'We know the baby's mum is out there somewhere'

Detective Chief Inspector Charlotte Whalley made a direct appeal to the mother

Police have appealed to the mother of a baby whose remains were found in a field to come forward.

The infant's body was discovered near Ashtons Field in Little Hulton, Salford, on Wednesday.

At a press conference on Friday, Detective Chief Inspector Charlotte Whalley of Greater Manchester Police said the force did not know “ the background or circumstances that have led to this baby being separated from the mum”.

"We know this baby’s mum is somewhere out there - potentially watching this - and we appeal to anyone who may know the mum, or who had suspicions about her pregnancy, to come forward so we can find her and speak to her," she said.

Locals have left tributes where the baby's remains were found

A post-mortem of the child will take place early next week, with the results expected on Tuesday or Wednesday, DCI Whalley told reporters.

Officers said the baby was wrapped in a pink fabric, and detectives are working with soil experts, archaeologists and anthropologists to try to establish how long the child's body had been there before it was found.

Tributes were left at the roadside close to where the child, identified by the police as Baby A, was found by a woman walking her dog.

DCI Whalley said the walker made a call to a relative first "out of sheer shock" before immediately calling police, at around 12:22 GMT on Wednesday.

'Pressure'

The force "did not know the pressures" the mother may have been under before and after she gave birth, but its priority was "to find answers", she said.

"We will do everything we can to help the mum. Trained officers are ready to support her, no matter what the circumstances are... please contact us."

The force will conduct a full search of the area around where the baby was found and this will carry on into next week, DCI Whalley said.