Parents Fail To Report Missing Children
The Children’s Society is urgently calling for a national network of refuges for runaway children as new research reveals many parents are not reporting their children missing and thousands are being harmed on the streets.
The charity’s campaign is being driven through its core church supporters and clergy.
An estimated 100,000 children aged under 16 run away from home or care overnight each year in the UK and are mainly fleeing family conflict, abuse or neglect. This figure has not changed since similar research was conducted in 1999. According to the new research conducted by The Children’s Society with the University of York, which surveyed 11,000 children, aged 14 -16:
* Two thirds say their parents or carers did not report them missing to the police * One in six say they were forced to sleep rough or with strangers * One in 12 say they were hurt or harmed while away from home
The charity and its church supporters are alarmed that so many children say they were not reported missing as this puts them at greater risk of being harmed on the streets and forced into criminal activity. More than one in 10 children in the survey said they were forced to beg, steal or resort to other dangerous survival strategies.
Local authorities in England are required to offer help to young runaways but support services on the ground are patchy or non-existent. The Runaway Helpline, which takes calls from 8,000 children a month, says its operators often feel the frustration of not being able to refer distressed children to safe accommodation.
There are only three official refuges for runaways in the UK with a total of 10 beds – one for every 10,000 children who run away. Government funding for two of these refuges ends in March next year (2006).
Bob Reitemeier, The Children’s Society’s chief executive says:
“The charity is deeply concerned that with only ten refuge beds thousands of children will remain at risk on the streets. Unless the Government urgently funds a national network of refuges for runaways, these children could slip into the hands of dangerous adults and be harmed.”
“The number of children not reported missing is alarmingly high. While some parents may know where their children are staying, the figure is still shocking. We are concerned that if the police are not alerted, the only people looking for these children will be those we pray won’t find them.”
Church supporters, parishes and a coalition of organisations including The National Missing Person’s Helpline and existing refuge providers (NSPCC, St Christopher’s Fellowship, Aberlour) are backing the charity’s Safe & Sound campaign call.
A petition signed by more than 100,000 supporters – one for every child who runs away – will be delivered to Downing Street today (October 10) calling for Government action. The campaign has also been boosted by parishioners who have lobbied 83 local authorities to implement Government guidelines ensuring services are provided for runaways.
For more information about The Children’s Society’s campaign visit the charity’s website www.childrenssociety.org.uk/safeandsound
Parents Fail To Report Missing Children