A jury has concluded that 96 Liverpool fans who died in a crush at Hillsborough Stadium in 1989 were unlawfully killed.
Following two years of evidence at inquests in Warrington, nine jurors have delivered their conclusions after answering a 14-part questionnaire.
The jury found that the 96 fans, who died 27 years ago, were unlawfully killed and that none of the supporters was to blame for the tragic scenes.
When the conclusions were delivered, the victims' families that were present in the makeshift courtroom broke into loud applause while others shed tears.
The jury told coroner Lord Justice Goldring that it had unanimously decided that errors were made in South Yorkshire Police's planning of the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Hillsborough, where the crush occurred.
It was also decided that errors were made by police in relation to the turnstiles, the police commander David Duckenfield made a mistake in opening the gate at the Leppings Lane end, and the terrace police commanders also made errors.
The jury also concluded that the design of Hillsborough Stadium contributed to the disaster, while the safety of the ground and Sheffield Wednesday, who are based in the stadium, made errors in their planning.
The nine jurors agreed that the response of the police and ambulance services were at fault, and also that stadium engineers should have done more.
It was unanimously decided that the supporters' behaviour did not contribute to the tragedy nor did the conduct of Sheffield Wednesday's staff on the day.
Question six, which read, 'Are you satisfied, so that you are sure, that those who died in the disaster were unlawfully killed?', was answered 'yes' by a majority of 7-2 by the jurors.
The original 1991 inquests delivered a conclusion of accidental deaths, but it was reopened when allegations of a police cover-up emerged in 2012.
Danielle Joynson
