Missing People Website

Missing People: Research To Date

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Many different types of people are reported missing, from the very young to the very old, boys and girls, men and women, people who are running away and people who have drifted out of contact, people from all walks of life, under different circumstances, with different experiences while they are missing. 

The information contained here has been collected from a wide range of sources, and aims to be as detailed as possible.  By clicking on the links below you can navigate directly to the sections that interest you, or you can scroll down to read the whole report.

It is difficult to count missing people precisely, because of the different situations in which people go missing, so care must be taken when relying on any figures.  This report provides information from a number of published research studies, together with data from agencies working in the field, which give an impression of the overall issue of missing people. 

WHAT IS THE DEFINITION OF ‘MISSING PEOPLE’?

Defining what is meant by the term ‘missing people’ is problematic:  “There is certainly an implicit recognition by the police and by missing persons agencies of the problematic nature of a definition that originates with those left behind” (Biehal, Mitchell and Wade, Lost from View, 2003: 2).

The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) defines a missing person as: “anyone whose whereabouts is unknown whatever the circumstances of disappearance.  They will be considered missing until located and their well-being or otherwise established”.  (ACPO, 2005: 8).

Malcolm Payne (1995) took a different approach, and defined ‘going missing’ as: “…a social situation in which a person is absent from their accustomed network of social and personal relationships to the extent that people within that network define the absence as interfering with the performance by that person of expected social responsibilities, leading to a situation in which members of the network feel obliged to search for the missing person and may institute official procedures to identify the person as missing” (Payne, 1995: 335).

TYPES OF MISSING SITUATIONS

Several typologies of missing people have been developed to try and recognise the very different types of situations in which people go missing.  One conceptualisation of the types of missing circumstances was represented as a continuum by Biehal, Mitchell and Wade in Lost From View (2003):

Although it is possible that a missing person might move along the continuum while they are missing, or that the people left behind might misrepresent or misunderstand the true situation of the missing person, this typology enables a theoretical distinction to be drawn between different types of missing people and incidents. 

Another useful typology was developed by Malcolm Payne:

• ‘Runaways’ (missing people)
• ‘Throwaways’ (rejected missing people)
• ‘Pushaways’ (people forced to go missing)
• ‘Fallaways’ (people who have lost contact)
• ‘Takeaways’ (people forced out of contact)

Payne, 1995: 337

Both the Lost From View continuum and Payne’s typology demonstrate how complex the issue of missing people can be, and the variety of circumstances that can lead to a person going missing.

WHAT IS THE SCALE OF THE ISSUE?

OVERALL FIGURES

Estimating an overall number of missing people in the UK is difficult for several reasons: partly because there is no national collation of official reports, and partly because not all missing people are officially reported or labelled missing. 

In a 1999 study Newiss found, across three sampled police forces, that the average number of missing person reports filed in that year was 3.6 per 1000 people in the population.  (Newiss, 1999).  Calculated for a UK population (as at mid 2006) of 60,587,000, this gives an estimate of 218,113 missing person reports every year.  The total number of missing person reports each year is likely fall in the range of 210,000 to 230,000 in any one year.

27,570 missing person reports were made in the Greater London Metropolitan Police area alone in 1999/2000.  (Biehal et al, 2003: 3). 

Missing People recorded nearly 22,000 enquiries on missing people in 2006-07. (Missing People Annual Review 2007, forthcoming)

AGE

Young people are more likely to be officially reported missing than adults.  This is partly because they are more likely to live with parents, foster parents or in a children’s home who are likely to report them missing very quickly. 

Parents & Abducted Children Together (PACT) have estimated that at least 100,000 children go missing every year, or “one every five minutes”.  (PACT, 2005: 18).  Several studies have found that young people, aged under 18, account for around two thirds of all police missing person reports.  This would suggest that the number of people under 18 reported missing each year could be as high as 140,000 to 153,000.

SEX

Between the ages of 13 and 17 years, girls are more likely to be reported missing than boys.  71 per cent of 13-17 year olds reported missing to Missing People (1999-2000) were female.  (Biehal et al, 2003: 10) 

At older ages, this pattern is reversed.  Over the age of 24 years, men are much more likely to be reported missing than women.  73 per cent of people aged over 24 reported missing to Missing People (1999-2000) were male. (Biehal et al, 2003: 10).

These findings are also reflected in other studies of young people and running away. 

ARE THEY FOUND?

