Call to scrap police recording system for missing children

Greater Manchester Mayor and Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd

The All Party Parliamentary Group for Runaway and Missing Children and Adults report calls for the scrapping of the police recording system for missing children.

Greater Manchester Mayor and Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd said: “The safety of our children and young people is paramount so I welcome this important report which highlights a flaw in how police deal with missing children and young people.

"Any child that goes missing, even for a short period, is at risk so I will be raising these concerns with the Chief Constable to see what improvements we can make here in Greater Manchester to ensure no child falls through the net. We know that 95% of young people at risk from sexual exploitation have gone missing at least once so this is an issue we cannot ignore.

“We have made great strides in Greater Manchester in tackling child sexual exploitation, bringing police, councils, health, the voluntary sector together and others to protect vulnerable children and young people and target those who prey on them.

"This work also involves addressing the growing missing from home issue – in 2014/15 more than 6,000 children were reported missing in Greater Manchester – and I am investing £400k to develop a co-ordinated approach across the conurbation, working with the third sector to support children and young children who frequently go missing.”