3 children missing after day out at Thorpe Park

[Theseers]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c511v3xplldo

No way were they in the park without adults - possibly on an inset day, visiting on a school trip/church trip/with a youth group, who knows. Presumably the adults they were with searched for them in the park and notified police when it closed at 7 i.e. when they realised they could not actually be there. Its the police saying they were last seen walking towards Staines Town Centre at 3:17 - so the police located a witness afterwards. It is possible the adults supervising them didn't know they had gone until 4 or 5pm and reasonable to assume they were still queueing for a ride somewhere - that's the assumption I would have made.

Who knows how they got split up from the adults they were with or why they were not supervised more closely. But its a busy theme park, no one lost them deliberately. Lets just hope the sightings mean the police can locate them and they are found safe asap.

If the heights of the two younger children are anything to go by, I would believe they are severely neglected and most likely in care. I bet this older child is their foster sister and she has run away with them

The 9 and 7 year old would not have been unsupervised if they were on a school trip. The whole thing is odd.

They are fine. Been found.

https://amp.theguardian.com/uk-news/article/2024/jun/18/thorpe-park-missing-children-found-safe-and-well

Just saw thank goodness for that.

Thank goodness !
I wonder where they were heading a relatives or what 🤔

Teens in care go "missing" all the time, which usually means they're with someone, somewhere they shouldn't be, but they're not exactly lost. I.e. the authorities have a good idea of where they are and they've gone voluntarily (if going willingly with your groomer is the same thing as voluntarily, which obviously it's not)

It's unusual for them to have little ones with them though.

I doubt it a responsible FC wouldn't leave 2 young children in the care of a 14 year old.

My dd is 14. I wouldn't want her to go to a theme park alone never mind talking younger children.

THEY HAVE BEEN FOUND

Missing Thorpe Park children found in London (thetimes.com)

We knew that 35 minutes ago!!

Whatever the circumstances, let’s just all hope that they’re found safe and well.

I don’t understand why they were allowed in?

They've been found now.

Thank heavens they were found.

We did a theme park trip in the middle of the week recently and though there were lots of kids they were all in school groups.

We commented that in the past the kids would have been left to go round with their friends and teachers/supervisors left in spots that the kids could check in, etc.

This time the kids were all in organised groups with a responsible adult and it was much, much nicer for the other guests in the park.

Last time we were at Alton Towers (in late 2020 in between lockdowns) I had to tell off a group of teenagers who were behaving really annoyingly and not observing any sort of personal space, let alone social distancing. Thankfully they were the type of kids that were scared when an adult told them off, not the bolshy sort!

Hopefully whatever the scenario these kids managed to wander off on their own, their respective carers learn one hell of a lesson from it.

What have the heights of the younger children got to do with anything? Just because a child is shorter it doesn’t mean they are neglected at all. My two are smaller than other children in their class and we feed them well. They certainly aren’t neglected and it would upset me to think there are people out there judging me because they are on the smaller side.

Thank goodness, @RedYellowPinkGreenPurpleOrangeBlue

Thorpe Park needs an urgent review of its policies.

Yes very true!

True, but a 9 year old girl only 110cm tall? Isn’t that the average height for 5 year olds? That’s a percentile of 0.4 :-S

If the children went into the park with an adult or adults, then deliberately gave them the slip and tailgated a group out of the exit, how would park staff know they weren't supposed to leave?

They must have gone in with an adult/adults - someone reported them missing at 7pm.

Thankfully they have been found 'safe and well'
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/article/2024/jun/18/thorpe-park-missing-children-found-safe-and-well

SORRY!

Was misled by ongoing discussion.

Because children under a certain age (12 I believe, upthread) aren't supposed to be let in without a supervising adult. They have people on the gates at exit too, so should stop children trying to leave on their own.

Of course it's entirely possible that the kids tailgated another group or family to make it look like they were part of them, but still, someone, somewhere, whether that be Thorpe Park or whoever was supposed to be looking after them, needs to figure out how it can't happen again.

And? Some children are just small for their age.