MYSTERY surrounds the death of a nurse whose body was found in a car park behind a block of flats in Malvern.

Thirty-year-old Gillian Edwards was found at the back of 23-28 Peak View - off Yates Hay Road at about 11.15am on Sunday.

Paramedics were called to the scene who in turn alerted police but the staff nurse at Worcestershire Royal Hospital was pronounced dead on the scene.

Yesterday the area looked the picture of normality, with labourers busy laying tarmac at the back of the new privately-owned flats, unaware of the weekend's events.

Meanwhile, other residents and nearby shopkeepers were equally in the dark as to what had happened.

Leigh Phillips, who lives across the road from the flats - which have only been lived in for about six months - said he was away at the time but his girlfriend had rung to tell him about the discovery.

"I can't believe it. You don't expect it on your doorstep really," he said.

A resident of the same block of flats, who wished to remain anonymous, said the woman had lived there since December and she had known her only to say hello to.

And Susan Mitchell, also of Peak View, said she had seen several police cars going up and down the road but knew nothing else.

"I knew it was the flats over there but I just thought they were arresting someone," she added."I then saw the ambulance and thought there must have been a fight or something."

Police are treating the incident as an "unexplained death" and investigations are continuing.

The coroner has been advised of the death and a post-mortem took place yesterday. An inquest is set to open tomorrow.