Confidential help must be available

HUNDREDS OF thousands of people go missing every year, the majority of them children or vulnerable young people.

There are a host of reasons why someone may choose to leave their life behind them, including relationship breakdowns, financial difficulty, drug or alcohol addiction and mental health problems.

For many people running away might seem like the only option left open to them, even though it may actually only make things worse.

Children are particularly vulnerable and running away at an early age is often an indicator of homelessness later on in life.

Sadly, there are certain situations, where parents are abusive for example, that fleeing the family home may seem like the only decision that makes sense.

Most people who go missing are successfully traced by the police. This does not mean they will go home again, but most are likely to allow officers to tell their relatives that they are at least safe from harm.

Those who never hear a word from someone who has disappeared have to live with the anguish of not knowing what has happened to their loved one.

It is impossible to stop people running away. In times of stress many people choose flight over fight.

Many young runaways are referred to specialist projects for help only after they have gone missing once and been found by police.

What is needed is a place where they can go to discuss their problems, safe in the knowledge they will be taken seriously and that help is available and, crucially, confidential.

Then it might just be possible to reduce the number of youngsters risking their lives by running away.