About the data set 
Title: 
Risk indicators of unaccompanied migrant children going missing in the UK: A scoping review – Dataset

Authors: 
Sarah Charlin Klingberga, Dr Freya O’Brienb, Dr Laura Pajonc
a Corresponding author, rights holder, Liverpool John Moores University, School of Justice Studies, John Foster Building, 80-98 Mount Pleasant, Liverpool, L3 5UZ, United Kingdom. s.c.klingberg@2024.ljmu.ac.uk, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-6582-5582 
b Co-author, rights holder, Liverpool John Moores University, School of Justice Studies, John Foster Building, 80-98 Mount Pleasant, Liverpool, L3 5UZ, United Kingdom. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7765-3147
a Co-author, rights holder, Liverpool John Moores University, School of Justice Studies, John Foster Building, 80-98 Mount Pleasant, Liverpool, L3 5UZ, United Kingdom. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9042-5437 

Dataset submitted: September 2025;  
Dataset published: September 2027

Description 
A scoping review was conducted to map gaps in empirical knowledge and understand risk indicators related to unaccompanied migrant children going missing in the UK.  Academic and practitioner-generated empirical sources (via journal and grey literature databases, backward citation, and handsearching) written in English, published before the 1st of April 2024 and focussing on reasons for unaccompanied migrant children going missing in the UK were included. No relevant academic literature was found; 19 grey literature sources were analysed using framework thematic analysis, resulting in seven themes. As part of the analysis process, the research produced a coding matrix, mapping the codes according to the themes and sources (file 1), before restructuring it into the seven final themes supported by coding tables (file 2). A full reference list of all sources and a key for the sources can be found in file 3.

Contact details 
First point of contact: Sarah Charlin Klingberg
Optional: Freya O’Brien, Laura Pajon

Terms of use 
CC-BY 4.0. This license requires that reusers give credit to the creator. It allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, even for commercial purposes.
Please cite
Klingberg, Sarah, O'Brien, Freya and Pajon Moreno, Laura (2025) Risk indicators of unaccompanied migrant children going missing in the UK: A scoping review - Dataset. [Data Collection] https://doi.org/10.24377/LJMU.d.00000247

Project and funding information    
Risk indicators of unaccompanied migrant children going missing in the UK: A scoping review 
Start: 01 February 2024
End: 01 October 2025
This research was funded by Liverpool John Moores University as part of a PhD project. 

Contents  
1. Coding matrix: presentation of codes in context of the theme and source (excel)
- This table shows the codes in relation to the source and theme used to create the final version of the results section. The columns display the quotes according to the themes, while the rows display the quotes according to the source. The full references for each source can be found in file 3 – source key.
2. Coding tables: presentation of referenced codes within themes (pdf)
- These tables show the final themes of the results section, displaying referenced quotes to support each theme. Each quote is referenced with source number and page, the full references for each source can be found in file 3 – source key.
3. Source key: Reference list of included sources (pdf)
- This is a reference list of all sources included in the analysis and acts as a key for the coding tables.

Methods  
The scoping review adhered to standards set out by the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Manual for Evidence Synthesis and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). Using NVIVO and Excel, the researcher analysed the included sources using framework thematic analysis. For more information see the scoping review protocol https://osf.io/w7qz3/?view_only=14be1e0869694f4795747b65dee84858 or the publication (pending).
2025