Tributes have been paid to an “outgoing and caring” mother-of-two, who died after being shot in her own home.

Friends say the 36-year-old, named locally as Hayley Burke, loved her children with all her heart and would do anything for anybody.

Police were called to a disturbance at a property in Priory Road, Dartford, on Saturday afternoon, where a trained negotiator attempted to engage with a man inside the address.

Firearms officers were also sent, and while they were at the scene a 36-year-old woman suffered injuries believed to have been caused by a handgun.

She was taken to a London hospital but died from her injuries yesterday (May 8) evening. Meanwhile, a 29-year-old man remains in a critical condition in hospital with a gunshot injury.

He is now the suspect in a murder investigation.

Flowers and messages for Hayley have since been laid at the scene of the incident, while one friend spoke to KentOnline to pay tribute to her.

“Hayley was the loudest friend in the group and never failed to have everyone laughing,” they said. “Hayley loved her children with every inch of her heart. Everything she did was for her boys – they were her life.

“Hayley would do anything for anybody but wasn't afraid to tell you if you took the mick. She was so brutally honest – it was one of her best character traits. If you wanted an honest opinion you would always ask Hayley.”

The friend said Hayley left behind two children, adding: “Her space in our lives will never be filled. She didn't deserve any of this.

“She had so much love and life to give.”

Meanwhile other residents in Priory Road described hearing gun shots after being told to stay in their homes.

Witnesses said after a stand-off which lasted about an hour "pandemonium" broke out and said the woman had been "held hostage" by a man at the back of the property.

One woman, who wished not to be named, said it was “chilling".

Another, who lived across the road, said "I didn't see what was happening but I heard a lot of gunshots.”

Another added: "It's so sad to hear she's died. I'm sending my condolences to her family. We didnt know what was going on but police were stopping us from leaving the house."

One resident said: "I saw the police cars and ambulance flooding in. We couldn't see what was happening but we heard the gunshots."

A murder investigation is now being led by the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate.