A regional daily says it is “absolutely vital” that a football fire tragedy on its patch which claimed 56 lives continues to be remembered.

Bradford title the Telegraph & Argus has made the reminder after commemorating the 30th anniversary of the Valley Parade disaster, which claimed the lives of 56 football supporters after a wooden stand caught fire.

The T&A marked the anniversary last week with an eight-page supplement, front cover pictured below, featuring the recollections of those who were there on the day as well as the fund-raising that has taken place since then.

It also ran a poster front to mark the day, pictured bottom, and a live blog from the ceremony in City Park at which all 56 names were read out.

Deputy editor Damian Holmes said: “The anniversary of the Bradford City Fire is always a very difficult time for the district, particularly for the many who had direct or indirect involvement in the tragedy, and the 30th anniversary was always likely to be particularly tough.

“It has led to renewed focus on the disaster, in which 56 people died and many more were injured when Valley Parade stadium caught fire as the result of a discarded cigarette in a wooden stand, and brought it back into the national public eye.

“At the Telegraph & Argus, we knew we had to do something to mark the occasion, but it was important to treat it with respect and dignity.

“Our policy has been, since the immediate aftermath of the fire, not to use pictures that show the fire itself at its full height. We are all too aware that for many in Bradford, these images remain indelibly ingrained in their memories.”

The paper also donated the back page to a full page advert telling people how to donate money to Bradford University Plastic Surgery and Burns Research Unit.

Damian added: “It is absolutely vital that the tragedy continues to be remembered, but it is also vital that the T&A sets the right tone in its coverage, and we believe our comprehensive reflection did that, being sombre and considered without being too downbeat and certainly not in any way sensational.”