Lost from view : missing persons in the UK

Thousands of people are reported missing each year, yet very little is known about who they are, why they disappear and what happens to them.

Although the predicament of runaways and other missing children has a higher profile, the issue of missing adults has been neglected in research and policy. "Lost from View" presents findings from the most extensive study of missing persons yet undertaken in the UK.

It provides important new information on the motivations and circumstances of both missing adults and children, drawing directly on the views and experiences of missing adults themselves.

Based on almost 2000 missing persons cases the report explores: who goes missing; why people choose to go missing and how people can become missing in other circumstances; the experiences of missing people while they are away and the risks that they may encounter; how missing episodes are resolved; and how further developments in policy and practice may assist missing people and their families.