Response to missing persons’ report - Bedfordshire Police, May 2016

At 10.47pm on 25 May 2016, Bedfordshire Police received a phone call from a member of staff at a care home stating that two young women had left after their curfew.

The two young women were recorded on the police systems as being potentially vulnerable to child sexual exploitation, and there was a warning marker for the address that a man in the area had been harassing people. The women were classified as ‘absent’ because Bedfordshire Police did not believe there was an immediate risk of harm to them. The Force Control Room supervisors reviewed the decisions and agreed with them.

It was agreed that Bedfordshire Police would call the care home back at 2am on 26 May 2016. However, this call was never made.

At 6.40am on 26 May 2016, the two young women returned to the care home. One of them told staff she had been sexually assaulted by the man who had been noted in the warning marker.

During the investigation, our investigators interviewed the staff in the force control room who dealt with the calls regarding the two young women, as well as their three supervisors.

Investigators also reviewed the police incident reports and listened to the calls made by the accommodation staff to the police. They examined Bedfordshire Police local and national policies regarding missing and absent people to see whether they were properly followed.

Based on the evidence available, at the end of the investigation we found no indication that any person serving with the police may have behaved in a manner that would justify the bringing of disciplinary proceedings.

After reviewing our report, the force agreed with our findings.