A staggering 160,000 people are reported missing every year in the UK – equating to one person every 90 seconds.
Of these, over 88,000 are adults and nearly 72,000 are children – although this is likely to be a significant underestimate of actual figures.
And while missing persons often make it home safe, a minority never do, creating anguish for grieving families as they are left with so many unanswered questions and very little closure.
According to Missing Persons, 534 people from the UK who have disappeared from across the country and overseas are still missing.
One of the youngest to have vanished without a trace is Sandy Davison, who was just three years old when he disappeared from the garden of his grandparents’ house.
Meanwhile, the UK’s oldest missing person, Mary Flanagan, has not be seen since 1959 after vanishing at the age of 16.
Below is a list of just some of those who are still unaccounted for after years of searching across Great Britain and around the world.
Sandy Davison was just three years old when he went missing while playing in his grandparents garden in Irvine in 1976
Police Scotland released this aged progressed image to give an indication to what Sandy may look like now – almost half a century on from when he went missing
Sandy Davidson – April 23, 1976
Sandy Davison was just three years old when he went missing while playing in his grandparents garden in Irvine in 1976.
The youngster had been outside with his younger sister Donna and the family dog at the property in St Kilda Street on the Bourtreehill housing estate when he was last seen.
According to Donna’s recollection, the gate of the house suddenly swung open and the dog ran out, with Sandy running after him.
Donna quickly went inside to alert her grandparents – but the time they began searching for Sandy he had already vanished from the face of the Earth.
Police were alerted and despite an intensive search by the police and members of the community as well as a high-profile media campaign there was no trace of the toddler.
Donna has worked tirelessly to try and trace Sandy and his whereabouts and led various campaigns to ensure the public are aware of Sandy’s disappearance.
Over the years there have been several theories as to what might have happened to the three-year-old. An initial theory was that he may have followed the dog down to the river and drowned.
Meanwhile, his parents Margaret and Phillip believe that he was abducted by an lonely man seeking a son.
Others accused a man who was delivering leaflets at the time of being his kidnapper.
Police Scotland has continued to work with the family in the hope of identifying any new leads that may help in the search. They previously released an aged progressed to give an indication to what Sandy may look like now – almost half a century on from when he went missing.
In a bizarre and tragic coincidence, Gary Tilston (left) and Paul Carter (right) vanished more than five years apart after boarding a ferry to exactly the same destination
Gary Tilston and Paul Carter – July 2002 and April 2007
In a bizarre and tragic coincidence, two men vanished more than five years apart after boarding a ferry to exactly the same destination.
Gary Tilston disappeared in July 2002 after boarding a vessel leaving Portsmouth to Saint-Malo but was never seen again. Then, in April 2007, Paul Carter made the same trip, only to vanish while on board.
Their missing cases are not being treated as linked. However, both men went missing in similar circumstances.
Gary was 30-years-old at the time and living in Coventry. He boarded the ferry which left at 8.30pm on 24 July, but there was never any proof that he got off.
His property was found on board including his passport, ID, personal belongings, and house keys.
Enquiries found that Gary, described as being 5ft 9ins, with glasses and wavy brown hair, may have been drinking in the bar area and was travelling alone.
Paul, who was 22-years-old at the time, had made the trip down south from Birmingham with three of his colleagues.
Their ferry was due to leave at exactly the same time as Gary’s on April 20, 2007. The group were struggling to find places to sleep and eventually split up to find their own spot for the night.
They agreed to meet the following morning. However, when the ferry docked the next day, Paul was nowhere to be found.
At the time of his disappearance, Paul was approximately 5ft 10ins tall, had slim build, short dark brown hair, was clean shaven, and had a tattoo of a snake on his right arm.
Kevin Hicks, 16, left his home in Croydon on March 2, 1986, to buy eggs, but was never heard from again
Kevin Hicks – March 2, 1986
Kevin Hicks, 16, left his home in Croydon on March 2, 1986, to buy eggs, but was never heard from again.
He had hopped out to his local shop at 8.30pm to buy ingredients for an O-Level Home Economics exam the next day.
He was then seen an hour-and-a-half later, by someone who knew him, walking in the general direction of his home.
It was the last sighting of the teen. His body has never been found and there has been so evidence to suggest he is still alive.
For several weeks before his disappearance Kevin had been applying for jobs and was described as a happy teenager who had no problems at school.
Police believe Kevin met someone that night, who then assaulted him and his body was disposed of.
Kevin’s parents tragically passed away without ever discovering the truth, but his sister Alexandra has not given up hope.
She previously told the Daily Mail: ‘Christmas is always a particularly hard time of the year, especially now both my parents are gone. It would be the best Christmas present to have Kevin back or to know what has happened to him.
‘With Kevin and I being only a year and a day apart with our birthdays, the month of February is a constant reminder of not knowing where he is or what has happened to him.
‘Someone somewhere knows something. It is time to let go of that secret.’
