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Support and information

Missing Children

Missing children – what does this mean and what should you do?

The term ‘missing’ refers to children and young people up to the age of 18 who have run away from their home or care placement or whose whereabouts are unknown.

Children run away or go missing from home, school or care for a number of reasons, and most of the time they do return home safely.

There are no set rules about when a child should be considered missing and if a child does not return home when you expect them to and you are worried, in the first instance you should try and find out where they are.

You should contact relatives or friends to see if they have seen them or know where they are. You should also search your property and local area to see if you can locate them.

Following this, if their whereabouts cannot be ascertained then you must contact the police. Dial 999 in an emergency situation or call your local police force immediately on 101 to report the child as missing.

The police will be able to talk through the situation with you and offer advice and guidance about what you can do and what they may do to try and locate a child.

The police will ask you questions about the circumstances leading up to when you last saw the child and this may include asking you their name, date of birth, what they were wearing when you last saw them and any medical conditions.

  • Very often running away/going missing is an indicator of other problems that the child could be experiencing that may need further exploration such as:

    Due to these concerns as well as the risks that children can be exposed to when they are missing, all missing children have a safe and well check conducted by the police once they are located. This helps to make sure that the child is safe and wasn’t harmed during the missing period.

    The child will also be offered the opportunity to speak to someone independent and will be offered a return interview which is undertaken by trained professionals to offer advice and guidance, try to ensure the child’s safety further and suggest techniques to try and reduce any future missing episodes.

  • There are many different agencies who are available to offer support, advice, and guidance on some of the issues surrounding missing children or children at risk of going missing.

    • Local Police: Call 101 for your local police force.

    • Missing People are a 24 hour charity who can offer support and advice for either parents/carers as well as children directly to talk through any worries there may be. You can access this service online, call them for free on 116 000 or email them at 116000@missingpeople.org.uk

    • The Children's Society have developed a range of resources to help understand how to support vulnerable young people, in particular those who go missing. There are guides for parents, carers, children and young people online.

    • Parents against Child Sexual Exploitation (PACE) work alongside parents and carers of children who are, or are at risk of, being sexually exploited by perpetrators external to the family. They have a National Telephone Support Line - 0113 240 3040.

    • Childline is also available for children and young people to talk to, whenever they are worried. Counsellors are available 24 hours a day by calling for free on 0800 1111.

    • NSPCC has a helpline for adults who are concerned about the safety or welfare of a child including protecting young people from sexual exploitation. You can call their helpline on 0808 800 5000.

  • Missing People provide a free confidential service to children and young people who may have been involved in gangs or county lines and have regular missing episodes. They accept self-referrals from children and young people and referrals from external professionals and agencies (police, social services, schools, charities, youth organisations etc). They work closely with children, young people and their parents/carers to ensure that the risk of exploitation is minimised and ensure that information is shared between social workers, youth workers and other services that they may be receiving support from.

    Their main objective is to provide a confidential child led service, drawing up safety plans to minimise future exploitation and reduce the risks of missing episodes reoccurring. Their values are to offer a non-judgemental service to ensure that children/young people have a safe space to talk about their experiences in confidence. They also support the families and carers of those who have missing episodes; providing them with emotional support and guidance.

    The operating hours for the Safe Call team are Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm and they also have a free 24 hour helpline which is available should support be needed out of hours.

    If you have any children or young people you would like to refer, you can complete the online form or you can send an email to the Safe Call team with the name of the young person, DOB, telephone numbers and reason for referral with any concerns highlighted. 

    • SafeCall Telephone: 020 8392 5710 SafeCall

    • Email: SafeCall@missingpeople.org.uk 

    • 24/7 Helpline: 116 000

    • 24/7 Helpline Email: 116000@missingpeople.org.uk 

Child Safety

Accidents are a leading cause of death and serious injury every year for children and young people.

  • A recent report by Public Health in Suffolk, reveals that children under two years old represented nearly half (48%) of all children and young people's emergency attendance to A&E between 2013 and 2017. Falls and respiratory conditions are the most common reason for attendance.

    • Children aged under two years represent nearly half of children and young people emergency attendance.

    • The under 5 year old age group accounted for most of the respiratory conditions and falls.

    • Head injury is the common cause across all age groups, followed by injuries and poisoning among 6-18 year olds.

    • There has been an increase in the number of children with asthma attending emergency departments.

  • Children are attending A and E departments as a result of trampoline accidents.

    • Head and neck injuries are the most serious injuries associated with trampolines.

    • Trampolining isn't suitable for children under the age of six because they're not sufficiently physically developed to control their bouncing.

    • Children should be supervised when using a trampoline.

  • In 2017 Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service launched an "Escape Plan" campaign to:

    1. Raise awareness of how to escape a fire safely.

    2. Allow people in Suffolk to create their own personal fire escape plan.

    Please visit the Suffolk Fire and Rescue Website to take their quiz to test how prepared you are for fire.

  • More than half of unintentional injuries happen to children and young people in the home.

    Public Health Suffolk has agreed a strategy to prevent unintentional injury in and around the home among children and young people aged 0-15 years.

    The Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT) and Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) have information and advice on their websites about safety issues such as button batteries, strangulation, drowning and in-car safety.

    Visit their websites for more information:

Alcohol & Drugs

Alcohol

Children understand about alcohol and its effects from a young age. They can recognise drunkenness and addiction and can tell the difference between acceptable and unacceptable drinking behaviour.

Alcohol is also a potentially harmful substance. For adults, drinking in small quantities is fine but it is illegal for people under 18 to buy alcohol or drink it in public.

