Statement from BAPS Executive in response to Manchester Arena attack

On behalf of the members and executive of the British Association of Paediatric Surgeons (BAPS) we send our deepest sympathies and condolences to the families and friends of all those who lost their lives or have been injured as a result of the carnage at Manchester Arena on Monday.

It is a chilling and abhorrent development that children and young people were deliberately targeted in an arena simply devoted to having innocent fun and enjoyment.

Paediatric surgical teams are part of the front-line response to such major incidents and we would also like to commend and give thanks for the magnificent response, skill and professionalism shown by our paediatric surgical colleagues in the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital. Many of them were first responders when the call came through in the evening and early hours of the following morning and who continue to care for the many seriously injured children and young people unwittingly caught up in this devastating outrage.”

Prof Mark Davenport – President on behalf of the BAPS Executive