Over 2,400 children went missing from UK social services in 2024, report finds

More than 2,400 children under the care of social services in the UK went missing last year, according to reports. Child rights organizations said the published report highlights serious security gaps in the system, leaving vulnerable children at risk of crime and abuse. Data released on Tuesday showed that children who were victims of human trafficking or arrived in the UK alone seeking asylum had particularly high rates of disappearance. Aid organizations noted that missing children are at risk of sexual abuse, exploitation by criminal networks, and other harms.

ABOUT 70,000 CHILDREN GO MISSING EACH YEAR

The SafeCall fundraising campaign, run by The Independent and the charity Missing People, aims to provide free support to roughly 70,000 children reported missing annually.

The report was prepared by child rights group ECPAT UK and Missing People using data obtained from local authorities through freedom of information requests.

According to the report, in 2024, 864 out of 2,638 children under local authority care who were identified or suspected to be victims of human trafficking went missing, representing 37%.

In the same year, 1,501 out of 12,530 unaccompanied children in social services went missing. This rate is around 13%, a 2% increase from the previous year.

"THESE CHILDREN ARE BEING LET DOWN BY THE SYSTEM"

Jane Hunter, Research Director at Missing People, said: "Children exposed to human trafficking and unaccompanied minors are disappearing at worrying rates. This shows that safeguarding mechanisms are not working effectively." She emphasized that every child should be in a safe environment, but many fail under the system's protection.

Hunter called for improved housing conditions and greater awareness of the National Referral Mechanism, the process used to identify victims of human trafficking.

Laura Duran, Policy Director at ECPAT UK, added: "These children are not just statistics. Most have experienced severe trauma, and when they go missing, the risk of re-abuse is extremely high."

THE ACTUAL NUMBER MAY BE HIGHER

The report pointed out that current practices may increase risk rather than reduce it. This includes uncertainty about children's immigration status and psychological pressure caused by unsafe migration policies.

Some local authorities did not respond to information requests, suggesting that the true figures could be higher.

GOVERNMENT: THE SYSTEM WILL BE OVERHAULED

A government spokesperson said: "This government inherited a system that failed to meet the needs of the country's most vulnerable children."

The spokesperson added that the Children and Social Work Act represents the most comprehensive reform of the child protection system in recent years, including measures for safe housing, improved inter-agency information sharing, and the establishment of multi-disciplinary safeguarding teams in every region.