Steven Clark (pictured) went missing over three decades years ago, seemingly on a post-Christmas walk with his mum
Steven was 23 when he went missing in Saltburn, Cleveland, North Yorkshire, in December 1992, after his parents said he failed to emerge from public toilets during a family walk
Steven Clark – December 28, 1992
On December 28, 1992, Steven Clark, then 23, disappeared from public toilets after taking a walk along the beach with his mother, Doris.
The pair had chosen to walk from Marske to Saltburn and back along the beach – a journey they had made countless times – while Steven’s father Charles went to watch a football match.
On arriving at Saltburn, Steven went into male toilets while Doris went to the female loos. She came back and waited for him to re-emerge – but he never did.
Doris went home, expecting to find him there waiting for her but as darkness fell there was still no sign on Steven.
Meanwhile Charles raced back from the football match and immediately began searching the beach by their house. He later travelled to Saltburn to find him, but was unable to.
Despite relentless searching, postering and media appeals, the family could find no trace of Steven and three decades later the trail has gone cold.
But a cruel twist in the tale came in 2020, when Doris and Charles, who are both retired police officers, were accused of Steven’s murder.
The couple were arrested and interrogated at a police station, while their home in Marske-by-the-Sea was also searched and their garden dug up in a quest for clues or remains.
Detectives said they were acting on a re-examination of an anonymous letter sent to Guisborough police station in 1999, which alleged the Clarks had mistreated Steven.
The couple were eventually cleared of suspicion in February 2021 when no evidence was found that they had anything to do with Steven’s disappearance.
Steven was injured in a car accident at the age of two, spending six weeks in a coma. The horrific crash left him permanently disabled as he could not use his left arm and walked with a very pronounced limp.
He is described as 6 foot tall, with blue eyes, short dark brown hair and a proportionate build. He was last seen wearing a black coat and blue jeans.
Claudia Lawrence was 35 when she was reported missing after failing to turn up for work at York University on March 18, 2009
The last definite sighting of Claudia had been the day earlier, after she left work, and called her parents at around 8pm later that evening
Claudia Lawrence – March 18, 2009
Claudia Lawrence vanished without a trace from her home in the Heworth area of York on March 18, 2009.
The then 34-year-old was last seen walking home from work and later that evening she called her father Peter and then her mother Joan.
Claudia was said to have sounded normal and relaxed during the call, during which they watched and spoke about the TV programme Location, Location, Location.
She had told her mother she was going to sleep early because her car was in the garage and she would need to walk to a work – a 45-minute journey.
The next day she did not turn up to her 6am shift at the university canteen.
The search for Claudia was launched after her friend grew worried when she did not turn up at her local pub The Nag’s Head.
Friends informed Claudia’s father Peter the next day when she still failed to answer any calls. Peter visited her home in the Heworth area of York to find she was nowhere to be seen.
Although it seemed as though she had left for work – her used breakfast plates were in the sink, and her chef’s whites, rucksack and mobile phone were all missing and have never been found.
Five weeks after she was reported as a missing person, the case was escalated to a suspected murder investigation – despite her body never being found.
Following enquiries, police were able to uncover this CCTV footage of a man standing near Claudia’s house on the morning of her disappearance
An aerial view of the house of missing Claudia Lawrence on Heworth Road
CCTV footage of Claudia on her way home from work on the day of her disappearance
It is believed that North Yorkshire Police has made 12 arrests since Claudia’s disappearance, but no names of those questioned have been confirmed.
These included a 59-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder in May 2014, as were three men in their 50s in the York area the following April.
A file on four men held on suspicion of murder was sent by North Yorkshire Police to the Crown Prosecution Service in September 15, but the CPS decided in March 2016 that the suspects would not face charges.
in 2014, police released CCTV footage of what they thought could be ‘highly significant’ in the case.
The footage shows a dark figure loitering around the entrance of an alleyway behind Claudia’s house – looking like he was waiting to meet someone.
The images, which were timestamped around 7.15pm on March 18, appear incredibly grainy and the man’s features are almost impossible to make out.
Police activity around Claudia’s case increased again in 2021 when the force spent two weeks searching a lake and nearby woods just outside York but hopes of a breakthrough were later dashed.
Teams of police experts, search dogs, divers and forensic archaeologists spent two weeks scouring a lake and nearby woods for potential spots where her body could have been left but nothing was found.
Andrew Gosden disappeared in London in 2007 after boarding a train to the capital from Doncaster in South Yorkshire
The last known sighting of Andrew Gosden, leaving King’s Cross station in London on September 14 2007
Andrew Gosden – September 14, 2007
Andrew Gosden was last seen on September 14 2007 at King’s Cross station in Londonafter boarding a train from Doncaster.
He left his home in the Balby area of Doncaster and was seen heading down Littlemoor Lane, towards Westfield Park, at around 8.30am.
Around an hour later, he withdrew £200 from his bank account and boarded a London-bound train at Doncaster station. Andrew was captured on CCTV at Kings Cross station at around 11.20am the same day.
Two men were arrested in December 2021 on suspicion of kidnap and human trafficking.
