POLICE searching for missing Ponteland woman, Sally Allan, have found a woman’s body in the River Tyne.

Officers say the body was recovered from water near to the riverside in Jarrow, at just after 1pm on Wednesday.

The 59-year-old mum and grandmother has been missing since leaving her home in Darras Hall at 3am on Boxing Day.

The last confirmed sighting of Mrs Allan was around three hours after her disappearance, when CCTV footage showed her walking on Newcastle's Quayside under the Swing Bridge.

Since then, police divers have been scouring stretches of the river, with her family fearing she may have been masking a mental health battle.

A force spokesman said: "Although we can not confirm that the body is that of Sally Allan, her family have been informed and our thoughts are with them at this time."