Hinchingbrooke Hospital have apologised to the family of a 97 year old woman who was sent home from hospital - but taken to a house where she last lived two years ago.

The woman from March was taken home in a hospital ambulance minibus arriving at the wrong address in just her dressing gown and socks at about 9pm on Saturday night.

The woman had no house key with her and the family had not been notified that she was being brought home.

A hospital spokesman said: “We apologised to the family when we realised the ambulance went to the wrong address and that she didn’t have a key. “We’re very sorry for the error and repeat our sincere apologies.

“Patients are our priority and we will ensure we learn the lessons here and keep improving the service we offer.”

The woman arrived at a house where she last lived in 2012. Luckily she could remember her daughter’s telephone number which the ambulance driver called.

The family, who had made arrangements to collect their relative the next morning, then came to let her in at the correct address.

The spokesman said that for some reason the woman’s new address wasn’t inputted into the system so when it came to leaving hospital, the ambulance went to the wrong place.

He added that not having a key is a surprisingly common situation for elderly patients as many arrive in the hospital with their families, so don’t have keys.