An elderly woman who was trapped in her bath for four days has been rescued by police in the UK after a waitress at her favourite cafe noticed her absence and became worried for her safety.

According to a report by the Essex Echo, 87-year-old Doreen Mann became stuck in her bath when one morning she found she could not lift herself out.

"It was frightening in a sense because I didn't know how long I would be stuck there," she told the Echo.

But when a waitress at her local cafe, Tomassi's in Southend, realised that she had not seen Ms Mann in three days, she called the police.

"She didn't come in for a few days and then she didn't come in on Saturday like she always does, but I thought perhaps her cousin from Chelmsford was visiting her," Sonia Congrave said.

"On the Monday she didn't come in and the best thing I did was call the police because I was concerned and luckily I had her address so the police went to check if she was ok."

Ms Congrave, 39, said Ms Mann had bruising on her knees after trying to get out of the bath and survived by drinking water from the tap and covering herself with towels or topping up the hot water when she got cold.

"All she wanted afterwards was her cake and a cup of tea," Ms Congrave said.

She said she had since bought Ms Mann a mobile phone in case of any emergencies in the future.