Friends and family of murdered Sheffield schoolboy Harvey Willgoose say their lives have been broken more than a year after he was stabbed to death at school.

Harvey, 15, was stabbed through the heart with a hunting knife by former friend Mohammed Umar Khan during a lunch break at All Saints Catholic High School on February 3, 2025.

Khan, who was also 15 at the time, was found guilty of murder and detained for life with a minimum term of 16 years.

A year on from the sentencing, Harvey’s loved ones have spoken about the devastating impact of his death, describing how they continue to struggle with grief and fear.

His friend Lleyton, now 18, was in the school cafeteria when news of the stabbing spread.

He said: “And next minute, you know, people are shouting, ‘someone’s being stabbed, someone’s being stabbed’.

“And then all of a sudden people are running towards me, screaming, shouting, they didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know what to do.

“I felt like my legs couldn’t move. I was just frozen.”

Lleyton, who met Harvey while travelling to school on the tram, said the loss had had a “massive effect” on him.

He added that the tragedy had changed how he approached everyday life, saying: “I try to avoid going to parties and going out out properly… (I’m) being a bit careful and different, not speaking as much, being careful who I speak to.”

Harvey’s 14-year-old cousin Lana described their relationship as being “inseparable, like siblings.”

She said she “just couldn’t really process” his death and added: “I don’t even think I still can process it now.”

The circumstances of Harvey’s death also left Lana feeling unsafe, despite attending a different school.

She said she initially struggled to attend lessons following the stabbing, explaining: “I couldn’t really go. I used to always tell Harvey to go to school and then it became me who didn’t go to school.”

Lana has since returned to lessons.

Meanwhile, 19-year-old Kaiya, who met Harvey through mutual friends three years ago, described him as her “best friend.”

She said he was outgoing and protective, adding that she “felt like she’d known him forever.”

Harvey was a Sheffield United fan and regularly took Kaiya to matches. However, she said she had stopped attending games since his death and had become more cautious about going out alone.

She said: “I’m very wary about going out by myself because anything could happen so I choose to go out in a big group of people.”

Kaiya also urged young people who carry knives to consider the consequences of their actions.

She said: “That one little bit of anger is not worth taking someone’s life for because it doesn’t only affect you.

“It affects everyone around you.”

It was confirmed last week that a full inquest into Harvey’s death would take place after a coroner reversed an earlier decision not to resume her investigation.

A date for the inquest has yet to be confirmed.