No action will be taken against a teenage mother who abandoned a newborn baby in Sheppey – after it was determined the child had been stillborn.

Her body was found on the green between the swimming pool and Roman Catholic Church in Broadway, Sheerness, shortly before 1pm on March 4.

There was also evidence a small fire had been started nearby in an attempt to dispose of the remains.

In the aftermath, an urgent appeal to trace the mother was launched as police, fire investigators and forensics officers scoured the scene.

An unidentified teenager, believed to be just 14 years old, was arrested four days later.

However, police have now confirmed she will not be charged as no crime had taken place.

A spokesman said the case was closed on July 26 and the teenager had been released without charge.

He added: "We have to explore all lines of inquiry.

"There's more to an investigation than investigating the obvious – in a sensitive case like this, we need to make sure all the people involved have the right support networks in place.

"Also, to determine the outcome in cases like this, it requires specialist doctors and experts to conduct a number of tests and it can be quite time-consuming."

The spokesman confirmed a post-mortem had taken place and the baby was found to be stillborn, which led to the teenager being released without charge.

An inquest will not take place as the baby was not "a registered life", he added.

It is understood the baby girl was white and had not been born at the scene.

They were also unable to confirm if the baby was full-term as "forensic inquiries were unable to establish this".

The discovery shocked the Island community when the news broke and a number of floral tributes were laid on the green.

Father Frank Moran, of St Henry and St Elizabeth Roman Catholic Church, also held special prayers during a service on the following Sunday.