Two people have been arrested after police rescued three alleged slavery victims, including a 30-year-old who had spent her whole life in servitude.

The British woman was rescued alongside a 57-year-old Irish woman and a 69-year-old Malaysian woman from a house in Lambeth, south London, at 7.30am yesterday.

Investigating officers said they had “never seen anything of this magnitude before” and described the trio as “deeply traumatised”.

It is thought one of the victims rang police “some weeks ago” having seen media reports about forced marriages, which gave them the courage to contact a charity.

A couple, both 67, were arrested at the home yesterday as part of the investigation into slavery and domestic servitude, Scotland Yard said.

Detective Inspector Kevin Hyland said: “All three women were deeply affected and traumatised. Their lives were greatly controlled. For much of it, they would have been kept on the premises. The women were recovered some weeks ago but the arrests were made this morning.”

It followed a call to police last month, from a charity on behalf of the 30-year-old alleged captive, who said she had been held for 30 years.

Freedom Charity, which aims to advise and support victims of forced marriages or honour-based violence, got in touch after they received a call following TV coverage on forced marriages.

Aneeta Prem, Freedom Charity founder, said the alleged victims are believed to have suffered physical and mental harm, but were able to walk out of the property after repeated but tentative contact with the organisation’s call centre.

Prem said the two people arrested were considered the “heads of the family”, and that the women were “absolutely terrified” of them. She added: “They felt they were in massive danger. I don’t believe the neighbours knew anything about it at all. It was just an ordinary house in an ordinary street. They were very restricted on everything they could do.”