A STARK map has today revealed the areas where YOUR kids are most at risk of being kidnapped.
Horror new statistics revealed by The Sun have broken down the number of child abductions and kidnappings by police force across England.
Results have revealed the areas where mums and dads should be the most alert to keep their kids safe.
From April 1 2021 to March 31 2022, Met Police recorded a total of 288 kidnappings and child abductions in the capital, Freedom of Information request data has revealed.
Of those, 58 cases were child abductions by parents, 133 were child abductions by other people and 97 were kidnappings.
Abduction involves a child being taken away from a place they are meant to be or a from a person they should be with.
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This usually involves taking a youngster away from their parents.
In London, two people were arrested on suspicion of abducting a child who was snatched from her carer in London in July.
Within an hour of her vanishing, little Manjinder, three, was found "safe and well".
Kidnapping on the other hand, sees a child be taken unwillingly and then kept imprisoned without their consent.
It is usually done with a motive, such as holding the child to ransom.
In 2019, James Dempsey was jailed for kidnap after a five-month old baby boy in Sutton Coldfield.
Dempsey – who was known to the boy's mother – took the baby from his home, but was later tracked down in his car near Birmingham Airport.
Following number one hotspot London is the West Midlands, where cops recorded 180 abductions and kidnappings.
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Close behind is Greater Manchester – where cops recorded 132 of the crimes – then West Yorkshire on 87.
In August, a 23-year-old man appeared in court charged with the abduction and sexual assault of a six-year-old girl in Droylsden, Greater Manchester.
It came after a schoolgirl was allegedly taken into woodland and assaulted.
Kent follows behind Manchester on 79, Lancashire on 51, Northamptonshire on 27 and Leicestershire on 43, police data showed.
Geoff Newiss – director of kids' charity Action Against Abduction – urged parents to follow his advice to keep kids safe from abduction.
He said the classic 'stranger danger' warnings do not work.
Most strangers want to help rather than harm kids – and it is often people known to children that pose the greatest threat, he stressed.
Instead, he urges parents to adopt his charity's Clever Never Goes advice.
This sees kids learn when someone is asking them to go with them – a technique he calls "spotting".
KEEP THEM SAFE
Children should never go with anyone – even if they know them – if this hasn't been arranged with a parent in advance.
Geoff said the skill is "about giving your child practical safety skills and confidence to engage with the outside world".
He told the Sun: "Many parents that we talk to want to give their children time outdoors but are anxious about how to keep them safe.
"The risk of someone trying to lure them away might be small, but it’s still pretty much every parent’s worst nightmare.
"Children are spending more and more time online, but that too can leave parents with concerns about who their children are communicating with and the possibility that they’ll arrange to meet someone in person who might harm them.
"We have created Clever Never Goes to help parents keep children safe both online and in the outside world.
"The whole ethos of Clever Never Goes is to give children the skills to recognise and respond to those rare occasions when they might be in danger.
"It’s about moving away from the fear that comes with stranger danger."
Geoff also advises parents to give their kids the freedom to be independent – but teach them to do it safely.
He added: "As children get older and are given more independence, for example to walk to school on their own, we need to be giving them confidence to interact safely with their surroundings, rather than terrifying them about the possible threat from all people they don’t know."
He said kids should be regularly reminded of the Clever Never Goes advice to ensure they practice it in the future.
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