A mum-of-two found dead near a Rochdale primary school has been named by police and a man and woman arrested on suspicion of murder.

Kerry Newman, 40, was found dead near Ashfield Valley Primary School on New Barn Lane at around 4.30am on Monday.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) immediately launched an investigation and said they were treating her death as “suspicious” the following day.

Police have now confirmed that a 48-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman have been arrested on suspicion of murder and remain in custody for questioning.

Further enquiries have suggested that Kerry was taken from an address in Freehold to New Barn Lane in Rochdale where she was subsequently found dead. Her cause of death remains unknown.

In a statement, Kerry’s mother and stepfather said Kerry was “a loving daughter and mother of two boys, taken away from us too soon. She is now in heaven with the angels, rest in peace our beautiful girl”.

The family has requested privacy.

Detective Chief Inspector Rachel Smith from GMP’s Major Incident Team said: “Once again, my sincere and heartfelt sympathies to Kerry’s loved ones at this extremely difficult time. Our officers and specialist officers are supporting her family as this investigation continues and we will do everything we can to make sure we get justice for Kerry.

“The investigation into Kerry’s tragic death is moving at pace and we want to ensure justice is sought for Kerry and her loved ones. We are continuing to exhaust all possible enquiries and because of these efforts we have been able to arrest two suspects and they remain in custody for questioning.

“We are continuing to appeal to anyone with information relating to this incident to please come forward. This includes any witnesses, anyone with knowledge of the incident, CCTV, dashcam or mobile phone footage in relation to this incident. Any information you have may bring us one step closer to getting justice for Kerry.”

Images and mobile phone, dash-cam, or doorbell footage can be submitted through the Public Portal at mipp.police.uk

Alternatively, the Major Incident Team can be contacted on 0161 856 4388 or through GMP’s website www.gmp.police.uk using the ‘report’ tool.

The independent charity Crimestoppers can also be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111.