'Finding my dad's killer would mean the world to me'

Emma was five years old and asleep in her bed when the attack happened

The daughter of a miner who was murdered more than 30 years ago is appealing for new information to try to find his killer.

Kevin Childerley, 30, was beaten to death in his home in 1990 while his wife Denise, 32, was severely injured.

Their daughter Emma was five years old and asleep in bed nearby during the brutal attack.

Now 38, she said the pain of that night had never left her and appealed for witnesses to come forward.

The attack happened at the Childerleys' home in Mansfield Woodhouse in Nottinghamshire as the family slept in the early hours of 19 February 1990.

Earlier that evening, Emma's parents had gone out with friends to the local British Legion club leaving Emma and her brother Ben, then aged five months, with a babysitter.

Emma remembers her dad as being her best friend

When they returned they watched some television, and went to bed at around midnight.

A few hours later, an intruder entered the house through the kitchen window and struck the couple repeatedly on the head with a sharp object, believed to be an axe or meat cleaver.

Mr Childerley's injuries were so severe he died at the scene. Emma's mother survived but she needed 160 stitches and lost an eye.

Emma said: "I just remember being woken up and taken downstairs behind this policeman in the pitch black.

"We didn't put any lights on whatsoever.

"I was put in the next door neighbour's bed and I remember lying there in my pyjamas.

"I remember the neighbour stroking my hair and crying and obviously I didn't have a clue what was going on."

Emma said she felt she never got to say goodbye to her father

A few days later, she was told by a social worker her dad was dead and her mum was fighting for her life in hospital.

"I ran from the kitchen table into the bathroom, locked the door and I think I sobbed in there for about three hours," she said.

Emma and her brother were separated in different foster care homes while her mother recovered.

Emma said: "I'm told the coffin had to remain closed on the day of his funeral [because] the wounds were so horrific. This meant the family never got to say goodbye.

"It pains me that my dad's last moments on earth were full of agonising pain and suffering, attacked when he was at his most vulnerable, asleep and in his own bed."

Finding her father's killer would give her family some closure, Emma said

At the time two men were charged with murder and attempted murder but the case was later discontinued by the courts.

Emma said she now hoped fresh evidence could come to light.

She said: "I just plead and urge people who know something to come forward, even if it is the smallest piece of information, please let the police know.

"We have had a big passage of time now and whatever those fears might be for not coming forward at the time, they won't be as strong now.

"Finding my dad's killer would mean we could finally have some closure. It would mean the world to me."

Emma remembers her father as having been her "best friend."

"I was a real daddy's girl," she said.

"He used to take me to school and pick up me every day on his motorbike.

"He would wear full black leathers with a big black helmet with the sun visor down.

"And all the kids would be like "Is your dad an astronaut?" and I would be like 'Yeah, he is."

"I have lots of silly memories of him. He was a joker and a real family man."

Emma said she had thought about her father every day of her life

She said his death had "impacted every single day of our lives ever since".

"It's been something that I've thought about every day and I'd just love to get some justice and closure," she said.

She said the killer could not have committed that crime and inflicted those kind of injuries without coming home covered in blood.

She added: "Somebody must have seen something on this person."

Emma now lives in Darwen, Lancashire with her three children and works as a funeral director.

"The whole business has been set up in my dad's memory," she said.

"The idea is to treat everybody I look after with dignity, respect and love.

"I look after people in my dad's name, so every day is about my dad."

Tightknit community

Rob Griffin, Assistant Chief Constable at Nottinghamshire Police, said: "This was a premeditated attack, with the sole intention to kill Kevin and Denise Childerley [who were] subjected to a horrific attack while they slept.

"It was only by chance that Denise survived.

"It may be 33 years since this horrific crime occurred but we are still determined to catch the person responsible.

"This crime happened in a tightknit community, and we know that someone will hold vital information about what happened that night.

"It doesn't matter how small or insignificant you think it might be, please call us. It could prove to be a vital part in our investigation."