Parents accused of murdering their six children in house fire will not attend their funeral

A couple charged with murdering their six children in a house fire will not be attending their funeral service, church officials have said.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Nottingham said the funeral of Jade Philpott, 10, and her brothers Duwayne, 13, John, nine, Jack, eight, Jesse, six, and Jayden, five, would be held in Derby next week.
Mick Philpott, 55, and his 31-year-old wife Mairead have been remanded in custody charged with six counts of murder and are due to reappear at Nottingham Crown Court next Monday.
In a statement issued to local media, the Catholic Church confirmed that the funeral service would be followed by burials at Derby's Nottingham Road Cemetery.
Father Alan Burbidge, the family priest who will be conducting the service, said: "We have had confirmation this morning that the parents of the six children will not be attending the funeral, which will take place at St Mary's Catholic Church at 11am on June 22.
"The family have chosen that church as a venue because they are Catholic children and they wanted a full Requiem Mass in a Catholic church."
Jade, John, Jack, Jesse and Jayden Philpott all died in the blaze, which broke out at their home in Victory Road, Allenton, Derby, on May 11.
Duwayne Philpott survived the fire but died from his injuries at Birmingham Children's Hospital two days later.
The Prison Service has not confirmed whether Mr and Mrs Philpott applied for leave to attend the funeral, but said a risk assessment would be carried out if an application was made.
A spokeswoman said: "We do not comment on the movements of individual prisoners. Prisoners can apply for escorted visits to attend the funeral of a close relative, but it will always be subject to a strict risk assessment."