Tarling and Burrows’ 2004 study of Metropolitan Police missing person cases found that 99 per cent of cases were resolved within one year.  (Tarling and Burrows, 2004: 20).

A large majority of missing person cases are resolved very quickly, and most missing people are located.  Around 0.6 per cent of missing person cases are resolved when the missing person is found to have died. 

HOW LONG DO PEOPLE STAY MISSING?

The length of time, or duration, of being missing depends on the individual’s circumstances when they went missing.  Most young people who run away do so for only a short period, but some people lose touch with family members and friends gradually, and they can be missing for a very long time.  People also tend to report vulnerable missing people quickly. 

In 2004 Tarling and Burrows found that more than three quarters of a random sample of 1,000 Metropolitan Police missing persons reports were resolved within 48 hours.  The same study found that 99 per cent of missing persons cases were resolved within one year.  (Tarling and Burrows, 2004: 20).

CHILDREN WHO GO MISSING

HOW MANY CHILDREN GO MISSING?

Children are not allowed to go missing by choice, as children aged under 16 years must live in the care of an adult or the state. However, many children aged under 16 years are not in contact with some of their family members, and so may be considered missing by those family members.  Also, many young people run away from home or care for brief periods, for a variety of reasons. 

As children and young people are likely to live with family or carers, they are more likely than adults to be reported missing soon after a last sighting.  Because of this, people aged under 18 years account for at least two thirds of police missing person reports.  (PACT, 2005).

WHY DO THEY GO MISSING?

Children go missing for a variety of reasons.  In research conducted about reports to the Missing People charity in 2003, 70 per cent of young people who had been reported missing had done so by choice.  (Biehal et al, 2003: 21).  This includes those who stayed away from home, without permission, without intending to leave for good.   

4 per cent had ‘drifted’ away, 10 per cent were unintentionally missing, and 8 per cent had been forced to leave (including parental abduction and being thrown out).  (Biehal et al, 2003: 21). 

Of those young people who were ‘unintentionally’ missing most had lost touch with a parent after family break up.  “Loss of contact is common and there is evidence that around one half of non-custodial parents lose touch with their children within two years of separation.  (Biehal et al, 2003: 50).  This loss of contact may be deliberate on the part of either the custodial or non-custodial parent, and may not be the child’s choice.

ABDUCTIONS

Since 2002, the police have recorded between 600 and 1,000 child abductions (including attempted abductions) every year (Home Office 2002/03 to 2006/07).  In 2004 a Home Office study examined the cases of 798 police reports of child abduction in England and Wales.  (Newiss and Fairbrother, 2004: 1-6).  These reported abductions included attempted abductions and parental abductions (where a parent removes a child without permission or legal rights to do so).  This research found that just over half were attempted child abductions.

STRANGER ABDUCTIONS

Of all recorded abductions and attempted abductions, a very small proportion were instances where a child was actually abducted by a stranger.  Importantly, children who are abducted will not necessarily be considered missing, or reported as missing.

A 2004 Home Office study (Newiss and Fairbrother, 2004: 1-6) found that, of the 798 police reports of child abduction and attempted child abduction in England and Wales that year:

• 56 per cent or all reports involved a stranger
• 47 per cent of all reports were ‘attempted child abductions by a stranger’
• 9 per cent of all reports were successful child abductions by a stranger (n=68)

PARENTAL ABDUCTIONS

A 2004 Home Office study (Newiss and Fairbrother, 2004: 1-6) found that, of the 798 police reports of child abduction and attempted child abduction in England and Wales that year, 23 per cent involved abduction by a parent.  Not all of these children will be the subject of a missing person report.

RUNAWAYS

A ‘runaway’ is “…a child/young person, who is absent for one or more nights from the family home or placement without permission or who has been forced to leave by their parents or carers. Or, a child/young person who is absent from their home or placement without permission for any length of time where their age and experience, background and ability make this a concern”.  (Social Exclusion Unit, 2002).  Runaways are those children who have intentionally or knowingly stayed away from home without permission.

An estimated 100,000 children aged under 16 years run away from home or care overnight each year in the UK.  (Safe on the Streets Research Team, 1999). 

The peak ages of running away are between 13 and 15 years old.  (Social Exclusion Unit, 2002: 7)

Recent research that asked a school-based sample of young people whether they had ever run away found that 11 per cent of young people had stayed away from home overnight, without permission, on at least one occasion before their sixteenth birthday.  (Rees and Lee, 2005: 6).

