Beyond 'Every Five Minutes', published in November 2007, brings together our two earlier reports and concludes that the response to missing children is still very fragmented and disorganised. PACT believes that the only solution for remedying this terrible situation is through the creation of a National Resource Center, based on the American model. Such a center would bring together under one roof representatives of the relevant government and NGOs to work as a united front. This will eliminate layers of bureaucracy and help coordinate effective policies to support missing and abducted children and their families as well as provide a single national help-line for children and parents.

Copies of the report are available for purchase in the shop, or you can download a copy by clicking here.

A Postcode Lottery, published in November 2006, maps out for the first time, the role of different agencies in the UK and the services they provide to missing children. The study which reveals a wide variation in service provision aims to build a platform for improving the strategic planning and funding for services across the UK.

Copies of the report are available for purchase in the shop, or you can download a copy by clicking here.




Every Five Minutes, published in October 2005, examined available sources to establish how many children go missing in the UK every year. The report concludes that it is currently impossible to obtain an accurate and comprehensive picture of the nature or scale of the problem (estimates range between 100,000 and 180,000). Data collection on missing children is neither coordinated nor centralised. Such statistics as are available come from disparate sources, using different methods of data collection over different timescales. The problem is compounded by inconsistent definitions of different types of missing children.

Copies of the report are available for purchase in the shop, or you can download a copy by clicking here.

PACT Research