A family of four Liverpool supporters who died in an arson attack on their home in Waterford, Ireland, were remembered this week in tributes spanning two countries, as Irish police continue to investigate a crime that has horrified communities on both sides of the Irish Sea.
Philip and Kim English and their sons Callum, 12, and Jayden, nine, died after their house in the Birchwood estate in Waterford city was set alight on Tuesday, October 13. Two other children from the family, aged six and 14, remain in a critical condition at Children's Health Ireland in Crumlin, according to the Liverpool Echo, which reported the tributes on November 2.
A funeral that moved a city and a football club
Hundreds of mourners gathered at the Sacred Heart Church in Waterford on Monday, October 19, for the funeral mass, while thousands more followed the service online. The family's devotion to Liverpool Football Club was woven through the ceremony: a Liverpool scarf rested on one of the coffins, and photographs released afterwards showed Callum wearing the club's red shirt.
The club itself paid formal tribute. In the official matchday programme for Liverpool's home fixture against Arsenal on November 1, a photograph of the family appeared in the supporters' messages section alongside a note that read: „Deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Callum, Jayden, Philip and Kim. Our thoughts are with their loved ones, friends and all who knew them. As part of the Liverpool family, they will be remembered with great affection. You'll Never Walk Alone.“
For a club whose anthem is sung as a promise of collective solidarity, the gesture carried more than ceremonial weight. The English family belonged to that community of supporters, and the club's acknowledgement placed four private griefs within a public embrace that stretches far beyond Waterford.
What we know about the investigation
The criminal investigation is proceeding on several tracks. Two people have been charged in connection with the attack. Jessica Dalton, 31, of Waterford city, and Cian Stacey, 21, of no fixed abode, appeared before Waterford District Court on Tuesday, October 20. They face one count of criminal damage and two counts of assault causing serious harm, and were further remanded in custody at that hearing.
Others detained during the inquiry have been released. According to the Liverpool Echo, which cited reporting from the Irish Mirror, Gardaí confirmed that two women in their 30s and a man in his 50s, arrested on Tuesday, October 20, were released without charge on Thursday, October 24. A fourth person, a man in his 20s arrested on October 22, also remains in custody. A file is being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The Irish Examiner has reported that Gardaí are still investigating other avenues in the case even after the two charges were brought. The Irish Times also reported that a man arrested in connection with the fatal fire was released without charge after questioning.
„Four beautiful innocent lives have been taken“
Bishop Alphonsus Cullinan, who presided over the funeral service, gave voice to the scale of the loss before a grieving congregation.
„This tragedy has shocked us all to the core,“ he said, according to the Liverpool Echo's report.
„How heart-wrenching it is to see four coffins before this sacred altar, and this entire community and the whole country joining in loving solidarity with the family and the many friends of Kim and Phil and Callum and Jayden. Four beautiful innocent lives have been taken.“
The Bishop also urged anyone with information about the attack to come forward, a call that reflects the reality that major criminal investigations often depend on the willingness of ordinary citizens to speak.
Why this crime resonates beyond Ireland
It must be stated plainly: the English family had no involvement in crime. That detail, confirmed in local reporting, matters enormously to how this tragedy should be understood. When a household with no connection to criminality can be destroyed by fire in a residential estate, the implications reach beyond a single criminal case. They touch the basic civic entitlement of every family to safety in their own home.
Two children remain in hospital fighting for their lives. A community is organizing around them. And a criminal justice process, still in its early stages, must now establish not only who set the fire but why a family with no apparent reason to be targeted was attacked at all.
Liberal societies are judged by how they respond when the innocent are harmed. The Garda investigation, the charges already laid, and the file being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions represent the institutional machinery doing its work. But the solidarity on display in Waterford and Liverpool, the crowds at the funeral, the thousands watching online, the club's tribute in its matchday programme, represents something the state cannot supply on its own. It is the mutual recognition that binds strangers into a community, and it has been conspicuously present here.
Gardaí continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the attack. The two surviving children remain in critical condition. The charged pair remain in custody pending further court appearances.
Frequently asked questions
Who died in the Waterford arson attack?
Philip and Kim English and their sons Callum, 12, and Jayden, nine, died after their home in the Birchwood estate in Waterford city was set on fire on October 13, 2026.
Who has been charged over the Waterford fire?
Jessica Dalton, 31, and Cian Stacey, 21, have been charged with criminal damage and two counts of assault causing serious harm. They have been remanded in custody.
How did Liverpool Football Club honour the family?
The club published a tribute and photograph of the family in its official matchday programme for the Arsenal match on November 1, describing them as part of the Liverpool family and closing with the words „You'll Never Walk Alone.“