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Studies have pointed to the link between running away and the need to escape abusing or rejecting parents'This paper reports on a study of over 200 young people going missing from residential and foster care in four local authorities. The proportion of young people missing from residential care was high, ranging from 25 to 71% of all 11 -16-year-olds in mainstream children's homes. Two types of absence were identified: the 'runaways' profile (those who ran away or stayed out) and the 'friends' profile (those missing to be with friends). There were variations in levels of risk for different sub-groups within the sample. Risks included immediate risks of victimization, sexual exploitation (including prostitution), offending and substance misuse. A longerterm risk of detachment was identified among those going missing often, involving high levels of non-school attendance, detachment from carers and involvement in offending and in substance misuse. Difficulties in the assessment of risk are discussed and approaches to managing risk for young people who go missing from substitute care are explored.

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There was no evidence that the use of MTFC-A resulted in better outcomes than usual care. The intervention may be more beneficial for young people with antisocial behaviour but less beneficial than usual treatment for those without.