THE body of a newborn baby discovered in a recycling plant in Cambridgeshire came from Worcester, police have revealed.

Now they have appealed directly to the baby girl’s mother to come forward and receive the medical care she is likely to need.

The child’s remains were found in waste collected from Worcester and taken to a sorting depot in Bromsgrove before ending up at a plant more than 100 miles away in Peterborough where they were discovered by a worker on Wednesday.

The body had been wrapped up although police declined to say what was used.

A post-mortem proved inconclusive and further forensic tests are now being carried out.

It is not yet known how old the baby was, how she died, and whether she was born at full term or prematurely.

Yesterday, after the link with the city was established, a senior midwife and police chief from the city appealed directly to the baby’s mother to come forward.

They said they were extremely worried about the woman’s physical and emotional well being and gave out a phone number which will be answered by a midwife.

Appealing to her, Elaine Newell, head of midwifery at Worcesteshire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “I understand that you may not wish your friends or family to know of your personal circumstances at this time.

“If you would prefer to talk to myself or one of my senior midwives please ring 07775 800300 at any time.”

Mrs Newell said her primary concern was to ensure the woman, who may be at risk of bleeding or infection, was safe and well.

She said: “She’s likely to be very, very afraid and very, very disturbed and anxious about what might happen to her.

“I think she must have been feeling extremely confused and anxious about seeking help for her to take the actions she took.”

Detective Inspector Adrian Todd said the focus of the investigation quickly shifted from Cambridgeshire to South Worcestershire on Wednesday afternoon when the waste was traced back to the city.

However, he added: “Just because the body was taken from Worcester does not mean the baby originated from the city.

“We are keeping an open mind about that.

“We are very close to a motorway network.”

He said officers were investigating a range of possibilities including that the mother gave birth without anyone knowing or realising she was pregnant or was badly advised by family, friends or her partner.

He urged anyone in the community with information to contact them.

Mrs Newell added: “If the community have any knowledge or suspicions of a woman being heavily pregnant or pregnant at all and they suspect they haven’t seen a baby, any snippet of information at all would be helpful.”

Anyone with information can call 08457 444 888, quoting 289s/280808, or call Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.