PC Matthew Blades, 37, is being laid to rest today in Hartlepool with full police honours and a procession through his home town, following his death alongside colleague PC Tom Clough, 38, in a head-on crash on the A66 on 22 August. The officers were killed when their vehicle collided with a car carrying a group of young offenders fleeing police, moments after a pursuit had been called off. Blades's wife, Sarah, and their two young sons, who were praised by his family as their "superhero", will attend the funeral, with road closures in place for the procession.

Tributes have poured in from Cleveland Police Federation, whose chair, Lauren Somerville, described Blades as "the heart of the family" who would be remembered "beyond words". His widow, Sarah, spoke of the "unbearably quiet" life left behind, praising his devotion as a father and his selflessness on duty. A GoFundMe appeal set up in the officers' memory has raised £1.2 million, to be shared between the Blades and Clough families; separately, Cole Worthy, 17, one of five people killed in the same crash, is also being buried today.