No police patrols were available to search for a troubled mother after she walked out of a mental health unit, an inquest has heard.

Natalie Gray discharged herself from Priority House, Maidstone, and made her way to Barming railway station, where she died last April.

This week an inquest heard from deputy ward manager Paul Walker, who had been on duty the previous evening when the 24-year-old, who was receiving care as a voluntary patient, became suicidal.

It was decided she should be reassessed by a doctor if she became agitated and tried to leave, although a jury heard this was not passed on to all staff and her status as a low-risk patient was not updated.

The following day, Mr Walker called police at 4.30pm, 15 to 20 minutes after an occupational therapist let the young mother out of the Hermitage Lane unit.

Call handler Gemma Manning gave the incident a high-priority rating, but not one that prompted an immediate response.

Giving evidence, she said that was because she had been given “relatively little information” and had not been told Miss Gray was at a high risk of suicide at that time, although she was made aware of her mental state the previous evening.

She said Mr Walker did not seem very concerned, and that if it had been urgent she would have expected him to have called sooner, and on 999 not the non-emergency 101 number.

Jurors heard it had been a busy day, and there were no free police patrols available to go to Priority House during the time Miss Gray, from Folkestone, was missing.

Instead call dispatcher Lindsey Browning raised the incident with the patrol sergeant and asked for CCTV in Maidstone to be monitored because the young mother had last been seen heading in that direction.

In fact, Miss Gray ended up at Barming station, a mile in the opposite direction. Miss Gray was tragically killed by a train before that happened, shortly after 6pm.

The inquest, at Archbishop’s Palace, continues.