Police set up search teams in and around Blean Woods following James Potter's disappearance on Saturday evening.

A wide scale police search was sparked near Canterbury on Saturday evening, after the disappearance of a nine-year-old boy.

James Potter, from London, went missing during a family walk in Blean Woods near Rough Common, just after 4.30pm.

After a near two-and-a-half hour search involving the police helicopter, patrol cars, officers on foot and on motorbikes, he was found several miles away in Dargate, near Faversham.

James, who suffers from Autistic Spectrum Disorder, presented himself to a patrol officer from Faversham just after 7pm. He was reunited with his family soon after.

Insp Kevin Stephens, who led the search operation, said: “It’s a fair distance from where James went missing to Dargate, but it seems that he walked all the way.

"We would like to thank everyone who helped try to find James.

"His family are immensely relieved that he has been found safe and well, as are we.”