Summary
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Police in Suffolk are searching for Noah Woods, 3, after he went missing from a playground at about 15:00 BST on Tuesday
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Noah was with a relative in Merriam Close, Brantham and is said to have run off down an alleyway towards a housing estate – what we know so far
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Suffolk Police says Noah, who is partially deaf and non-verbal, will not respond to his name being called
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Local residents are being asked to check CCTV or doorbell cameras for any possible sightings of Noah, as well as garden sheds and outbuildings
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Hundreds of members of the public are helping with the search, but police have asked for all efforts to be co-ordinated by them – this map shows the expanded search area
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“I just saw the news and needed to come down and help,” Melissa Dark, a local mother of two, tells our reporter
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Road outside playground filled with people joining search effortpublished at 17:22
Reporting from Brantham
The community around this small village of Brantham is out in force trying, looking for any trace of three-year-old Noah Woods.
The road outside the playground where he was last seen is filled with cars as people arrive to join the search effort.
A police helicopter overhead is hovering over a rural area near a river and railway tracks to the east of the village.
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‘I really hope we get some good news’, says PCCpublished at 17:16
Tim Passmore, Police and Crime Commissioner for Suffolk, said his heart went out to the friends and family of Noah Woods.
Speaking to BBC Radio Suffolk, he urged people wanting to join the ongoing searches not to go out alone and to get direction from those co-ordinating the response.
“As time goes by I really hope we can get some good news,” he said. “I can’t think of anything worse than a poor little three-year-old lad going missing and not being found.
“My thoughts are prayers are with all the people involved and I really hope he gets found very, very quickly.”
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Missing child posters circulatedpublished at 17:13
Zoie O’Brien
Posters appealing for information about missing Noah Woods can now be seen in the Brantham area.
Image source,Zoie O’Brien/BBC -
‘Mums have come out in force’ says volunteerpublished at 17:03
Charlie Jones
at Brantham Village Hall
Image source,BBC/Charlie JonesMother-of-two Isa has come down to Brantham to help with the search efforts this morning.
“It’s a very emotional thing,” she says. “As a mum, you picture yourself in the family’s shoes.
“There are so many parents here helping and there is a huge local mums network on WhatsApp where we are all speaking and just doing whatever we can.”
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Police set up portal for information on missing Noahpublished at 16:59
Image source,ContributedA major incident public portal has been set up for people to submit any information, external regarding missing Noah Woods to the Joint Norfolk and Suffolk investigation team.
Residents are being asked to thoroughly check their gardens, sheds and outbuildings, or any potential areas where a child might hide.
People with CCTV or doorbell cameras have been asked to review the footage from 15:00 BST on Tuesday onwards for possible sightings. Motorists travelling through the village have also been asked to check their dashcam footage.
Anyone who believes they have seen Noah is being asked to get in touch with Suffolk Police immediately.
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MP describes disappearance as ‘incredibly concerning’published at 16:41
James Cartlidge, the Conservative MP for South Suffolk, which covers Brantham, has posted on X, external: “Incredibly concerning to hear about three-year-old Noah, missing from Brantham since 3pm yesterday.
“I simply can’t imagine what his family and loved ones are going through, but they will be in the thoughts of us all.
“I’ve spoken to Suffolk Police and like me, they’re incredibly grateful to the community and all of the volunteers for their help with the search for missing Noah.
“The police are sending more resources to Brantham this morning.”
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Volunteers queueing outside the village hallpublished at 16:28
Charlie Jones
at Brantham Village HallSo many volunteers have turned up here at Brantham Village Hall to help in the search for Noah that there is a queue of people outside the door.
They have run out of high-vis vests.
Lauren White, who is helping co-ordinate the efforts, says: “The response from the community has been unbelievable. There are hundreds and hundreds of people who have been involved.”
Image source,BBC/Charlie Jones -
What do we know about Noah?published at 16:15
Image source,Family handoutNoah Woods had been visiting a playground in Merriam Close in Brantham on Tuesday with a relative.
They became separated as they left at 15:00 BST and he’s reported to have run off down an alleyway beside the playground towards a new-build housing estate.
The three-year-old is described by police as white, with curly ginger hair and is said to be wearing a white Bluey T-shirt, shorts and black Vans trainers with a white stripe.
He is non-verbal, has partial hearing loss and is undergoing an assessment for autism.
Suffolk Police said he would not respond to his name being called.
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Watch: Police statement from Tuesday nightpublished at 16:10
Media caption, Police give update on search for three-year-old
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Volunteers asked ‘not to grab Noah’published at 16:04
Charlie Jones
at Brantham Village Hall
We’ve just heard a briefing here at Brantham Village Hall, where hundreds of people have turned up to help.
Sarah Keys, from Brantham Parish Council, asked the volunteers not to approach Noah if they see him. He is partially deaf, non-verbal and is soon to be assessed for autism.
“If you see Noah, we need a gentle approach,” she said. “Do not grab him, it might scare him. Please call 999 and tell them where you are.”
