When visited by caseworkers after returning, conversation has repeatedly turned to his mental health struggles. Though it’s rarely possible to pinpoint one single cause leading to a disappearance, poor mental health is very often a significant contributing factor. One in five children subject to a return interview with the charity Missing People has disclosed information about mental health issues. In a report published by the social business and charity Catch-22, the link between children’s mental health and missing episodes is made explicit. Cuts to children’s mental health services are nothing new, even if the effects of the pandemic have brought things to an unignorable boiling point.

Source: The Guardian December 13, 2021 07:44 UTC