DfE Statutory Guidance on Children who Run Away or go Missing from Home or CareFlowchart showing roles and responsibilities when a child goes missing from care (January 2014)

The following chart shows the main steps that need to be taken when a child goes missing from local authority care, and where responsibility lies for those steps. It should be read alongside the full

statutory guidance on children who run away or go missing from home or care, and is not intended to be a comprehensive list of actions.

48hrs Missing

24hrs Missing

Child/ young person’s

care plans to reflect:

relevant risks/

established pattern of

running away/ strategy

to keep them safe and

minimise the risk

Care plans discussed

and agreed as far as

possible with the child

and the carers

IROs informed about

missing and away from

placement without

authorisation episodes

and IRO to address in

statutory reviews

Essential Information

Form completed and

made available to

foster carers/ care staff

All agencies/ carers to

take reasonable steps

to locate the young

person before reporting

a missing person to the

police or EDT

During the period a

child is missing, the

Social Worker to be in

daily contact with the

Police, the child’s

placement and family

Where the child is

placed in another LA,

Social Worker to inform

that LA and work with

them to recover/ locate

the child

Meeting convened to

review the actions to be

taken alongside partner

agencies in the area

where the child is

placed

Social Worker to

contact the child’s

school/ place of

education/ local

hospital to obtain any

information about a

child’s whereabouts

If a child/ young person

goes missing for over

24 hours or for three

occasions in 90 days -

Strategy meeting to be

held

Where an absence

lasts over 24

hours,Senior Manager

to consider whether an

alert should be sent to

other LAs

Where and all relevant enquiries have been carried out

and there are still concerns of a child going missing

Social Worker to contact EDT to assess the child’s

needs and make appropriate arrangement for the

children’s safety

CSC Team to send an

alert to EDT where the

child they are working

With has run away/

gone missing from

Placement

Social Worker to take

appropriate action

taken to protect the

child and seek their

return

Police to notify the MASH of all missing children

recorded on COMPACT within 24 hours of the child

being reported as missing/ of any further information/ if

the Officer has concerns that need further assessment

When a child has been

absent for 48 hours,

Police to update

Children’s Social Care

of any significant

developments at least

every five days

Child/ young person goes missing

Child/ young person reported missing

Child/ young person absent without authorisation

Inform those with

responsibility for the

child

Child/ young person reported missing in another LA

Click here to see

RHI Process

Social Worker to Pass

on any information

obtained the Police

Police follow their

Processes

Pan-Bedfordshire Safeguarding Children who go Missing from Home and Care Protocol (April 2017)

Missing or Absent Without Authorisation

Consider any learning

difficulties and/or disabilities,

risk of CSE, forced marriages,

LAC trafficking

Child/ young person found

Parent ,carer or

residential staff to

contact the Police and

confirm that the

missing child has

returned.

If the whereabouts are

known or suspected,

parents, carers or

residential staff to

arrange for the child’s

return

Once the child has

been located, the

Police will carry out a

Police safe and well

check

Police close the

missing person report

on COMPACT and

cancel on the PNC.

(This is not a return

interview)

The Police will notify

Children’s Social Care

of the return of the child

and any relevant

information

Child/ young person returned to placement

Professionals meeting

organised following the

child’s return to agree

what support is needed

and to ensure the

reasons the child had

are fully considered

The child to be told

about expectation of

them to talk to an

independent person/

appropriate friend/

person the child trusts

about the absence

Child’s medical

condition to be

discussed and medical

attention arranged

where required

All unauthorised

absences and missing

episodes to be

recorded and a full

report made available

for the child’s next LAC

Review

Regular or persistent

absences should be

discussed with the IRO

with a view to an early

review being called if

necessary

Click here to see

RHIProcess

Pan-Bedfordshire Safeguarding Children who go Missing from Home and Care Protocol (April 2017)

Child Found

5days

24hrs

24hrs

3days

72hrs

5 days

24hr

72hrs

72hrs

Within 24hrs

Is the missing person

LAC

SW to make referral to

NYAS

SW to email/ informing

missing co-ordinator re:

child/ YP identified as

missing on their

caseload

NYAS arrange and

complete return home

interview

Missing Co-ordinator

to complete return

home interview

(location determined by

YP and/or Parents)

NYAS return home

interview sent to SW,

Service Manager (SM)

and Single Point of

Contact (SPOC) Team

Manager (TM)

SW reviews return

home interview and

updates Child/ YP

record and care plan

Yes No

Missing Co-ordinator

re-asisigns missing

episode to SPOC TM

for review and sign-off.

Child identified as

missing (normally by

police)

Police make contact

with the MASH via

COMPACT Report

(found or missing

notifications)

MASH identifies

service and refers to

relevant worker, TM

Admin and Missing co-

ordinator, SPOC TM

TM/ DTM to ensure

SW/ Admin record

missing episode on

LCS and leave open

until RHI completed

SW updates Child/ YP

missing episode with

return interview date

SW visits (books visit)

to Child/ YP and safety

plans with them

Missing Co-ordinator

contacts parents to

attain consent for

return home interview

to be undertaken

Missing Co-ordinator

updates Child/ YP

record with details in

the missing episode on

LCS (including any

contact details)

TM/ DTM to ensure SW

to review and close the

missing episode

following sign-off from

SPOC TM

SW visits (books visit)

to Child/ YP and safety

plans with them

SW reviews return

home interview update

on LCS (EH staff have

read only access)

Is this case in Early

Help?

EH admin opens

contact on EHM

&

Missing Co-ordinator

opens missing episode

on LCS

YesNo

Return Home Interview Process (April 2019)

This process is for return

home interviews following

missing incidents and

must be followed in

conjunction with the Pan-

Bedfordshire Missing

Protocol(click on title for direct link)

Where a child has been

missing for more than

24hrs MASH convene

a Strategy meeting

chaired by SPOC TM

Where a child is not

open to SC or meet

the thresholds these

are referred to EH to

review the

presenting issues

and plan the support

Following sign-off from

SPOC manager,

Missing Co-ordinator to

contact SW noting RHI

complete

RHI Process

A returning child may well share different parts of

their experience with different people, therefore it is

the responsibility of all agencies to tend to issues of

immediate safety, future support and safeguarding

needs, and information-sharing in a way which

respects and safeguards the child.

Where a return interview leads to a disclosure that

needs a specific action, the matter should be

followed up by the relevant agencies. In the interest

of openness and transparency, the child should be

informed.

Via email and telephone call.

It is the worker and teams’

responsibility to ensure they

check the LCS inboxes regularly

(twice a day) for any referrals

Each missing incident MUST

be recorded on a separate

missing episode

Includes Assessment Duty

Manager