'Our son shouldn't have been there... it was such a preventable death'

Christmas, a time of merriment for many, can also be a season of sorrow for those suffering with loss. Gabriel Santer's family will face the festive period this year with an especially heavy heart.

Fifteen year old Gabriel, affectionately known as Gabe to his loved ones, tragically lost his life on October 3, 2020. The tragedy unfolded while he was out with friends in Liverpool city centre. The well-liked teen died after falling from the top level of the Q Park multi-story car park on Hanover Street.

His family have tried to come to terms with the sheer grief of losing Gabe. Yet his devastated father Johnny, mother Marie, and sister Jasper, have found the prospect of Christmas at their south Liverpool home, filled with memories of Gabe's, too harrowing.

To escape from the pain, they have opted for holidays away each Christmas following his death. But this year represents a turning point.

"After Gabe's sudden and unexpected death in October 2020, Christmas at home in Liverpool was unimaginable so we got out of the city and decided this would be something we would do annually," Johnny said.

"We did that every year since but this year is the first year that we will be back in Liverpool and back in the house that Gabriel grew up in at Christmas," he added. "As a family we always celebrate Gabriel's life, as well as talking about him constantly, he is always there and he always will be."

Johnny added: "We have only just moved back into the house after having it extensively refurbished. We didn't want to move, we love the house and Gabriel is very much present there with so many memories. We have kept a lot of his possessions, we have made an altar from a skateboard and pictures of him, it is a celebration of Gabe and his