A WOMAN has been found dead in Queens Park.

The body of the 50-year-old woman, who is from Bolton, was discovered at about 4.40pm on Monday.

Police said there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death and that the woman had been reported as missing from home before her body was found.

The park’s cafe had closed early because of poor trade given the inclement weather, and it is thought that the area was quite quiet because of the rain.

Queens Park is a popular spot with dog walkers and, especially during the ongoing summer holidays, parents and their young children.

Shaun Catterall, from Heaton, who uses the park regularly, said: “It can’t have been a very pleasant thing to find.

“They certainly used to have a couple of wardens who looked after things here, a man and a woman, but I’ve not seen them for years.”

Mr Catterall said he has lived near Queens Park for 20 years and that it has improved substantially in that time.

He said: “When I started coming here nobody came and I used to walk through only because I had a dog.

“Since they have done the improvements though it is a much nicer place and is a lot more inviting than it was.

“I have had a couple of friends who wouldn’t walk through here, even during the day, but it’s not like that now.”

A elderly woman, from Bromley Cross, who visits Queens Park occasionally, said: “What a shame and it must have been a bit of a shock for the people who found her.

“It is a very nice park to walk through and the council has spent a fair bit of money on it.

“It can be quiet and I don’t think enough is done to publicise it, not compared with Moss Bank Park for example.”

The matter has been referred by police to the coroner although an inquest has not yet opened.