An artist who made picture frames for the parents of newborns using the mother’s placenta is now preserving people’s ashes in the same way.

Amanda Cotton, 26, developed the technique using recycled and sustainable materials while studying 3D materials practice at the University of Brighton, and after receiving positive feedback from customers decided not only to concentrate on commemorating life, but also death.

Ms Cotton places a small amount of ashes into a mould with other materials which enables the frame to set. Each frame carries the relative’s birth and death dates, inset on the edges, she said.

Witnesses right to raise rape alarm

A girl who was allegedly heard screaming and shouting from the front seat passenger window of a car that the driver was a rapist has been found safe and well.

Sussex Police said they were satisfied that the three children and a man who were seen arguing inside a car in Crawley, West Sussex, were fine after a man came forward and spoke to officers.

Detective Inspector Andy Bennett said: “The witnesses did the right thing in raising the alarm because they could not know that this was not a serious incident.”

Massive Scottish sponge reef found

The largest deep-sea sponge reef in UK waters has been discovered off the coast of Scotland.

Scientists at Marine Scotland made the find while carrying out surveys at Rosemary Bank seamount, an extinct volcano located hundreds of miles off the northwest coast.

The Scottish Government has designated the region as a marine protected area in order to safeguard its ecosystem.

Man survives great white shark bite

A man in his 50s survived an attack by a great white shark while surfing off the California coast.

The victim, who was one of several people in the water, sustained minor injuries when he was bitten on the right hip, and was able to paddle to shore at Sand Spit Beach in Montana De Oro State Park, west of San Luis Obispo.

“From what eyewitnesses said, the shark came up from underneath and bit him,” said park rangers, adding that witnesses described the shark as being 8ft to 10ft long, making it a juvenile.

LA baptists lose hearse and coffin

A hearse was stolen from outside a southern California church ahead of a funeral service – with a coffin inside.

The hearse was idling outside Ebenezer Baptist Church in South Los Angeles while the funeral director arranged flowers for services for 19-year-old Jonte Lee Reed. Shirley Little, the pastor’s wife, said family members driving to the funeral were notified that the hearse was missing and stopped it four blocks from the church.

The man who was driving was detained and his mental condition was being evaluated. The hearse was returned and the funeral went ahead 30 minutes later than scheduled.

Cleveland is 50 years victory-free

The hapless US city of Cleveland has marked an unwanted anniversary – 50 years without winning any of the country’s major sporting titles.

It is five decades since Cleveland’s last professional sports championship when the Browns beat the Baltimore Colts 27-0 to win the NFL title, the last for the franchise and the city. Since then, long-suffering fans of the Browns, baseball team the Indians and basketball outfit the Cavaliers have gone a combined 141 seasons without seeing any major titles.

Cleveland’s title drought is the longest for any North American city with three pro franchises.

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