In 2005 a Home Office study, the Offending, Crime and Justice Survey, asked around 2000 young people, aged under 18, whether they had ‘run away in the last year’.  Just over 5 per cent of this cohort reported that they had run away in the last year.

An Edinburgh based study, The Edinburgh Study of Youth Transitions and Crime, has followed a cohort of around 4000 young people through their teens.  At age 15 (in 2002), 22 per cent reported having ‘stayed out overnight’ in the last year, and just over 5 per cent said they had ‘run away’ in the last year.

Slightly earlier information is available from two Home Office commissioned household studies of young people, analysed recently by PACT:  The Young People and Crime Survey 1992-93, and the Youth Lifestyles Survey, 1998-99.  In both surveys 6 per cent of young respondents reported running away or staying out overnight.  (PACT, 2005: 53-5).

REASONS FOR RUNNING AWAY

Relatively few studies have asked in depth question of young runaways about why they go missing.  In Lost from View, Biehal, Mitchell and Wade described research undertaken with a sample of 40 former runaways, and explored their reasons for running away.

This study found that “running away was most often rooted in conflict with a parent, stepparent or other family member” (Biehal et al, 2003: 22).  Other reasons for going missing included seeking adventure or excitement, and trying to escape an accumulation of stress and anxiety.  The importance of peer influence was also emphasised, particularly for young girls. 

Running away was also found by this study to be a spontaneous event, rather than something that young people planned: “Running away is more often a spontaneous reaction to hurt and frustration than a premeditated decision” (Biehal et al, 2003: 22).

WHERE DO RUNAWAY CHILDREN GO?

51 per cent of overnight runaways, from a sample of school children, had stayed with friends, 35 per cent had stayed with relatives, and 16 per cent had slept rough.   (Rees and Lee, 2005: 18-20).

WHAT HAPPENS TO THEM WHILE THEY ARE AWAY?

A school based study of young people found that, while running away, nine per cent of young runaways had stolen something, three per cent had begged for money, and four per cent had ‘done other things’ to survive.  (Rees and Lee, 2005: 18-20).  Eight per cent of the young people who ran away overnight had been harmed.  (Rees and Lee, 2005: 18-20). 

A study of young people who had run away found that one in eight runaways (12.5 per cent) reported having been physically hurt and one in nine (around 11 per cent) reported being sexually abused while running away.  (Biehal et al, 2003: 32).

ARE THEY FOUND?

Most young people who run away do not intend to leave for good, but return to the place they left. A school based study of young people found that, of those who had run away overnight, 52 per cent stayed away for one night, 27 per cent stayed away for two to six nights, 11 per cent stayed away for one to four weeks, and ten per cent stayed away for more than four weeks (Rees and Lee, 2005: 18-20).

MISSING FROM CARE

Young people living in residential care are approximately three times more likely to run away overnight compared with young people living in families (Rees and Lee, 2005). When young people run away from care, their carers must follow protocol to notify the correct person of their absence (such as the senior manager of a care home, or the child’s social worker). The absence may then be categorised as either ‘unauthorised absence’ (for example, coming home after curfew) or ‘missing’ (where their whereabouts are unknown and there is concern for their safety). Local authority protocols will then define whether a police notification should be made immediately. Many local authorities require police notification of all unauthorised absent or missing children within a certain time period. (Biehal and Wade, 2000: 25-26). 

Research has estimated that around 30 per cent of young runaways were missing from care.  Some studies have estimated this to be as high as 70 per cent.  While it is difficult to pinpoint exact figures, it is safe to conclude that young people running away from care make up a significant proportion of young runaways.  (Wade et al, 1998, 5).

• “There is evidence that individuals running from residential care were more likely to run away repeatedly than those from home”. (Wade et al, 1998, 6).
• The Government’s Social Exclusion Unit found that “while almost half of all young people in care are likely to have run away, many started running before they entered the care system”. (Social Exclusion Unit, 2002: 14).

When the Children’s Rights Director for England conduced some research with young people who had run away from care, he found that there a number of reasons why young people run away.  These reasons included (Morgan 2006):

• Unhappiness
• Not being treated as an individual
• Not being allowed to do things they want
• Separated from people they want to see
• They need time alone
• Frustrated by rules and environment
• Punishments seen as unfair
• Physical restraint
• To stay with friends or family
• Not happy with placement
• Boredom
• Not getting on with care staff
• Not treated properly/fairly
• Bullying
• To have fun

This research identified three types of running away from care:  (Morgan 2006)

• Running to have fun
• Running to somewhere they want to go (for example, to see their family)
• Running from a placement they don’t like

ADULTS WHO GO MISSING

HOW MANY ADULTS GO MISSING?

