At about 3pm on Sunday, police attended 195 Leylands Road, Burgess Hill, in response to a call from a close family member of the husband and wife who lived at the house.

On arrival the bodies of Reginald Paisley, 85, and his wife Drusilla, 78, were discovered inside the house.

Drusilla had a head injury, although her cause of death is yet to be established. Reginald was found hanging.

The couple's daughter, who asked not to be named, said in a statement issued today: "My mother and father were loved by my brother and I as well as by their daughter-in-law, three grandchildren and their father.

"We spent many happy times in each other's company over the years. It is these times that we shall always treasure and one completely out-of-character act can never overshadow the fun we had as a family."

The deaths are currently being treated as unexplained and are under investigation. Nobody else is being sought in connection with the incident.

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