Concern is mounting for the safety of a young business woman who has not been seen since she went on a first date five days ago.

Kate Beagley, 32, from Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, who is said to be “an independent career woman”, was last seen at about 6.30pm on Wednesday when she visited her father before going out for the evening. Her Volkswagen car, which was spotted in West London 5½ hours later, has also disappeared.

Miss Beagley, a compliance manager, told friends and family that she was planning to go on a date with a man she had met recently. She has not been heard from since. She has not shown up for work and has failed to keep a number of appointments.

“The reason her disappearance is causing so much concern is that Miss Beagley is a responsible, dependable and very organised person,” a spokeswoman for Surrey Police said. “She is dedicated to her career and close to her family and for her to go missing like this is very much out of character.”

Detectives investigating her disappearance have issued a series of appeals for information about her movements.

Miss Beagley – who is white, 5ft 6in to 5ft 7in (1.70-1.73 metres) tall, of medium build, with straight, brown collar-length hair – was believed to have arranged to meet a black man in his twenties. Her plans are thought to have involved an evening out in the Twickenham, Richmond or Chiswick areas of London. Police believe that Miss Beagley and her date may have been using two cars.

There was a confirmed sighting of Miss Beagley’s grey Volkswagen Golf (registration RA04 TRZ) just before midnight on Wednesday near Chiswick Bridge.

Police are also seeking information about sightings of another car connected to the inquiry, a black BMW 3 series (registration L267 VLB).

Superintendent Jerry Westerman, of Surrey Police, said: “It is thought likely that both of these cars are in the Surrey or London areas. They could be parked somewhere – outside someone’s home, maybe in a car park.

“We are appealing for people to check outside their homes for parked vehicles, and to think of Kate.”

Mr Westerman added: “We and her family are growing increasingly concerned for Kate’s wellbeing, as her disappearance is totally out of character. Her safety is our top priority. If you have any information, please get in touch with us.”

Officers say that there is no evidence to connect the case with the disappearance of Milly Dowler, the 13-year-old who went missing in 2002 in Walton-on-Thames.

A man is in police custody being questioned in connection with Miss Beagley’s disappearance after being arrested late on Friday night. But police say that they have not obtained any firm information on her whereabouts, the location of the car she was driving, or the black BMW.

Police in South London are searching for a 22-year-old woman whose two-year-old son was found in the street near their home.

Natasha Adekusibe has not been seen since she left her home in Charlton, southeast London, at about 5.15am on Thursday carrying a rucksack. Neighbours found her son wandering in the street near their flat dressed only in a nappy and shoes at about 3.45pm on Friday.

It is believed that Ms Adekusibe left the boy inside the flat and that he managed to climb on to a chair, open the front door and crawl underneath a metal security grill.

Police have issued CCTV images of Ms Adekusibe and appealed for information about her whereabouts.

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