My Foster Child is Missing

Foster carers will be proactive with regards to providing a foster home which promotes a feeling of security that aims to minimise the likelihood of the child going missing.

When a child is placed with you, you should be made aware of any likelihood of them running away and whether it has happened before.

The child's Care Plan along with the Placement Plan should cover:

• Frequency of running away or staying away;
• Reasons given;
• Where child runs to;
• What level of risk (to self to others);
• Are adults involved and if so nature of involvement;
• Does the child run alone, encourage or follows others;
• Age of child (relative to behaviour);
• Any disabilities, health and/or medical needs.

You should talk to the child/young person about the risks of running away and let them know where they can get help to talk about this other than from you. You should be aware of what measures you can take to prevent a child from leaving without permission.

The degree of risk that they might be taking by going missing will vary dependent on things like their age understanding and awareness. There may be a variety of reasons for the young person going missing and it is through communication that you are most likely to understand and deal with the issues that make them go. This could include peer group issues, family contact or other, more sinister reasons such as being manipulated by adults with bad intentions. On the other hand, the young person might not be used to people being concerned about their whereabouts and they might not understand that you are trying to keep them safe and look after them.

There are various different terms which are used in relation to missing children:

Statutory Guidance On Children Who Run Away Or Go Missing From Home Or Care (January 2014) uses the following definitions:

Missing Child:

A child reported as missing to the Police by their family or carers.

Missing from Care:

A Looked After Child who is not at their placement or the place they are expected to be (e.g. school) and their whereabouts are not known.

Away from Placement Without Authorisation:

A Looked After Child whose whereabouts are known but who is not at their placement or the place they are expected to be and the carer has concerns or the incident has been notified to the local authority or the Police.

Young Runaway:

A child who has run away from their home or care placement, or feels they have been forced or lured to leave.

The College of Policing also has a definition of missing and the associated assessment and response given.

Action to take if you are concerned that a child is missing:

• Check premises and outside areas at the address;
• Ask other children at the house if they know of child's whereabouts;
• Ask other adults, whether they have seen the child and have given permission for them to leave;
• Attempt to contact child by their mobile phone if you can;
• Contact family members/ friends to try to establish their whereabouts.

The following checklist should be considered to start to think about the level of risk to the child and what action should be taken:

1. Is this event significantly out of character?
2. Have they done this before?
3. Is there a time you expect them to return?
4. Who are they with?
5. Have you been in contact with the child?
6. Is the child likely to be subjected to harm or a crime?
7. Is the child a danger to themselves or others?
8. Is the child likely to attempt suicide?
9. Does the child have any specific medical needs?
10. Is there a specific concern?
11. Do you know the child's whereabouts?
12. Do you believe them to be involved in crime?
13. What were their intended actions when last seen?
14. What have you done to locate the child?
15. Is there any other significant information you are aware of?

If a child is missing and you do not know where the child is and they are not found within a reasonable time frame: one hour for under 12's and two hours for over 12's (unless stated otherwise in their Placement Plan), advice should be sought from the child's Social Worker or Out Of Hours Team (see Rotherham Safeguarding Children and Families Procedures, Local Contacts) as to whether to notify the Police.

Once a decision has been taken to report a child as missing to the Police, you should complete the risk assessment with as much detail as possible. This may include a recent photograph of the child.

Once a decision has been taken to report a child as missing to the Police, you should complete the risk assessment with as much detail as possible. This may include a recent photograph of the child their legal status and any other information you think will help.

Ask your Supervising Social Worker for support with this or the child's Social Worker. They may also advise support from the Police or SAFE@LAST who can talk to a child aged 16 to discuss the issues that may have led them to running away and support them in finding solutions. The care you provide should minimise the risk of the child going missing, however a child/young person should be aware that they need to take some responsibility for their own safety depending on their age and understanding.

On returning, the child should be seen by their Social Worker.

The child's Social Worker should call a meeting within 5 working days to look at why the child/young person went missing to look at ways of preventing it from happening again.

You should always look out for changes in behaviour patterns that might help you identify when they are thinking about doing it in the future.

You must ensure that records are completed when a child goes missing or is considered an unauthorised absence.

The records are used to record the number, frequency of 'missing' incidents on an individual child.

The records must include:

• Actual time child last seen and by whom;
• Time identified as missing;
• Time reported as missing;
• Circumstances immediately before being missing, (e.g. did child simply just not come home form school or an activity, was there an incident, etc.);
• Action taken by foster carers;
• The circumstances of the child's return, any reasons given by the child for running away from home, and any action taken in the light of those reasons.