Camerons bury 'wonderfully special' Ivan

David and Samantha Cameron today authorised the release of a new picture of their six-year-old "wonderfully special" son Ivan to coincide with his funeral.

Mrs Cameron, close to tears, gripped a small bunch of flowers in one hand and held on to her husband with the other as the couple arrived at the 13th-century St Nicholas Church in Chadlington, in Mr Cameron's Oxfordshire constituency. The new picture of Ivan shows him smiling and happy. The boy, who suffered from cerebral palsy and a rare and severe epilepsy condition, died suddenly last week.

Today's burial service was a private affair for family and friends.

Members of the medical team and carers who had looked after Ivan, many of them from StMary's Hospital in Paddington, attended.

On Sunday, Mr Cameron issued a statement in which he spoke movingly of the loss of his eldest child and the profound effect it has had on his family.

"He leaves a hole in our lives so big that words can't describe it," Mr Cameron said. "Bedtime, bath time, meal time - nothing will feel the same again."

The public tribute was made in response to a wave of sympathetic messages of support from the public. "Sam and I have been overwhelmed by all the letters, cards, emails and flowers we have received about Ivan," he added. Thousands of pounds have also been donated to the five medical and disability charities the family asked people to support rather than send flowers.

Mencap has received more than £4,000. Its chief executive Mark Goldring said: "If there is some consolation to come from Ivan's sad death it must be that more people now have some understanding of what caring for a severely disabled child involves."