Kid victims of crime

judicial reviews, bids for new identities and an appeal against his sentence.

Denise, 50, was eight months pregnant with son Michael, now 24, during the 1993 trial of Venables and Thompson.

She went on to have Thomas, 19, and Leon, 18, with her second husband, electrician Stuart Fergus, 42. She had divorced from James’s dad Ralph Bulger in 1995.

But Denise says she spent years fearing her boys would be snatched.

She said: “To this day, I don’t sleep until everyone is home. And I expect texts to let me know when they are on their way.

“Even now Michael is in his 20s, if he texts to say he’s on his way home, I time him. If he’s even a few minutes late, I go into a blind panic.

“I truly don’t think the fear I felt when I realised James wasn’t by my side will ever fully leave me.” Denise has also announced she is bringing back her popular Kidsfest family day for a fourth consecutive year this summer. She launched the event as another way to remember James, bringing families together for a day of fun in Liverpool’s Stanley Park. More than 22,000 have been along to join in the fun since then. Denise said: “It gives youngsters one last big adventure before the new school year. We have some big names performing and lots of exciting attractions – it’s going to be bigger than anything we’ve done before. “Seeing everyone enjoying themselves on the day is extremely positive, and it’s so special to know James is helping people today through this. We’re looking forward to another great Kidsfest.”

The fear of realising James wasn’t by my side will never go