Return Home Interviews

Return Home Interviews and Return Discussions

Missing People is the only national charity supporting missing children, missing adults and their families. We have 30 years’ experience of working with police forces to find and safeguard missing people, and more than 6 years’ experience of working on behalf of local authorities and police to deliver support when children and adults return from being missing.

What is a Return Home Interview?

Statutory guidance for local authorities in England states that on every occasion a child goes missing, on their return they should be offered an independent Return Home Interview (IRHI), by someone who is not involved in caring for the child or young person. College of Policing Authorised Professional Practice (APP) guidance recommends that, ‘forces should establish a process for providing return interviews where adults are deemed to be vulnerable and/or at risk of harm.’ Guidance in Scotland recommends that Return Discussions for adults take place as good practice, which follow the same principles as a Return Home Interview (explained in more detail below).

 “Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is a key duty on local authorities and requires effective joint working between agencies and professionals. When a child goes missing or runs away they are at risk. Safeguarding children therefore includes protecting them from this risk. Local authorities are responsible for protecting children whether they go missing from their family home or from local authority care.”

– DfE Guidance

A Return Home Interview provides an opportunity for a person to be listened to – to understand why they went missing, what happened whilst they were away, including exploring whether they have come to any harm, and discuss what needs to be put in place to prevent them from going missing again.

A Return Home Interview is a fundamental opportunity to engage with a person who may not previously have come into contact with any other professional support – there is no threshold for a Return Home Interview. Therefore, it is a fundamental opportunity to identify any previously unknown risk, harm, or exploitation that a child or young person for example, may have experienced, or currently be experiencing, and refer them to any additional support services that they may need.

What is a Return Discussion?

A Return Discussion is the name for Return Home Interviews in Scotland, as explained in the National Missing Person’s Framework for Scotland. This Framework provides guidance on Return Discussions that Scottish Government recommended are completed with all returned missing children, young people and adults in Scotland, following a Prevention Interview (Safe and Well Check).

Initial contact is to be made with a person within 72 hours of their return, with the Return Discussion taking place within one week, preferably with a professional that the person already has a relationship with, or another professional of their choice. The principles of a Return Discussion and a Return Home Interview, remain the same.

How is a Return Home Interview or Return Discussion different from a Prevention Interview (Safe and Well Check)?

A Prevention Interview (formerly known as a Safe and Well Check) is an informal interview with a returned missing person completed by the police as soon as possible upon their return. These interviews aim to find out whether the returned person has experienced crime or harm while away, if there are any ongoing risk or factors which may make them more likely to go missing again, and whether the person is now safe and well. They are also an important part of closing a police missing person investigation.

“The purpose of the Prevention Interview is to identify any ongoing risk or factors which may contribute to the person going missing again […] The interview provides a valuable opportunity to find out useful information that may indicate harm suffered by the returning person. It can also identify details that may help trace the person in the event of a future missing episode.”

– Authorised Professional Practice, College of Policing

In England and Wales, a child or young person will be referred to the local authority for a Return Home Interview to be completed within 72 hours. In Scotland, following a Prevention Interview, a Return Discussion will be recommended for a child, young person, or adult with a local professional, with initial contact with the person to be made within 72 hours, and the Discussion to be completed within 1 week.

A follow-up Return Home Interview (in England and Wales) or Return Discussion (in Scotland) can identify if a child or young person (or adult in Scotland) has suffered any harm, including harm that may not have already been disclosed to police during the Prevention Interview.

Why should you commission us for these services?

We believe that Return Home Interviews and Return Discussions provide an important opportunity for a returned person to share their experiences, any risks they face, and highlight what would help to prevent them from going missing again.

Missing People is an independent organisation, and can offer a returned adult or child a confidential space in which to talk about their missing episode when it may be difficult for them to speak to their social worker, residential home staff, or police officer, for example. We believe that it is important to offer someone the choice of who they speak to and how they take part in the interview. Our model of delivering interviews reflects this, and we can offer interviews 7 days a week, including evenings, and in the way that suits the returned person, face to face or by telephone.

We offer:

  • A confidential and independent service;
  • Consistent workers to build relationships with frequently missing children;
  • Interviews 7 days a week, including evenings;
  • Person-led interviews at a time, place and method of their choosing;
  • A service that captures and shares a child’s or adult’s voice and wishes;
  • Identification of risk and vulnerability;
  • Safety planning and mapping;
  • The offer of a follow up/check in after an interview;
  • Signposting and onward referrals for support;
  • Direct support for children, adults and families 365 days a year;
  • Information sharing, with consent, to local authorities and police;
  • High quality, comprehensive interview reports rich with information and intelligence;
  • Involvement at multi-agency meetings;
  • Participation and sharing expertise at operational and strategic meetings;
  • Tailored performance and impact reports;
  • A service compliant with DfE Statutory Guidance and College of Policing APP.

Our skilled, independent team has an impressive track record of building up trust with people, who then open up about why they went missing, what happened while they were away and what help they need to prevent future missing episodes. Our interview services focus on identifying and responding to the risks and harm people face linked to missing incidents, including criminal exploitation, sexual exploitation, domestic abuse, and mental health issues. We can explore these risks with children, young people, and adults, and provide them with information and resources on how to stay safe.

Missing People’s work to support in the ‘search’ for a missing adult or child means that when they return, they may have already spoken to and been supported by us, linked to our TextSafe and Runaway Helpline services. This makes it more likely that they will accept our interview offer.

We can also refer any returned missing person directly to our free helpline should they need continued support, or are thinking about going missing again, and engage with parents or carers to offer them support, too.

“So happy that you did that for us. I’m emotional and really hopeful. Thank you so much – you’ve tried so much for us. I know it’s not been easy – thanks for sticking with us.”

– Parent feedback, 2020

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