The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) define a missing person as: “anyone whose whereabouts is unknown whatever the circumstances of disappearance.  They will be considered missing until located and their well-being or otherwise established”.  (ACPO, 2005: 8). 

Currently there is no accurate way of measuring the number of missing adults in the UK.  Adults have the right to leave their home and job if they wish, and to break off contact with family and friends, so defining adults as missing is difficult.  Estimates of the numbers of missing adults rely on reports from the families and friends who cannot find the missing person.  Many missing adults are not reported to the police, particularly if they have ‘drifted’ out of contact, rather than disappearing overnight, so relying on police missing person reports will lead to under-estimation of the number of missing adults.

WHY DO ADULTS GO MISSING?

Adults are free to choose to go missing, and around two thirds of missing adults in a study of cases held by Missing People had decided to leave.  (Biehal et al, 2003: 14).  This may include adults who have left after a relationship breakdown, or young adults who have left the family home because of conflict.

19 per cent of adults, in a 2003 study of cases from Missing People’s database, had unintentionally lost contact with family and friends, and had ‘drifted’ out of touch over time, rather than making a conscious effort to leave.  64 per cent had left deliberately, 16 per cent had left ‘unintentionally’, and 1 per cent had been forced to leave. (Biehal et al, 2003: 14).

More than half of the16 per cent ‘unintentionally’ missing had experienced dementia or other mental health problems. (Biehal et al, 2003: 19). 

Tarling and Burrows, in a study of Metropolitan Police missing person cases, found that “…nearly one-half of the sample, 46%, were said to be suffering from some form of mental illness and 16% were suspected of possibly committing suicide or of harming themselves”. (Tarling and Burrows, 2004: 19).

In the 2003 study of Missing People cases, the main reasons for adults going missing were (Biehal et al, 2003: 15-19):

• Relationship breakdown (30 per cent of adults)
• Conflicts over autonomy (especially for young adults)
• Escape (to escape a crisis or stress)
• Mental health problems, such as depression (around 11 per cent of adults)

Other reasons included (Biehal et al, 2003: 17-19):

• - Alcohol misuse
• - Financial worries
• - Job loss
• - Undisclosed childhood abuse
• - Violence
• - Drifting (e.g. moving house)
• - Transient lifestyles

WHAT HAPPENS TO THEM WHILE THEY ARE AWAY?

While many missing adults have left to start a new life elsewhere, 28 per cent of missing adults in a study of Missing People cases had slept rough while missing.  (Biehal et al, 2003: 28)

Just as young missing people face risks while they are away, missing adults face a variety of problems.  In a large scale study of cases of missing adults recorded by Missing People, “almost two thirds had also encountered difficulties. […]  Over one third (36 per cent) of adults had felt themselves to be in danger at some point while they were missing”.  Being homeless was associated with increased risk. (Biehal et al, 2003: 28).

HOW MANY MISSING ADULTS RETURN TO THE PLACE THEY LEFT?

When adults go missing intentionally – a deliberate choice – return is less likely.  Adults who had left because of a relationship breakdown rarely returned, and two thirds of them were missing for more than two years.  Of a sample of missing people who were reported to Missing People in 2003-3, “more than half (58 per cent) of the adults missing due to relationship breakdown refused to make any contact at all once they were traced and a few even refused to allow the NMPH to inform their families that they had been traced”. (Biehal et al, 2003: 42). 

Conversely, when going missing is unintentional, return is more likely.  In a 2003 study of Missing people data “the vast majority of vulnerable adults returned.  They were far more likely to return home after a missing episode than other adults”.  (Biehal et al, 2003: 43).  This group includes adults with mental health problems, a few with learning disabilities, and those with dementia.

HOW MANY GET BACK IN CONTACT WITH THEIR FAMILIES?

Although not all missing people return, a substantial proportion resume contact with the people they left behind.  In a 2003 study of Missing People’s database, 20 per cent of missing people who were located returned to the place they had left, and a further 39 per cent made contact. (Biehal et al, 2003: 39).

HOW MANY CHOOSE NOT TO GET BACK IN CONTACT?

