Sarah Payne memorial statue found after being stolen

The statue was given to the school in memory of Sarah Payne

A bronze statue commemorating murdered schoolgirl Sarah Payne that was stolen from her primary school in Surrey has been found.

The 2ft (60cm) statue of a young girl was presented to Burhill Primary School, in Pleasant Place, Hersham, in memory of the former pupil.

The eight-year-old was murdered by convicted paedophile Roy Whiting in West Sussex in 2000.

The statue was discovered after it was left outside a property in Cobham.

Three people were thought to be involved in theft, which happened at about 01:00 GMT on Wednesday, Surrey Police said.

The statue was believed to have been left outside the address in Northfield road between 05:15 and 07:30 on Thursday.

Sgt Marc Nettleingham said: "The member of the public who found the statue, which is thankfully undamaged, had seen our appeal on Facebook.

"We are continuing to carry out a number of inquiries to identify the offenders responsible for this theft."

Police said a van was also seen in the area at the time of the theft.