Cause of house fire in which 10-year-old girl and her father died 'unexplained'

Officers launched an investigation after Garry Bolton and his daughter Paige Bolton were found at their home on Wensley Avenue after neighbours called 999 on Saturday morning.

Mr Bolton, 47, was pronounced dead at the scene and Paige was attended to by paramedics and taken to hospital, where she later died.

In an update on Thursday police said they continued to work with the fire service to establish the cause of the fire which "remains as unexplained at this time".

Post mortem examinations have been carried out, but police say they are waiting for the results of further toxicology tests before they can fully establish the cause of their deaths.

Chief Superintendent Darren Downs said: “We are continuing to support the families of those involved at this very difficult time. They have asked for their privacy to be respected as they come to terms with their loss.

“Investigations into this kind of incident are very complex and take time to complete and we would continue to ask that people avoid speculating about the circumstances."

Neighbours described banging on windows and shouting through the letterbox in a vain bid to alert Mr Bolton after the alarm was raised around 7.50am.

Anyone with information is asked to call the non-emergency 101 line.