A woman who barricaded herself in her home for more than 12 hours has been taken into police custody.

Kent Police attended the scene in Trebble Road, Swanscombe. at around 11pm last night.

It followed a call expressing concern for the welfare of the woman inside.

She had a knife and was threatening to harm herself so police negotiators were called.

Lengthy negotiations took place through the night until 11.50am today when, after a period where there had been no interaction with the woman inside, public order trained officers forced entry to the house via the back door.

The woman, aged 31, was uninjured inside.

She was arrested for breach of the peace and taken into police custody at North Kent Police Station where she will be medically assessed.

Superintendent Ian Hall said: "We resolved the incident and brought the woman safely from the premises without injury at 11.50am.

"Our aim throughout was to bring the incident to a safe and peaceful conclusion. It meant some disruption to the local area and I would like to thank the community for their patience and understanding.

"The need to allow people to go about their daily business was important but the overriding aim was the safety of the woman involved and I feel we achieved this."

Neighbourhood officers are now in the area speaking with residents and offering reassurance.

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