A WOMAN who is believed to have threatened to commit suicide stood on top of the old sorting offices in Station Hill, Chippenham on Friday afternoon.

It took police around an hour and a half to encourage her to come down before she was taken to hospital for assessment.

A spokesperson said police received an emergency call at about 3.30pm, but was unable to confirm whether the woman herself made it.

He also said there was initially some confusion about where the woman was as the caller had been unclear about her location.

“We received a call at around 3.30pm when we understood that there was a female who might be suicidal,” a spokesperson said.

“The female was said to be on top of a three-storey building, and police tracked her location down to the disused sorting offices. A police negotiator was called and successfully encouraged her to safely come back down. One lady was taken to hospital at around 5pm.”

The spokesperson said fire crews were on stand-by, but did not have the appropriate safety nets to deal with the incident.

The unknown woman is still believed to be receiving care in hospital.