A Kingston police officer who talked a man from jumping off a bridge over the A3 has been praised for her “courage and compassion.”

PC Aimee Cobb was called to a flyover in New Malden 30m above the dual carriageway, at 8:20pm on Sunday after concerned passersby reported a man in distress.

For more than 90 minutes PC Cobb built up a rapport with the “clearly agitated and distressed” man who told her to stay away.

Police officers were so convinced the man was set to jump that they declared a serious incident and stopped traffic on the road below.

After almost two hours PC Cobb was finally able to persuade the man to come off the ledge and join her on the pavement.

London Ambulance Service also attended the scene and the man was taken to hospital where he was detained under the Mental Health Act.

Borough commander Glenn Tunstall praised PC Cobb for remaining “calm and patient” and “acting far beyond what was expected of her” despite never having received any specific training for that kind of situation.

Mr Tunstall said: “Whilst the ability to communicate is a key skill for any police officer, only specialised officers would have received the high level of training required to deal with the situation in which Amy found herself.

“However, Aimee showed equal measures of courage and compassion to develop the trust of the individual and then incredible patience in slowly persuading the male away from a course of action that would have ended his life.

“It is incidents like these that highlight the wide spectrum of scenarios that are faced by our officers’ everyday and why the role of police officer is so challenging, but also incredibly rewarding.

“I am incredibly proud of the actions of Aimee and her colleagues, the outcome of which have clearly saved the life of this individual and displayed the highest traditions of the Metropolitan Police Service.”

The Mind charity promotes the views and needs of people with mental health problems. Its helpline number is 03001 233 393.

​To get in touch with the Samaritans in Kingston, call 020 8399 6676 or drop in at 12 St Andrew’s Road, Surbiton from 7.30am to 9pm. Samaritans lend a confidential ear to those in distress.