The parents of six children who were killed in a house fire in Derby have been charged with their murders and will appear before magistrates on Thursday, police have said.

Mick Philpott, 55, and his wife Mairead, 31, have been charged with the murders of their children – aged between five and 13 – who died following the house fire at their home in Victory Road, Allenton, Derby, in the early hours of 11 May.

The couple's children Jade Philpott, 10, and brothers John, nine, Jack, eight, Jesse, six, and Jayden, five, were all killed in the fire. Their older brother Duwayne, 13, died from his injuries in hospital several days later. The children had all been asleep in their beds upstairs when the fire broke out at the semi-detached property.

A Crown Prosecution Service spokesman said: "The evidence was reviewed by a crown advocate from the CPS East Midlands Complex Casework Unit, who decided that there was sufficient evidence to charge and that it is in the public interest for a prosecution to take place.

"It is important to note that the defendants are entitled to a fair trial and nothing should be said or reported that would prejudice that right."

The charges followed a recent appeal for information by Derbyshire police.

Assistant Chief Constable Steve Cotterill, the officer leading the investigation, emphasised that the charges should not be seen as the end of the inquiry. He said: "Following the appeal yesterday [Tuesday] a number of people have come forward with more information but I want to stress that the two charges this evening should not be seen as the end of the investigation.

"We are determined to get to the truth of what happened and still want people to speak to us to tell us what they know about this tragedy."

Earlier on Wednesday the senior officer said a number of people had come forward with additional information that had been "extremely useful" to the inquiry team. He said those who had come forward had taken on board his promise that the team would treat them sensitively and in confidence.

He urged other people "to do the right thing" and talk to police if they know anything that will help them further.

Five days after the fire, the couple had broken down in tears at a press conference as detectives described the attack that claimed the lives of their children.

Police have established that the fire was started deliberately.

A 28-year-old woman and a 38-year-old man, both from Derby, were arrested by officers investigating the deaths, but were subsequently released without charge.