Around 20 cannabis plants have been found in the attic of a family who prompted an outpouring of community support after a blaze destroyed everything inside their home.

Cambs Times: Items collected for House Fire victims at orchard school Wisbech. Picture: Steve Williams.Items collected for House Fire victims at orchard school Wisbech. Picture: Steve Williams. (Image: Archant)

Police said that following the fire in Lime Avenue on Saturday morning (March 12) fire officers discovered a number of cannabis plants in the loft of the property.

A spokesman said it is believed there were about 20 plants.

“This is not being connected to the fire, however the matter is being investigated by police. No arrests have been made at this stage,” the spokesman said.

A community has rallied round in support of the couple who have four young sons who were left with nothing when fire ripped through their home.

The parents remain at the bedside of their baby at Broomfields Hospital, in Chelmsford, in Essex, where their youngster is being treated in the specialist burns unit while their three other boys aged two, four and seven, stay with family and friends.

In the meantime, donations have flooded in to the school attended by the older children and money totalling more than £1,000 pledged to help them get back on their feet.

A local firm has donated furniture, Tesco have offered to kit the boys out with new school uniform and Wisbech Lions have offered to help re-decorate their rented home.

Orchards Primary School head teacher Nicola Parker, who put a small message on the school website following the fire on Saturday (2), said: “I asked if anybody could bring items into school on Monday and expected a few bits of clothing and maybe some toys from our parents.

“I didn’t expect to receive such an outpouring of support from so many - some as far away as Norfolk. The pledges are amazing.

“This proves how integrated this community is, look at all of this support.

“Here we have a family in need and other families have dug deep, it is heart warming.”

Donations include clothing, bedding, toys, colouring books and shoes.

Mrs Parker put out her message after seeing a call for help from Hayley Ogden who posted it onto a Wisbech Facebook group.

A day later the post was shared more than 400 times and has been seen by 19,000 people, Mrs Parker said.

Now the school is holding a cake sale on Wednesday and is looking for donations from local bakers to help raise funds.

The family also need men’s clothing in a 34 inch waist long leg trousers and women’s clothing size 10 to 12.

Fire investigators are working to establish a cause of the blaze, which started at around 8.30am.

Three crews of firefighters from Cambridgeshire and Norfolk were called to the scene and spent most of the day damping down the area and making sure there were no other hotspots.