Volunteers are being asked to download What Three Words to pinpoint their exact location.
Image caption, Sarah Keys (centre) with other volunteers co-ordinating the search, Melissa Dark (left) and Lauren White (right)
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Volunteers told ‘no heroics’ as searches continuepublished at 15:58
Charlie Jones
at Brantham Village Hall
Image source,Charlie Jones/BBCSarah Keys, clerk of Brantham Parish Council, has been briefing volunteers at Brantham Village Hall.
This morning the search is split into two teams, those able to cover footpaths and rough terrain and others more comfortable on estates.
She has asked people to avoid areas around the Taylor Wimpey estate and areas down to Factory Lane as the police are searching those places with specialised teams.
She said: “Please stay safe and work at least in pairs if not in groups. Do not put yourself at any risk, no heroics. We don’t want to be rescuing anyone else today.
“We need to focus on finding Noah.”
Keys has also told volunteers not to go on the railway line and to avoid the Decoy Pond area.
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Where did Noah go missing?published at 15:51
Image source,Jamie Niblock/BBCThree-year-old Noah Woods had been visiting a playground in Merriam Close in Brantham with a relative when he went missing on Tuesday.
He became separated from the relative when they left at about 15:00 BST, and he is reported to have run off down an alleyway beside the playground towards a new-build housing estate.
Searches began on Tuesday, going into the night and have continued on Wednesday.
Image source,Jamie Niblock/BBC -
Everyone is pitching inpublished at 15:42
Charlie Jones
at Brantham Village Hall
Image source,Charlie Jones/BBCHere at Brantham Village Hall, it is packed out with people waiting to hear a briefing from the police.
The atmosphere is quite tense. Mums are arriving with babies in carriers and prams, dog walkers are here and everyone is pitching in to do whatever they can to help the search.
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Search area expanded after police work through nightpublished at 15:36
As reported a short time ago, the search area for volunteers has now widened to also include East Bergholt and Manningtree.
This map shows where they are in relation to where Noah was last seen – at Merriam Close playground in Brantham.
‘I needed to come and help,’ says local mumpublished at 15:23
Charlie Jones
at Brantham Village Hall
Image source,Charlie Jones/BBCMelissa Dark, a local mother of two who is on maternity leave from her work in major incidents for the police, has just arrived.
She is helping the police officers here co-ordinate the searches and is writing a briefing note that will be read out at 09:30 to volunteers.
“I just saw the news and needed to come down and help,” she said.
“I’ve bought my six-month-old baby here. We’re all just pulling together and doing whatever we can to find him.”
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‘That could have been my child’published at 15:20
Image source,Luke Deal/BBCSarah Keys, the clerk of Brantham Parish Council, has been at Brantham Village Hall since 16:00 BST on Tuesday afternoon to help co-ordinate the search efforts.
She said the community had been “flooded” with people wanting to help and could not commend the emergency services enough for their responsiveness and support.
She said: “Every parent in the country is thinking that could have been my child.
“I hope that what Noah’s parents will see is a community that are really there for them. We are really pushing to try and find their little boy and I hope they are feeling supported and loved by that response.
“We are hopeful today is the day that Noah is going to get returned home safely.”
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Police ask volunteers to widen the searchpublished at 15:06
Charlie Jones
at Brantham Village Hall
Image source,Charlie Jones/BBCPolicing team Sgt Claire Connick has just told volunteers here at Brantham Village Hall to widen their searches away from the village.
She asked people to avoid the village centre, suggesting people go further afield to nearby villages of East Bergholt and Manningtree and working their way back.
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Volunteers continue searchespublished at 14:49
Zoie O’Brien
in BranthamVolunteer searchers are currently being briefed at the leisure centre by Sarah Keys, the clerk of Brantham Parish Council. A group are setting off now.
Image source,Zoie O’Brien/BBC -
‘So much generosity and spirit from people’published at 14:43
Image source,Luke Deal/BBCMal Bridgeman, chairman of Brantham Parish Council, has also helped with the search for Noah.
“I am astonished, warmed, to see so much generosity and spirit from people,” he said. “Everyone wants to help, everyone wants to do their bit.
“There’s been people out all night, we have had people come this morning as far a field as Birmingham, we’ve had specialists from Hampshire, just moved by Noah’s story to come and help.
“We are expecting a huge police presence in the village today and there will also be community support officers to help bridge the gap between the police and the community.”
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Volunteers arrive from across the countrypublished at 14:28
Charlie Jones
in Brantham
Image source,Charlie Jones/BBCI’m here at Brantham Village Hall, the epicentre of the search for Noah.
People have been arriving from across the country to help, from as far away as Hampshire and Birmingham, joining hundreds of local parents, residents and community volunteers searching the area.
There is a remarkable sense of determination here, with people continuing to turn up and ask how they can help.
Search teams are being organised here at the village hall, while volunteers head out into the surrounding area.
For many here, it is deeply personal – many parents and people who know the family are among those joining the effort, united by the hope of finding missing Noah.
