A SEVERE lack of data on missing children in Wales is holding back policy responses and hindering efforts to help young people, a committee warned.

Buffy Williams, who chairs the Senedd’s education committee, raised concerns about the lack of an accurate source of Welsh data that records all episodes of missing children.

“In turn, this means we don’t have the right policy responses,” said Ms Williams, explaining that data is collected for those who go missing from care but not other children.

The Labour MS said: “The majority of evidence we’ve heard is there’s a severe lack of data … hampering efforts to ensure the correct procedures are in place to support children.”

Dawn Bowden, Wales’ social care and children minister, said the Welsh Government is delivering a huge transformation programme for children’s services.

She acknowledged far too many children are taken into care in Wales as she pledged to focus on prevention and keep families together wherever possible.

Ms Bowden said: “One of the things we do know is that many children who are reported as missing are often children who are trying to get home.”

She told the committee data is collected by the Welsh Government, councils, Care Inspectorate Wales, police and the Home Office.

She accepted that children go missing for “all sorts of reasons, in all sorts of circumstances” but pointed out that care-experienced children are far more likely to go missing.

Taryn Stephens, deputy director for social services improvement, added that wider data – beyond looked-after children – will be available in the next children’s census.

Ms Williams also raised alarm about the accuracy of data on children missing from care.

She said data shows 16 children in Cardiff went missing in 2022/23 despite more than 1,000 being in care, while Conwy had 273 going missing despite only having 215 in care.

Ms Bowden suggested the disparity may be down to different information being recorded – for example, on the number of children or incidents.

She said data collection and guidance is reviewed and quality assured every year.

Ms Williams put concerns to the minister that children missing from care are not high enough on the Welsh Government’s policy agenda

She raised the example of calls to make return interviews a legal requirement, as in England, which have gone unanswered for years.

Ms Bowden reiterated that the policy response is focused on prevention.

The minister insisted that the Welsh Government acknowledged the calls for mandatory return-to-home interviews, commissioning two pieces of research.

She said: “It was interesting that the research itself didn’t come to a consensus around whether return-to-home interviews should be mandatory and who should conduct them.”

Ms Bowden added: “The statutory provision in England is actually only an offer of an interview, it’s not that the interview itself is mandatory.”

Warning Wales’ 22 councils take different approaches, Labour’s Lesley Griffiths pointed out that national standards have not been published despite being due in 2023.

Ms Bowden said the delay was because of consultation responses, which suggested more work was needed, and a draft framework should now be published by the end of 2024.

Cefin Campbell, Plaid Cymru’s shadow education secretary, asked about the changing nature of criminal exploitation of children in Wales.

Giving evidence to the committee’s inquiry on children and young people on the margins, Jane Hutt was alarmed by the frequency of child criminal exploitation in Wales.

Referring to data for April to June, the social justice secretary told the committee Wales’ four police forces all received modern slavery referrals. “That is of great concern,” she said.

Ms Hutt explained the highest number of referrals for all forms of exploitation was in South Wales (75), followed by Gwent (39), North Wales (27) and Dyfed-Powys (11).

“During that quarter, 59%, that’s 90, of modern slavery referrals were for children,” she said. “And almost half, 49%, that’s 74, of Welsh modern slavery referrals for criminal exploitation.”

Raising variation on criminal exploitation across Wales, Mr Campbell said Wrexham reported seven children per 1,000 compared with one per 1,000 in Blaenau Gwent in 2022.

Ms Hutt agreed about the importance of all-Wales guidance but added that she would expect some variation due to different demographics and levels of need.

Tom Giffard, the Conservatives’ shadow education secretary, focused on prevention, urging ministers to address the root causes of exploitation.

He said the committee heard from many young boys that their motivation for joining gangs was to gain a sense of belonging rather than financial reasons.

Mr Giffard also raised concerns about a significant increase in child sexual exploitation victims in Wales from about 900 in 2020 and nearly 1,500 by 2022.

Ms Hutt raised the role of the Welsh Government’s youth justice blueprint as she pledged to take a child-first, rights-based approach.

She said Welsh ministers recognise shortcomings with the national referral mechanism for identifying victims, including significant waiting times.

Ms Hutt told the meeting on September 19 that the Welsh Government remains committed to seeking the devolution of youth justice.