Alcohol is a big issue in the UK but talking openly to your child about it is important as it can help them develop a sensible relationship with alcohol. Drinkaware has lots of information and advice to help you talk to your child about drinking. 

Are you worried about your own drinking?

These organisations can help you:

Drugs

Most young people will come into contact with drugs in some form or another at some point in their life. Most teens will decide not to take them but If they do it can be for a variety of reasons: peer pressure, rebellion or simply out of curiosity

As a parent, it’s a good idea to fully understand the facts about drugs. If you talk openly to your child about drugs and the risks and effects of them, it can help them feel more confident and comfortable about making the right choices both now, and in the future.

You can describe drugs using four broad categories:

Over the counter drugs - For example aspirin or ibuprofen to treat general pain. These drugs can be bought without a doctor's prescription from a pharmacist or some shops. Misusing these drugs can have harmful side effects. The instructions on how and when to use these drugs must be followed.

Prescription drugs - These drugs are controlled because they could be dangerous or addictive, so they must be used under professional guidance. You need a prescription to buy them - if you don't these drugs are illegal. Only a pharmacist can sell them to you and only if you have a prescription from a doctor. If you take these drugs without a prescription your health could be in danger - some prescription drugs have caused death when taken without guidance.

Psychoactive drugs - These are also commonly known as "legal highs" which mimic the effects of drug such as cocaine or ecstasy. The phrase ‘legal’ is often an inaccurate name which makes some people think they are safe. One of the biggest problems with legal highs is that little, or no research has gone into their effects, especially their long-term effects and the fact that a substance may not have been banned yet does not make it safe. Substances with similar health risks to cocaine and ecstasy can increase the chances of seizures, comas, and in the worst cases, death. The law on so-called legal highs changed on 26 May 2016. The 'New Psychoactive Substances Act' came into force, making it illegal to supply any ‘legal highs’ for human consumption. The changes in the law mean it’s now an offence to sell or even give psychoactive substances to anyone for free, even to friends.

Illegal, classified drugs - These are drugs such as heroin, cocaine or cannabis. These drugs are classified as A, B or C depending on the harm they cause. For example Crack Cocaine is a Class A drug, 'Spice' and 'Mephedrone', cannabis and a large number of synthetic cannabinoids are class B drugs. Ketamine is a currently a class C drug.

Further Information and Support

Bereaved Parents

The death of a baby or child is a terrible tragedy and one of the most devastating things that can happen to a family. If you are reading this and your child has died, we are so sorry for your loss.

This booklet, When a Baby Dies Suddenly, produced by the Lullaby Trust, has lots of information which you may find helpful, as does Sudden Death Resources from the EACH Library & Information Service, and Unexpected Death of a Child Services from Living Grief at St Elizabeth Hospice.

There is also lots of other helpful information on the Lullaby Trust website that can help you cope with your loss.

The Child Death Overview Panel

Each Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB) has a statutory (legal) requirement to review child deaths in the local area, as described in regulation 6 of the Local Safeguarding Children Board Regulations 2006, made under section 14(2) of the Children Act 2004.

Suffolk’s Child Death Overview Panel (CDOP) fulfils this requirement on behalf of the LSCB in Suffolk. The Panel Members come from health, children and young people’s services and police. They are responsible for reviewing all deaths of Suffolk children and young people from birth up to the age of 18.

The aim of a CDOP review is to ensure that procedures are in place and working effectively to support families when sudden and unexpected deaths in childhood or infancy occur as well as collecting information to help improve services for children and families in Suffolk. CDOP collects and discusses information provided by professionals who have cared for the child and supported their family. At the CDOP meeting, learning points are agreed by the Panel who then make recommendations for organisations to put into practice.

The CDOP review takes place after all investigations are concluded and the outcomes explained to parents and family members. The role of CDOP is not to investigate individual cases or to determine cause of death, which is the responsibility of the doctor issuing the death certificate and/or the Coroner.

This Lullaby Trust booklet The child death review guide for parents and carers explains the process that happens after a child dies.

Eating Disorders

Eating disorders include bulimia, binge eating disorder, avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), other specified feeding or eating disorder (OSFED), and anorexia. They can affect people of all ages.

Teen Body Image And Self-esteem - A Practical Guide For Parents

This useful guide can be found here: Body Image and Self Esteem- A Parents Guide

Helpful Resources

Safeguarding in Sport

Taking part in a sport is a great way for young people to keep fit, develop their physical skills, increase their confidence and make friends. 

Lots of people, including volunteers and paid staff, coach and and encourage children and young people, but occasionally incidents of grooming and abuse occur.

See what different sports have been doing to keep children and young people safe.

Reporting Concerns

If you have any concerns about an adult working with a child who may have;

  • behaved in a way that has harmed a child, or may have harmed a child;

  • possibly committed a criminal offence against or related to a child; 

  • behaved towards a child or children in a way that indicates they may pose a risk of harm to children. Report any concern to a Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) by email LADO@suffolk.gov.uk or telephone the LADO central telephone number 0300 123 2044

Child Protection in Sport Unit

The NSPCC's website  Child Protection in Sport Unit has advice on safeguarding children in sport.

The Child Protection in Sport Unit (CPSU) is a partnership between the NSPCC, Sport England, Sport Northern Ireland and Sport Wales.

The Unit works with UK Sports Councils, National Governing Bodies (NGBs), County Sports Partnerships (CSPs) to minimise the risk of child abuse during sporting activities.

NSPCC Football Helpline

The NSPCC helpline 0800 023 2642, is for anyone who has experienced sexual abuse as a young footballer and operates 24 hours a day.