More details are now emerging about Fiona Donnison, who is being held by police after her two young children were found dead.

Police believe the former City worker killed two-year-old Elise and three-year-old Harry and then tried to kill herself.

The children’s bodies were found in the car of a silver Nissan car in Heathfield yesterday afternoon after Mrs Donnison went to Heathfield police station.

This morning, police said she is in a stable condition at Eastbourne District General Hospital with "apparent self-harm injuries".

It is believed Mrs Donnison, a former Lloyds syndicate worker separated from the children’s father Paul Donnison, a city underwriter, before Christmas.

She and the children had moved to Lightwater, Surrey.

It has been reported that the couple’s first child, Mia, died in April 2004 ago shortly before her first birthday.

Mrs Donnison has two teenage sons. The father of her older boys, ex-husband Derek McCrow from Burwash, East Sussex told The Mirror: "It's absolutely tragic."

A neighbour of Mr McCrow's, who did not want to be named, said that both Donnison's teenage sons "have not stopped crying."

She added: "They can't believe that this has happened. They are also asking for their mum. It's terrible."

Paul Donnison also has two children from a previous relationship.

The picture of the young girl, believed to be Elise, was posted on the Friends Reunited website by Mrs Donnison, who wrote: "My beautiful daughter, I know I’m biased."

A post mortem examination into the deaths of the two children is still ongoing.

Police said today their bodies had been found in two large holdalls in the boot of the car.

Mr and Mrs Donnison's former home in Sheepsetting Lane, Surrey, and the home in Lightfield, Surrey, where Mrs Donnison had moved to, have both been cordoned off by police while investigations continue.

An East Sussex County Council spokeswoman could not disclose whether the dead children were known to their child protection team.

She said: "This is obviously a tragic incident for everyone involved.

"In the event of any child death the local authority has a standard process it must follow.

"We are currently involved in that process and cannot comment further at this time as a police investigation is ongoing."