"Bubbly and boisterous" Aimee Wellock died just when her life had turned around and she had everything to look forward to.

Her devastated but proud parents revealed how 15-year-old Aimee had overcome problems of bullying at school and was much happier there.

And just three months before her death she had amazed and delighted her family by passing exams for point dancing in ballet.

Mum Jackie Wellock explained: "We thought Aimee would never be able to dance point because her medical condition meant the skin on the soles of her feet was cracked and dry.

"But she had passed her exams to do it in March and she was really pleased that she had managed to achieve that. She loved every aspect of dancing and we had been out and bought her some ballet point shoes."

On Friday a crown court jury convicted young mother Claire Carey, 18, and two girls aged 17 and 15, of the manslaughter of Aimee and have been warned by the judge that they could face custody when they are sentenced later this month.

Aimee, who had a heart condition nobody knew about, collapsed after running away from the girl gang who had attacked her and her friends at the Chellow Dene beauty spot near her home in June this year. She died an hour later despite desperate attempts to revive her.

Mr Wellock, 47, and his 46-year-old wife, who sat in court through every day of the trial, have still to come to terms with their terrible ordeal. It included them attempting to resuscitate their dying daughter, identifying her body and seeing her killers every day in court.

But as they, and Aimee's 19-year-old brother James, try to rebuild their lives without her, they cling to the treasured memories of a daughter they describe as perfect.

Aimee's personal possessions help them to cope with the empty and silent house that was so alive when she was there.

"Her bedroom is just as it was when she died. All her things are still there, like her toothbrush," said Jackie.

"We draw some comfort from having her possessions there.

"Some things we keep very close. She had a pillow with a special label on. I sleep with that and Alan sleeps with a teddy she had. These are the things she loved and they keep her close to us."

The couple are determined to stay strong but the grief at their loss is clear as they movingly pay tribute to Aimee.

Alan, who runs a print and design solutions company with more than 20 employees, said: "Aimee was the centre of attention because she was so bubbly and boisterous and loud.

"The whole house was alive when she was in it. She would have her music on in her bedroom and you would be shouting up to her to turn it down, or she'd be dancing so vigorously upstairs the light bulbs would go out in the kitchen!

"But although she was loud, she was always very affectionate. She would never leave or arrive at the house without giving you a kiss."

Jackie, who works as a manager in the business, added: "She was always asking for hugs while I was making tea. You would have to break off what you were doing just to give her a hug. I really miss that."

The couple, who live on a quiet residential street at Chellow Dene, had to wait five weeks to have Aimee's funeral as her body lay in a mortuary while police investigated her death.

Jackie said: "We knew it was going to be a difficult day. We sat in the chapel and talked to her for a couple of hours. I was beside Alan who was sat next to her beautiful casket. It was just like the day she was born when I was in bed and Alan was sat next to her plastic cot.

"We sat together when she came into the world, thinking that we had got a lovely girl. Now we were sat there together saying our goodbyes."

From being very small Aimee was very lively.

"She never slept longer than two or three hours until she was seven or eight-years-old," said Alan. "She was just so active. She was always on the go and never stopped talking."

Aimee made her mark at St Edmunds nursery school in Girlington, where she was known as 'the glue queen.'

Her mum explained: "Her clothes and everything were always covered in glue or paint. If there was anything messy, she wanted it."

And Aimee unwittingly managed to kill the pet goldfish. "She had seen people feeding them and she put polystyrene and rice in the tank for them to eat, but sadly it didn't agree with them. I was horrified when I found out."

Aimee did not enjoy primary school. Her parents say she was a "clingy" child and her confidence was knocked when some of the other children avoided holding hands because of her skin condition.

She wore gloves even in the summer but the primary school children accepted her when the teachers explained her condition.

She worked hard and outside school she grew in confidence as she discovered an interest in dancing.

Jackie said: "She had tried the Rainbows but it just wasn't her thing. Her friends went dancing so she started to go when she was about six. We took her to the Spotlight stage school.

"She stuck it for 12 months until a show came up. She decided she didn't want to do that and stopped going."

But a year later she returned to the dance school and realised it was what she wanted to do.

"She had danced ever since," said Jackie. "Dancing, along with her family and friends, was her life. She loved it.

"Her teacher said she wasn't gifted or talented like some girls, but she worked at it and had the determination. She wanted to do really well."

The Wellock household revolved around Aimee's dancing, with ballet class on Friday nights and jazz class on Saturday afternoon.

Jackie added: "She did tap, ballet, modern and jazz. Jazz was her favourite because it gave her the freedom to express herself. She had four hours of classes a week, but was always dancing in the house as well.

"We have a caravan in North Yorkshire where we often stayed at the weekend. There were many times when we had to ferry Aimee back and forth for dance classes, but we didn't mind because that's what she wanted to do."

Aimee regularly appeared in Spotlight shows, performing in Blackpool, Preston and London. Her last performance earlier this year was to take part in a 12-minute rendition of Fame at Blackpool's Winter Gardens.

The teenager was determined to go to college to be a dance teacher after taking her GCSE exams next year and had been in the process of getting prospectuses and arranging singing lessons. She told her dad: "I won't be rich, but I'll be happy."