Manchester attack: Victim's families to receive £250,000 each from public donations

More than £18m has been raised through public donations to the We Love Manchester Emergency Fund

Ariana Grande performs at her One Love Manchester concert in June (Reuters)

Families of the 22 victims of the Manchester attack are set to receive £250,000 each out of the millions of pounds raised in public donations.

Bereaved relatives have already been able to claim £70,000 from the We Love Manchester Emergency Fund, which was set up in the wake of the Isis-inspired bombing, and trustees have now announced they will be eligible for a further £180,000.

Bolstered by thousands of public donations and events including the One Love Manchester concert, the fund has raised more than £18m.

The charity, set up with money raised by Manchester City Council, the British Red Cross and Manchester Evening News aims to provide ongoing care for victims’ physical and mental health, help with their financial needs and support affected families.

Sue Murphy, chair of the We Love Manchester Emergency Fund’s trustees, said the money has been given to those with “immediate needs” as quickly as possible.

“The city and the world responded with such extreme kindness, generosity and solidarity in the aftermath of the Manchester Arena attack,” she added.

“We will now spend some time looking at how we will distribute the rest of the funds.

“This will be a complex and sensitive process as we will need to assess the long-term impacts of the attack. We will issue an update as soon as we know more.”

The latest round of payments will mean more than half of the money raised will have been distributed, including £3.5m to those injured in the bombing.

Those affected can also apply to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority.

Salman Abedi detonated his bomb as families flooded out of an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena on 22 May, killing men, women and children and wounding 250 other victims.

Among those killed were parents waiting to pick up their children, young fans at their first ever concert, an aunt who died shielding her niece and an off-duty police officer.

The last funeral was held for eight-year-old Saffie Roussos last month, seeing hundreds of mourners attend a service at Manchester Cathedral as thousands more lined the streets carrying roses.

As a criminal investigation into his possible accomplices continues, a review into the Government’s response to the attacks in Manchester, Westminster, London Bridge and Finsbury Park is under way.

Andy Burnham, the first directly elected Mayor of Greater Manchester, has also commissioned a separate independent review of the city’s response to the attack, with interim findings due out early next year.