THE York family of a woman who has been missing in London since Wednesday have urged anyone with information to come forward and tell police.

Sarah Everard, 33, who is understood to be a former Fulford School pupil, has not been seen or heard from since departing her friend’s house in Clapham, south London, at around 9pm on Wednesday and her family say “it is totally out of character for her to disappear like this”.

Detectives have discovered new CCTV confirming she was walking alone around half an hour after leaving her friend’s home.

Sarah's father Jeremy, a professor at the University of York, and her mother are reported to have travelled to London to join in the search.

The family said in a statement: “With every day that goes by we are getting more worried about Sarah.

“She is always in regular contact with us and with her friends and it is totally out of character for her to disappear like this. We long to see her and want nothing more than for her to be found safe and well.

“We are so grateful to the police and all our friends for all they are doing.

“We are desperate for news and if anyone knows anything about what has happened to her, we would urge you to please come forward and speak to the police. No piece of information is too insignificant.”

The investigation is being led by Scotland Yard’s Specialist Crime Command because of the “complex nature” of the case, the force said.

North Yorkshire Police has tweeted that the Metropolitan Police were concerned for Sarah, who had previous links to the York area,and said that if anyone had any information that could help they should contact the Metropolitan Police as soon as possible.

Ms Everard was last seen wearing a green rain jacket, navy blue trousers with a white diamond pattern, and turquoise and orange trainers. She is thought to have been wearing green earphones and a white beanie hat, Scotland Yard added.

Detective Chief Inspector Katherine Goodwin said: “I would like to stress that there is no information at this stage to suggest anything untoward may have happened to Sarah.

“The focus remains on returning her home to her family safe and well and that is our number one priority.”

Anyone with information should call the incident room on 0208 785 8244 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.