A family have criticised how police responded when a vulnerable woman turned up on their doorstep.

Christine Brooks had just settled in for the night just after 7pm on Tuesday (July 18) at her County Durham home when she had an unexpected knock on the door.

On the doorstep was an elderly woman, who claimed to be homeless, had no coat, said she had travelled from London by train that day and asked to use the toilet.

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Concerned, Christine called on a neighbour who rang police fearing the woman was vulnerable.

But she has now criticised their response after officers drove her to the train station and helped her onto a train back to London, despite Christine saying there was no evidence she actually lived there.

Christine, from Shield Row, Stanley, said: “I’d just sat down and had a knock on the door. It was a woman asking to use our toilet, but I was in on my own and I was dubious to let her in even though she was about 70.

“I knocked on my next-door neighbour who rang the police but we got talking to her and she said she was called Theresa, was 72 but didn’t know her date of birth, homeless, and had travelled from London then got a bus that day.

“She said she had no family, hadn’t eaten and had no coat even though it was raining.

“When the police arrived she didn’t want to talk to them and wouldn’t let them touch her handbag to see if she had any ID.

“She said she’d only get in the police car if I was with her.

“The officers rang around accommodation but couldn’t find anything and decided she could get a train back to London so they took her to the station.

“I couldn’t believe it – we didn’t know if she was even from London but they were happy to put her on a train.

“She was clearly vulnerable and could have lived two streets away but they let her get a train without seeing any ID.”

Christine’s daughter Hollie-Anne launched an appeal on social media to try to track down the woman, fearing she may be walking the streets of London.

On Friday it was confirmed that the woman was safely at home in the capital where Met Police officers had carried out welfare checks, but the family say they feared there could have been a worse outcome.

Durham Police have since defended their response saying the woman wanted to return to London.

A force spokesperson said: “At approximately 7.30pm on July 18, officers attended an address in the Stanley area following concerns for the welfare of a woman.

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“The woman would not disclose her identity and refused officers’ repeated requests to attend either a police station or hospital.

“Despite the best efforts of officers to help her, including checks against the missing persons database and attempts to secure alternative accommodation, there was no legal basis to search or detain the woman, who stated her intention was to return to her family in London by train.

“The 72-year-old woman is now safely back at her home in London where our Metropolitan Police colleagues have carried out welfare checks.”