But they were released and ‘eliminated’ from their enquiries after devices were seized and reviewed and their alibis were checked. South Yorkshire Police said they were ‘confident’ they had nothing to do with Andrew’s disappearance.
The mystery of what happened to Andrew Gosden has frustrated detectives for years – with searches undertaken of the River Thames and artists’ renderings of how he would look as a grown man issued in recent years.
His face has featured in campaigns across the country, with missing persons’ charities publicising his case in advertising posters and even on milk cartons.
The contradictions in Andrew’s behaviour that day has led to conflicting theories about whether he had decided to run away, or if he was on a day trip that went horribly wrong.
One theory is that Andrew had arranged to meet a friend or attend a concert in the capital when something or someone happened to him, but no evidence of a plan has ever been uncovered.
A more sinister suggestion is that Andrew was groomed by someone who had arranged to meet him in London that day. But again, no evidence of any communication with anyone on his plans has ever come to light.
Andrew’s father Kevin believes crucial leads – including his fear that a child sex ring was involved in his son’s abduction – were not followed up by police at the time.
Instead, he claims they fixated on accusing him of being involved, meaning crucial time was lost.
However, the family have previously thanked police for continuing to carry out a ‘comprehensive investigation’ into their son’s disappearance.
Mary Flanagan, 16, vanished on New Year’s Eve, 1959, and had not been seen for over 60 years
Mary Flanagan, December 31, 1959
A New Year’s Eve party had been young Mary Flanagan’s destination when she vanished in Newham in 1959.
The teenager, 16, had made a point to kiss her two little sisters goodbye before she vanished without a trace.
She had worked at the Tate and Lyle factory, but when she disappeared her shocked parents discovered she had not been in for two weeks.
Mary had been besotted with a grown man called Tom, someone who police have never been able to track down.
Since she vanished over 100 unidentified bodies have been DNA tested by experts but none have been her match.
And police have also been hampered by the fact some case records were destroyed during a 2013 flood in Plaistow.
Some of the more persistent theories about her disappearance suggest she may have eloped with Tom.
Or many think it is possible she may have fallen pregnant and decided to run away with him to have the baby.
But her family have never given up hope she will one day come home and they will be reunited.
Allan Bryant was last seen exiting a nightclub just after 2am on November 3, 2013
The search for Allan (pictured) has become the biggest police missing person investigation ever seen in Fife
Allan Bryant – November 3, 2013
Allan Bryant was enjoying an engagement party at Leslie Golf Club on the outskirts of Glenrothes when he and some friends travelled by minibus to Styx nightclub less than a mile from his home.
He was there for around two hours, with CCTV footage showing him heading towards the exit jacketless and somewhat worse for wear just after 2am on November 3.
Exterior footage moments later shows him stumbling as he climbs the steps out of the club, but catching a railing to steady himself.
He has a quick look around him, then disappears out of shot and has not been seen by his family since.
Over the past decade, the search for Allan has become the biggest police missing person investigation ever seen in Fife.
The 23-year-old was due to appear in court after allegedly smashing a shop window with a pole after a night out, but vanished before he was due in the dock.
His parents have voiced concerns Allan may have had contact with members of an organised crime gang weeks before he died.
On the tenth anniversary pf his disappearance, Detective Inspector Scott Roxburgh renewed an appeal for anyone in Styx that night who had not spoken to the police to come forward.
He said: ‘Information received from the public has covered a wide range of scenarios, including that Allan has been harmed in some way.
All information has been investigated thoroughly, recorded, assessed and actioned accordingly. Allan’s disappearance remains a missing person inquiry.
‘Allan may have intended to go elsewhere when he left Styx. Or there is a chance that Allan began walking home and he may have become disorientated.’
Philip, from Hull, vanished on December 10, 1995, after getting into a taxi after a night out. An image showing an updated likeness of the HGV driver was released earlier this year
Philip Fudge – December 10, 1995
Philip, from Hull, travelled to Liverpool on 10 December 1995 to attend a party at the HMS Eaglet Royal Navy base with two friends.
He was due to stay at a friend’s home in the city but was last seen getting into a taxi with two women and a man.
He never returned, and the following morning his friends phoned his mother to ask if she had heard from him.
His car remained parked outside the address where he was meant to spend the night.
Philip’s mother, Nadine, made tireless efforts to find him – contacting hospitals, taxi firms and even French authorities in case he had travelled abroad – but she died in 2019 without learning what happened to her son.
Marking 30 years since he went missing, Philip’s sister, Linda Shields, urged anyone with information to come forward.
A new appeal was also launched to find Philip, with charity, Missing People releasing an updated likeness of the HGV driver in the hope it may finally lead to answers.
At the time he disappeared, Philip was described as white, 5ft 10in, heavily built, with blue eyes and short light-brown hair.
He was last seen wearing a blue checked shirt, blue jeans, brown leather boots and a watch.
A spokesperson for Missing People said: ‘Philip, we are here for you whenever you are ready. We can listen, talk you through what help you need, pass a message for you and help you to be safe.’
