.
“As Ava’s family we are completely devastated and heartbroken by what has happened and we ask that you respect our privacy at this time and allow us to grieve as a family.”
At around 8.39pm, on Thursday 24 November, police officers were called to reports of an assault in the area of Church Alley. When officers arrived they discovered that Ava, who had been with friends, collapsed on the ground and a member of the public who witnessed the incident was giving first aid.
Paramedics attended the scene and Ava was taken to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, where sadly she died a short time later despite the best efforts of medical staff.
A 14-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has been charged with her murder and was remanded in secure accommodation until a plea hearing on 18 February next year.
She has been described as “an incredibly popular girl with a fantastic group of friends” by Peter Duffy, her headteacher at Notre Dame Catholic College in Everton.
Detective Superintendent Sue Coombs said, “Our thoughts and condolences go out to Ava’s family, friends and the wider community. Ava’s family are being supported by specialist officers and they have requested that their privacy is respected at this difficult time. Merseyside Police is absolutely determined to bring those responsible to justice.
“We’d also urge anyone else who has captured the incident or aftermath to send any images/footage directly via the following link: https://mipp.police.uk/operation/05MP21M43-PO1 
“I’d also like to take this opportunity to remind people not to make any comments on social media which might potentially jeopardise our investigation, including of course names of any people potentially involved. We welcome any such information, but please only pass it on in the following ways so we can continue to make progress in our investigation.”
You can pass information on with reference 21000820789 via ‘Merseyside Police Contact Centre’ on Facebook, 101 or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their online form at: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/give-information
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