A police officer has been injured after being attacked in a graveyard.

Police and ambulance crews were scrambled to Manston Road in Ramsgate around 10pm this evening.

The officer was injured while on duty and was knocked unconscious after the assault. It happened at the St Lawrence graveyard, which runs between St Lawrence High Street and Manston Road.

There was also a police presence in King Street.

The officer was treated at the scene for a head injury and has been taken to a local hospital as a precaution.

Officers are carrying out searches of the nearby area and are being assisted by the National Police Air Service helicopter.

Residents reported hearing the police helicopter circling around Ramsgate, Dumpton and Newington.

By midnight the helicopter had reportedly left the area, as had police units in King Street.