Although many missing people, when located, get back in touch with friends and family, a substantial proportion choose not to do so.  In the 2003 study Lost From View, 41 per cent of located adults on Missing People’s database decided not to make contact with those looking for them.  (Biehal et al, 2003: 39).

In cases where missing people decide not to get back in touch with the people they left behind this was because they originally left to escape a negative situation, such as violence or conflict. 

THE RISK OF BEING FOUND DEAD

Some missing people are found by police or other agencies only after they have died.  In some cases this is because they have been out of touch for a long time and have died of natural causes before contact was re-established.  In other cases this is because the missing person has become a victim of homicide, or has committed suicide, and was reported missing after death but before their body was discovered.

HOW MANY MISSING PEOPLE ARE FOUND DEAD?

In 2006, just 0.6 per cent of 32,705 cancelled missing person reports from the Metropolitan Police Missing Persons Bureau was the missing person found dead.  (Newiss, 2006).

Between 2000 and 2006 an average of 10% of all missing person cases dealt with by Missing People resulted in a fatal outcome (typically between 120 and 140 a year).  This is higher than the proportion of police cases that result in death because of the differences in reporting patterns to the charity.  Missing People tends to become involved with cases after the initial few days (of police investigation) have passed. The risk of a missing person being found dead increases with the duration they are missing (Newiss, 2006). 

HOW MANY MISSING PEOPLE ARE VICTIMS OF HOMICIDE?

A study of police cases in 2003 estimated that just 1 in 7,400 missing people are the victims of homicide. (Newiss, 2003:1).  The likelihood of being found dead varies across sex and age group.  The age group of missing people most likely to have been the victim of homicide is those aged 19-24 years, closely followed by those aged 25 to 29 years.  Girls and women across all age groups also face “a higher risk than males of being the victim of homicide when reported missing” (Newiss, 2003: 15).

LONG TERM MISSING PEOPLE

WHAT IS ‘LONG TERM’?

Tarling and Burrows’ 2004 study of Metropolitan Police missing person cases found that 99 per cent of cases were resolved within one year.  (Tarling and Burrows, 2004: 20).  This provides a measure of how many people are missing for a very long period.  Some people, of course, are missing for very much longer than one year, but a year represents a measure of a long term missing incident.

HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE ‘LONG TERM’ MISSING?

Newiss (2005) identified a ‘snapshot’ total of 1,111 individuals who had been reported missing to police forces throughout the UK, and who had been missing for more than one year. As the duration missing increases, cases are more likely to involve older males.  (Newiss, 2005).

WHO ARE THE ‘LONG TERM’ MISSING PEOPLE?

Of the one per cent of police missing persons cases that Tarling and Burrows (2004) found are not resolved after one year, most will be missing people who have ‘drifted’ away, but a proportion will be people whose disappearance was sudden and out of character.  Research is underway, conducted by Missing People, to explore further the characteristics of long term missing people, paying particular attention to the cases of long term missing children.

THE PROBLEMS WITH COUNTING MISSING PEOPLE

It is difficult to collect information about missing people, because there is no one source of information that collects data about all missing people in the UK.  Although police forces record all missing persons reported to them, not all missing persons are reported at all.  The information in this report comes from a variety of sources including the police, the government, charities, Missing People’s own database, and independent research.

POLICE DATA

Association of Chief Police Officers

National Policing Improvement Agency

Police missing person’s reports are a good way of counting missing people because they are completed in a uniform fashion according to ACPO guidelines.  Police missing person reports collect standardised information about every case, which can allow comparison between groups of missing people.

However, information based on police reports is not perfect, and has several problems.  Firstly, police forces only record cases when an individual has been reported missing by someone else.  Evidence suggests that a substantial number of missing people are not reported to the police.

Secondly, police missing persons reports record incidents of going missing, rather than individuals.  As some individuals go missing more than once, their episodes of being missing will each be recorded as a separate incident.  This means it is difficult to use police data to see how many people go missing.

Thirdly, police data contain all missing persons reports, including those where the individuals involved do not consider the person to be missing.  In some instances carers, for example in children’s homes, have a statutory duty to report as missing anyone who is away from home at a time when they should not be absent.  Some children who live in care are reported missing frequently when they have simply missed an evening curfew.

Finally, at present there is no central collation of police missing persons data nationally, so no accurate annual count is available.

POLICE NATIONAL MISSING PERSONS BUREAU DATA

The Police National Missing Persons Bureau (PNMPB) collects information about missing persons cases from police forces around the country.  Although not all police forces submit all of their data, this is a useful resource for collecting national data.

