Concern is growing over the whereabouts of a missing woman from Inverkip, who vanished over a month ago.

Margaret Fleming, 36, was reported to be last seen by two carers at her home at 5.40pm on Friday 28 October.

There has been a high police presence in the village over recent weeks, but officers have admitted that they are still in the dark as to what has happened to her, and she is still missing.

Police have explained that it is an "unusual missing persons case" and that Ms Fleming had a "side of her life" which she kept private.

Officers have searched her property and taken evidence bags away for investigation, with the garden and area surrounding the property also being searched.

Her home has now been searched and evidence bags removed as well as the garden and area surrounding the property examined by officers.

Motorists and pedestrians were quizzed during the weekend as part of the police operation, while investigations have also been underway in Port Bannatyne in Bute where Ms Fleming was believed to visit regularly. 

She was also a student at James Watt College in Greenock from 1996 to 1997.

Police are interested in speaking to anyone who remembers her from then and who might have been in touch with her over recent years.

Ms Fleming is described as around 5ft 5in with collar-length black hair and brown eyes.

She has a heavy build, although her weight sometimes fluctuates, and she was wearing a green tartan fleece or jumper, dark jeans or trousers, and dark Karrimor boots when she was last seen.

Chief inspector Elliot Brown, area commander for Greenock, said: "Police Scotland is continuing significant enquiries into the disappearance of Margaret, and we've been thankful for the response from the public so far.

"I would like to make it clear that finding out what has happened to Margaret is a priority for my team here in Greenock.

"We are currently working with limited information and whilst it does seem like this is quite an unusual missing person case, it is challenging, however, we've a number of lines of inquiry we are working on and I would like to stress that this is still a missing person inquiry."

He added: "As we continue to try to piece together Margaret's life, we understand she kept a side of her life quite private so we're trying to look into this in a bit more detail to see if this will help with our enquiries.

"We are working backwards to try to find out more about Margaret, so we've been speaking to friends and family members to establish a clearer picture of her life over the years.

"Again, we do know that Margaret was a student at James Watt College, Greenock, from 1996/97 therefore we'd be keen to speak to anyone who remembers her from then, and who might have been in touch with her over the years.

"I would ask anyone with any information, no matter how irrelevant it might seem, to contact police at Greenock via 101."