Around 2,000 people go missing in Gloucestershire every year. Reporter Megan Archer found out what exactly the police do, from the initial 999 call to the resolution of the case.

LAST month, 17-year-old Cirencester girl Candy Royle was reported missing, sparking a police search operation.

Fortunately, Candy was found within 12 hours, thanks to the extensive search by officers, who are used to looking for teenagers as 1,200 people under the age of 18 are reported missing in the county each year.

Detective Chief Inspector Steve Bean, who oversees the searches for missing people in the county, said the force treats every case “extremely seriously”, no matter the circumstances.

“We have 2,000 missing people a year, 1,200 of who are under 18s,” he said. “Around 10 to 12 of these people are found dead every year and these tend to be suicide.

“In the majority of cases people are found alive and well, but it could be a murder or they could be injured and if we did not get there then they could die.”

When a person is reported as missing, officers are immediately sent to their home address.

“We always conduct a search of the home address,” said DCI Bean. “It’s not infeasible that someone could have collapsed in the loft or garage.”

The missing person’s case is then given a grade – low, medium or high risk.

If a case is given a high risk ranking, which happens if the person is thought to be suicidal or in danger, police deploy officers, dogs, helicopters and do everything possible to find them.

Meanwhile, the missing person’s family and friends are questioned for any vital information, and officers track the person’s credit cards and phone to see if they have been used and where.

“All this information gets added to a special database called Compact,” said DCI Bean. “It tells us certain things we need to do.

“If we do everything conceivable and can’t find them, then we will review the case every three to six months. But these are very small figures. If we don’t find them it’s because they consciously want to set up a new identity.”

DCI Bean said the public play a big role in being the “eyes and the ears” of the police when someone goes missing.

“We also really rely on the media to put out the message. Some people do not realise the time and effort put into these things by the police.”

Of course, some people don’t want to be found, and DCI Bean said: “When we find someone, they are not obliged to accompany the police. But we check they’re safe and well.”

DCI Bean said that officers do not put any less effort into finding someone if they have repeatedly gone missing, as is often the case with teenagers who run away from home.

He said: “Just because someone goes missing 20 times a year, doesn’t mean the case isn’t treated seriously. We can’t assume. It could be that one time they’ve been abducted. We are not prepared to take the risks.”

He added: “Children are much more susceptible to exploitation, whether it be sex, drugs or other crimes.”

And DCI Bean urged anyone who fears someone may have gone missing, even if they are not entirely sure, to call the police.

“If someone is missing we would urge people to report it to us,” he said. “It’s better to be on the safe side. We can usually track people down in 24 hours.”