Every word top cop said at press conference after baby's remains found in field

Further details have been given following the discovery of a young baby's remains by a Salford field. Officers have been in attendance at Ashtons Field, off Cleggs Lane in Little Hulton, throughout the afternoon (November 20).

It's understood the remains were found between the field and the rear of industrial buildings at Ravenscraig Road. A forensic tent has been in place by the field's entrance at Cleggs Lane, while crime scene investigators are working at the scene.

Chief Superintendent Neil Blackwood, Greater Manchester Police's district commander for Salford, gave an update to reporters at the scene this evening. He confirmed that detectives are still searching for several key answers around the discovery, including the identity of the baby and how long they have been at the scene.

READ MORE: Major police scene as baby found dead in Greater Manchester field - live updates

Chf Supt Blackwood said: "Good evening everybody, I'm Neil Blackwood, I'm the chief superintendent for Salford district. I'm going to make a short statement this evening.

"Tragically, today, we have found what we believe to be the remains of a young baby on Ravenscraig Road in Salford. We have a scene in place, and you will likely see an increased presence of officers in the local area while we carry out enquiries to understand the circumstances.

"At this stage, we are following several lines of enquiry, and we are working with local partner agencies to understand who this baby could be, how long they have been here, and how they have sadly died. We are now calling this baby, Baby A.

"All of this is extremely sensitive, and this investigation needs to be handled with the utmost care it deserves, and it is going to take time. We know that this news will devastate our communities, and while we do not have all the answers to these questions yet, I want to reassure residents that we will do all we can to find out what has happened here.

"The most important thing for us right now is to find answers for this baby and I would urge anyone who has any information at all to get in touch with us. Even the most minor detail could be crucial to our investigation.

"If you have seen anyone in the area over the past few days, or know who the parents could be, please call us as soon as you can. As soon as we are in a position to confirm further details about the circumstances, we will do so. I encourage people to ring 101 and quote log 1319 or they can do so anonymously on Crimestoppers, which is 0800 555 111."

Chf Supt Blackwood then answered questions from the media, beginning with who discovered the remains. "Around about 12.30pm this afternoon, a member of the public who was out walking her dog has located what is the sad remains of Baby A," he said.

Asked about the sex or ethnicity of the baby, Chf Supt Blackwood said: "It's absolutely too early to tell. We're obviously awaiting the results of a Home Office post mortem, [it] will take place in the next two days."

Asked for 'any indication' of how long the baby had been at the scene, he added: "No it's absolutely too early to say that. I know that's not very helpful, but it's absolutely too early to say. We are in the real early stages of this investigation, we're going to establish those over the next few days."

Chf Supt Blackwood continued: "I personally haven't been to the scene, because it's a crime scene at the moment, we don't interfere with it as much as we possibly can. But experts, including my officers, have been to that location. It's near to where we stand now obviously."

He added: "We have no idea about the ethnicity or the sex at this moment in time, and we've had nobody come forward trying to give us information as of yet. We need to await the outcome of the Home Office post mortem, which should hopefully be in the next two days."

Explaining the location where the remains were found, Chf Supt Blackwood said: "It was initially called in on Ravenscraig Road. It's a big park area as you can see. We've just come to that location. You can clearly tell from where we are now [Ashtons Field], this is our location."