However, the PNMPB  only collects information about missing people who have been missing for longer than 14 days.  This means that the large majority of cases that are resolved within this time are not included on PNMPB data.

MISSING PEOPLE DATA

Missing People Key Statistics

Missing People collect information about cases that are reported to the charity, either by families of missing people or by the police.  These records are extremely useful for exploring the characteristics and experiences of missing people.  However, this information cannot be used in isolation to estimate the extent of the issue. 

Calls to the Missing People helpline sometimes concern cases that have not been reported to the police.  This may be because the missing person has been missing for a long period, or because they have ‘drifted’ away rather than making a sudden disappearance.  This means that the charity gathers information about cases which would not ordinarily be included in police counts of missing people.

The charity works closely with the police nationally, through the National Protocol Agreement, to ensure that information and expertise is shared between the Missing People and the police.  This relationship means that increasingly the charity is aware of police cases, and will be able to make increasingly accurate estimates about the number of cases of missing people in the UK.

SELF REPORT AND OTHER RESEARCH DATA

Self report data (from representative or purposive samples of individuals) can uncover how many people go missing without being reported to the police, and why.  Where there is no statutory duty to report someone as missing, longer periods of time may elapse before a report is made.  In some cases, the missing person will return before a report is made, and so are not counted by official measurements.  By asking samples of, for example, young people if they have ever stayed away from home without permission overnight, it is possible to estimate how many young people go missing, whether their absence is officially recorded or not.  This data can also show what proportion of missing people are in fact reported to the police.

There are several recent British large scale, self report, studies of young people that ask questions about running away or staying away from home without permission.  These include the Offending, Crime and Justice Survey 2003 to 2006 , the Families and Children Study 2004,  the Edinburgh Study of Youth Transitions and Crime 1998 to 2003, the Mental Health and Wellbeing Survey 1999 – Children and Adolescents, the Youth Lifestyles Survey 1998, and the Young People and Crime Survey 1992-93.

Self report studies rarely ask adults about going missing, although one notable study has asked about running away from home:  the Mental Health and Wellbeing Survey (2000) for adults aged 16 – 74 asked a question about ‘running away from your home’.

SOURCES OF FURTHER INFORMATION

Useful links for information about missing people can be found at:

MISSING PEOPLE

Links here to other sections of the site about our services

http://www.missingpeople.org.uk

POLICE

Association of Chief Police Officers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland (ACPO)

http://www.acpo.police.uk/default.asp

Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS)

http://www.acpos.police.uk

National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA)

http://www.npia.police.uk

Police National Missing Persons Bureau (NPMPB)

http://www.missingpersons.police.uk

Interpol, the world’s largest international police organisation

http://www.interpol.int

MISSING AND RUNAWAY CHILDREN

ASTRA Project

http://www.astraproject.org.uk

Centrepoint, the national charity working to improve the lives of socially excluded, homeless young people

http://www.centrepoint.org.uk

Childline

http://www.childline.org.uk

The Children’s Society

http://www.childrenssociety.org.uk

Get Connected, free confidential help for young people

http://www.getconnected.org/home

Missing Children’s YouTube Channel, ‘Don’t You Forget About Me’

http://www.youtube.com/dontyouforgetaboutme

Missing Kids

http://www.missingkids.co.uk

National Children’s Bureau

http://www.ncb.org.uk

NCH, the children’s charity

http://www.nch.org.uk

PACT, Parents and Abducted Children Together

http://www.pact-online.org/index.html

Railway Children

http://www.railwaychildren.org.uk/news.html

Reunite, UK charity specialising in international parental child abduction

http://www.reunite.org

St Christopher’s, the London Refuge for Runaway Children

http://www.stchris.org.uk/pages/what-we-do/london-refuge/the-london-refuge.html

US Department of Justice, ‘When Your Child Is Missing: A Family Survival Guide’

http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/ojjdp/204958.pdf (PDF file)

