DETECTIVES were questioning a man last night after a North-East mother was murdered yards from her home.

Gillian Raine lay dying in a pool of blood on the street following an attack that left her with severe head and neck injuries, at about 7.15am yesterday.

Witnesses said a hammer and craft knife were recovered from the scene in Coleridge Gardens, Dipton, County Durham.

Police confirmed weapons had been recovered.

A 24-year-old man was in custody last night after being arrested on suspicion of murder.

Detective Chief Inspector Paul Goundry said: “This was a sustained assault in a public place involving two people who appear to have known one another, and was seen by other people who were in the area at the time.

“We’re speaking to some significant witnesses and carrying out extensive inquiries to establish the full circumstances leading up to this attack.”

Last night, the village of Dipton was in shock following the death of Mrs Raine, who set up and ran an after-school club for children and their parents.

A 55-year-old shopkeeper, who asked not to be named, said: “She would always come into the shop and say hello.

She was very friendly, and popular.

“I can’t believe what has happened to her.

“My friend told me that she spoke to Gillian this morning as she walked her dog.

“Gillian stopped for a chat and was upset because of a recent death in the village of a well-known local woman who died of cancer.

“They said their goodbyes and then minutes later, my friend heard the police or paramedics shouting, ‘Come on Gillian, stay with us’.

“She was distraught to hear what had happened, and kept saying, ‘If I’d only spoken to her for longer’.”

Police cordoned off sections of the estate with crime scene tape and put up a forensic tent where Mrs Raine’s body was found.

Officers tried to resuscitate her and she was taken to The University Hospital of North Durham, in Durham City, were she was pronounced dead.

The murder has stunned the community and flowers have been laid at the scene.

Mother-of-two Leanne Mc- Nulty, 33, of Wordsworth Gardens, said: “I cannot comprehend it. It is awful. I feel terrible for her family. You don’t expect this to happen so close to where you live.”

Mrs Raine set up Dipton Out Of School Hours Club in 1999, after struggling for years to cope with the demands of being a single mother bringing up her now adult daughter, Pamela.

The club, which provides breakfast and after-school care for children at Dipton Collierley Primary School, was organised as a charity, helping countless families in the former pit village. Mrs Raine also worked tirelessly on other community activities, from raising funds for a disabled villager who had been burgled to playing a prominent role in the campaign to retain services at Shotley Bridge Hospital.

Mother-of-two Jade McArdle, 23, said: “She was lovely.”

Joanne Forster, 35, said: “It’s an absolute tragedy. She was a wonderful woman who was very popular.”

Police are not looking for anyone else in connection to the attack, but are appealing for anyone with information to come forward.

People are asked to call 0345-60-60-365.