345 child migrants go missing from care in one UK county

Almost 350 unaccompanied child migrants have gone missing from one county soon after arriving in the UK, shocking new figures show. Data from Kent County Council, published following a Freedom of Information (FoI) request, documented 345 child asylum seekers disappearing while in the care of authorities in the county.

Fifty-six of that number remain missing, the data reportedly shows. It is feared many of the children may have been taken by traffickers. Experts have expressed concerns over the figures, with one describing them as "shocking".

The figures were obtained by The Guardian which reported 132 kids went missing from two Home Office-run hotels for children in Kent between 2021 and 2023.

Of these, 24 remain missing, with 108 later found.

Meanwhile, 213 children went missing from the council's reception centres for children between 2020 and August this year - 182 were found and 32 still missing.

Esme Madill, of the Migrant and Refugee Children's Legal Unit at Islington Law Centre, told The Guardian: "Behind each number is a frightened child who will already have experienced egregious human rights abuses before arriving in the UK seeking safety.

"When we represent children who have escaped after being trafficked whilst 'missing' in the UK, we see how their mental and physical health is permanently harmed by the abuse they experience during this time."

Patricia Durr, chief executive of Every Child Protected Against Trafficking UK, also expressed concerns of trafficking and called on authorities to "prioritise child safeguarding".

The Guardian reported that many of the children missing arrived after crossing the English Channel in small boats or hidden in lorries, with Kent the area they most typically arrive in.

Some 36,954 people have crossed the Channel in small boats so far this year, more than the 36,818 arrivals recorded in the whole of 2024.

A Home Office spokesperson said the welfare and safety of unaccompanied child asylum seekers is a priority and the department takes "children going missing extremely seriously".

A spokesperson for Kent County Council said any missing child from care is a "serious concern and we take every effort to protect them".