A couple left their three young children alone in a car while they got drunk in a pub.

Police were called to the Admiral Jellicoe, in High Street, Canvey, to arrest the man and woman after an officer found two young children and a baby in the vehicle.

The pair were taken for questionning after the incident at about 9.30pm on Thursday.

Insp Brad Dickel tweeted that the children had been recovered from the car and the parents were later found “drunk and located in the pub”.

A police spokesman said: “Police attended the Admiral Jellicoe following reports three children had been left in a vehicle in the car park.

“Officers attended and arrested a 28-year-old man from Waltham Forest and a 35-year-old woman from Canvey on suspicion of child neglect.”

After being questioned at Basildon police station, the couple were given a caution by police.

Guidance from the NSPCC states: “The law simply says you shouldn’t leave a child alone if they’ll be at risk.

“Parents who are judged to have put a child at risk by leaving them on their own can be taken to court and even sent to prison.

“There might not be a specific legal age to leave children alone, but it’s safe to say babies, toddlers and young children should never be left alone, even if just while you pop down the road.”

Last year, MPs called on the Government to pass laws stating exactly how long children can be left unattended before neglect prosecutions are sought.

A Department for Education spokesman said: “The law is clear that parents can be prosecuted if they leave a child unsupervised in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering or injury to health.”