A village near Bristol came to a standstill as family and friends attended the funeral of teenager Helen Penfold.

Helen, of Hewish, near Weston-super-Mare, was just 18 when she died after suffering heart failure brought on by an asthma attack.

Her funeral was held at St Andrew's Church, Congresbury, on Saturday, with her coffin carried in a white carriage pulled by a pair of grey horses.

Both horses had pink feathers attached to their bridles and many of the mourners wore something pink, which was Helen's favourite colour.

There were so many floral tributes it took three vehicles to carry them all to the church – a hearse, a flatbed lorry and a trailer.

Many of the wreaths, arrangements and bouquets consisted of pink flowers and some were in the shape of horseshoes, reflecting Helen's love of horses. Tributes on some called her "Princess" and "Little Helen".

The teenager, who had just started work as a client adviser with Wessex Water in Nailsea, had recently left Churchill Sixth form with three A-levels.

Her family said she had everything going for her, was kind, cheerful, loved life and spent many hours with her horses, Rosco and Dell.

But nearly two weeks ago she woke up unable to breathe, and collapsed in the bathroom minutes later. Despite the efforts of her family and paramedics, she died within hours.

It is thought a problem with a valve in her lung caused it to suddenly collapse, sending her into a cardiac arrest.

Before her funeral service, hundreds of people walked behind Helen's coffin from the home of her father, Peter Penfold, 55, in Hewish, to Congresbury.

They were led by a police motorcyclist, a police car and a hearse, with people in Congresbury also gathering to pay their respects. Minister at St Andrew's, Matthew Thomson, addressed a packed congregation, with the service also relayed to those outside who were unable to get into the church.

He said it had been a privilege to be with Helen's family since her tragic death.

He said: "It has been a very traumatic week for them and our thoughts and prayers go out to them."

Donations were made to Asthma UK and horse welfare charities.