A three-year-old girl is in hospital with serious head injuries after being hit by a falling piece of wood in Brighton.

Two men were arrested after the incident at around 10.45am on Friday, police said.

The child was in a pushchair being pushed by her mother along Preston Street when it is believed the timber fell from scaffolding surrounding a building, according to a Sussex police spokeswoman.

A 32-year-old man from Hove was arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and a 39-year-old man from Brighton was arrested on suspicion of failing to discharge general health and safety duty at work. The Health and Safety Executive is investigating.

DCI Pierre Serra, of Sussex police, said: “We are appealing to anyone who may have been walking along the street at this time to come forward with any information they have on this incident. We are also urging anyone who was driving along this road to check their dashcam footage to see if the incident was captured.”