OTHER USEFUL LINKS

Crimestoppers

http://www.crimestoppers-uk.org

The Edinburgh Study of Youth Transitions and Crime 1998 to 2003

http://www.law.ed.ac.uk/cls/esytc

The Families and Children Study 2004

http://www.natcen.ac.uk/facs

The Mental Health and Wellbeing Survey 1999 – Children and Adolescents

http://qb.soc.surrey.ac.uk/surveys/pms/wellbeingintro.htm

The Mental Health and Wellbeing Survey (2000) for adults aged 16 – 74

http://qb.soc.surrey.ac.uk/surveys/pms/wellbeingintro.htm

Offending, Crime and Justice Survey 2003 to 2006

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/offending_survey.html

Salvation Army Tracing

http://www1.salvationarmy.org.uk/en/Departments/FamilyTracing/Home.htm

The Young People and Crime Survey 1992-93

http://www.esds.ac.uk/findingData/snDescription.asp?sn=3814

The Youth Lifestyles Survey 1998

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/offendingyls.html

REFERENCES

ACPO (2005) Guidance on the Management, Recording and Investigation of Missing Persons.  (Bramshill: National Centre for Policing Excellence on behalf of ACPO)

Link to PDF version: http://www.childrescuealert.com/docs/MissingPersonsInteractive.pdf

Biehal, N., Mitchell, F. and Wade, J. (2003) Lost From View: Missing Persons in the UK (Bristol: The Policy Press)

Link to purchase information:

https://www.policypress.org.uk/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=&products_id=540

Biehal, N. and Wade, J. (2000) Children who go missing: research, policy and practice  (London: Department of Health)

Link to PDF version: http://www.dfes.gov.uk/qualityprotects/pdfs/missing-children.pdf

Home Office (2002/03 to 2006/07) Crime in England and Wales (London: Home Office)

All available to download from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics website:

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds

Morgan, R. (2006) Running Away: A Children’s Views report  (Newcastle: Commission for Social Care Inspection, Office of the Children’s Rights Director for England)

Link to PDF version: http://www.csci.org.uk/pdf/running_away_tagged.pdf

Newiss, G. (1999) Missing Presumed…? The police response to missing persons, Police Research Series Paper 114 (London: Home Office)

Link to PDF version: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/prgpdfs/fprs114.pdf

Newiss, G. (2003) Homicides which begin as missing person enquiries: a study of victims and offences (London: Home Office)

Newiss, G. (2005) ‘A study of the characteristics of outstanding missing persons: Implications for the development of police risk assessment’, Policing & Society, Vol. 15, No. 2, June 2005, pp212-225

Link to purchase information: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/10439463.html

Newiss, G. (2006) ‘Understanding the risk of going missing: estimating the risk of fatal outcomes in cancelled cases’, Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies and Management, Vol. 29, No. 2, 2006.

Link to purchase information:

http://www.emeraldinsight.com/Insight/viewContainer.do;jsessionid=770F6F3023917B20F28E0C43E223DCD3?containerType=Journal&containerId=12158

Newiss, G. and Fairbrother, L. (2004) Child abduction: understanding police recorded crime statistics, Home Office Findings 225 (London, Home Office)

Link to PDF version: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs2/r225.pdf

PACT (2005) Every Five Minutes: A review of the Available Data on Missing Children in the UK (London: PACT)

Payne, M. (1995) ‘Understanding ‘Going Missing’: issues for social work and social services’, British Journal of Social Work, 25, 333-348.

Link to purchase information: http://bjsw.oxfordjournals.org/

Rees, G. and Lee, J. (2005) Still Running II: Findings from the Second National Survey of Young Runaways (London: The Children’s Society)

Link to PDF version: http://www.childrenssociety.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/AF524D1D-20F0-4500-853D-0DB5ED0C6ADB/0/StillRunning2Final.pdf

Safe on the Streets Research Team (1999) Still Running – Children on the streets in the UK (London: The Children’s Society)

Link to purchase information:

http://cnb-host4.clickandbuild.com/cnb/shop/tcs?listPos=20&productID=36&op=catalogue-product_info-null&prodCategoryID=14

Social Exclusion Unit (2002) Young Runaways (London: Social Exclusion Unit)

Link to PDF version:

http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/social_exclusion_task_force/documents/publications_1997_to_2006/young_runaways.pdf

Tarling, R. and Burrows, J. (2004) ) ‘The nature and outcome of going missing: the challenge of developing effective risk assessment procedures’, International Journal of Police Science and Management, Vol. 6, No. 1, 16-26

Link to purchase information: http://www.vathek.com/ijpsm/index.shtml

Wade, J. and Biehal, N. with Clayden, J. and Stein, M. (1998) Going Missing: Young People Absent from Care (Chichester: John Wiley and Sons)

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http://eu.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0471984760.html