Tragic pair were ‘well-loved’

Mr Owens said: “Paula was well-liked, well-respected and well-loved by the people who knew her.

“Olive was the quiet partner, but we loved them both in equal amount.”

Mr Owens said the couple, who were together for over 30 years but never married, were “inseparable”.

“There was such a good solid bond between them,” he said.

“They didn’t have the wedding rings, but in our eyes they were a married couple.

“They never spent one day apart.”

Ms Owens was a retired seamstress who had worked at SR Gents in Halifax, as well as volunteering at Remploy.

Born in Halifax, she was a big darts and dominoes player and was treasurer of Halifax Ladies League for many years.

Not much is known about Ms Stockdale, who Mr Owens believes is from Hull, and the Coroner’s office has launched an appeal to trace her relatives.

The appeal follows the postmortem which was carried out on Saturday, the results of which led the police to rule out any foul play.

Detective Superintendent Mark Ridley, of West Yorkshire Police, said: “Post mortem examinations have been conducted and both deaths are being treated as non-suspicious.

“These women have died in sad circumstances and their deaths have now been passed to the coroner’s office.”

Floral tributes have been left outside the couple’s home since the discovery last Friday night.

lAny relatives of Ms Stockdale are asked to contact Coroner’s officer Cate Booth on 01924 431070.