Sue Hale, 49, was found dead in a bedroom in her Southampton flat yesterday evening. Her carer was dead in the hallway. Police are hunting their killer.

Ms Hale's sister, Barbara Smee, 53, from Portsmouth, said: 'I'm still shaking, it's a big shock, I couldn't believe it. She had no enemies and I just can't believe anyone would do this to her.

'She was bubbly, she would help people if she could, she would do anything for anybody.

'I last spoke to her two weeks ago and she had no problems. I asked her if she had any problems and she said she was all right.'

She said Ms Hale, who used a mobility scooter, had cerebellar ataxia, a genetic disorder that meant she could not walk properly.

Despite the disorder she said Ms Hale, who had five grown up sons, kept herself active with a part-time job in a Scope charity shop in Southampton.

Police broke into the ground floor flat in Meggeson Avenue, Townhill Park when the care worker's council employers and her husband reported her missing.

Detectives and forensic officers were today examining the scene and the building remained cordoned off.

A Hampshire police spokeswoman said: 'Inquiries are focused on locating and identifying the offender.'

She added: 'It is not known at this time how long the women had been dead or how they died.'

A post-mortem examination was due to be carried out today.