Thieves stole a memorial to an infant only hours before it was due to be laid at his grave.

Maz and Ginny Marriott, whose son Lief was stillborn, are offering a reward for information leading to the return of the sculpture which was taken from the doorstep of their home in Lansdowne Street, Hove, on Saturday.

The memorial, which weighs 10st and is 2ft high, was made by Lief's grandfather Morris Cunliffe, 74.

It includes a heart-shaped piece of pink concrete balancing on a white plinth with a sculpture of a kissing angel attached to the front.

Mr Marriott said: "Morris left the memorial outside to go into town.

"We were all still in the house and he came back half an hour later and started shouting at me, asking where it had gone.

"I jumped in the van and went driving around because it is so heavy I thought someone may have dumped it nearby.

"I was gobsmacked when I realised it was gone. I am really depressed, not because of the item that has been stolen but more because someone could do that to another person."

Lief died last August only five months into the pregnancy.

Mr Marriott said: "It was a horrific time and when the doctors told us our son had died it was like walking into a brick wall.

"This memorial was a way of beginning to lay Lief to rest as well as paying tribute to him."

Anyone with information can contact Mr Marriott at mazthegob@yahoo.co.uk or call Sussex Police on 0845 6070999.