Three schoolgirls have attacked a hedgehog in a play park, throwing it down a slide and up in the air, an animal charity has said.

Kelly Leyland, from Haydock Hedgehog Helpers Rescue in St Helens on Merseyside said the animal was brought to them in a collapsed state on Monday after a "disturbing" attack by a group of girls in Skelmersdale, Lancashire.

She said the animal, which has been named "Hedgy", had been taken to them by two schoolboys and their mother but died on Tuesday.

Lancashire Police said it was investigating and its inquiries were ongoing.

Leyland said her charity had been told that three schoolgirls had been seen throwing the hedgehog down a slide and up into the air and dropping it on the floor, before it was found buried in a park at Greenhill Community Hub.

She said she was "shaking and crying for a good while" after the animal came in for treatment and that she thought it would already have been unwell due to having a life-threatening condition called fly strike on its body.

This meant the hedgehog would not have been able to curl up to use its spines as a protective shock absorber to any of the blows it had suffered.

"I believe he had come out during the day to chase the heat of the sun because he was unwell, which is when most people bring a hedgehog into us," said Leyland.

Hedgehogs are listed as vulnerable in the UK, with at least a 30% fall in numbers during the last decade.

The volunteer-led charity, funded by donations, said it had only seen six human attacks on hedgehogs out of more than 1,000 creatures they had helped during the last seven years.

Leyland said the only silver lining to the sad situation was that boys from a primary school in Skelmersdale had helped the animal.

"The little boy that brought it in with his mum, his face was so full of hope and kindness, and that's what I encounter day to day," she said.

The animal conservationist said she would like to invite those responsible for the attack to see the work of her charity and to educate them about hedgehogs.

She said "some hedgehogs have got amazing personalities".

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