English: Diolch yn fawr, Dirprwy Lywydd. I'm grateful for the opportunity to discuss today an issue that needs to be addressed urgently, in my view, that being the safeguarding response to children who go missing or who are at risk of going missing. I look forward, also, to hearing contributions from Dawn Bowden and David Melding in this debate this afternoon. Now, it's a timely issue to discuss, because the current all-Wales protocol for missing children is being revised as part of updating the all-Wales child protection procedures. This revision, clearly, is welcome, but it is important that, in revising the protocol, expertise is drawn from a range of voices to inform how we can better safeguard children who go missing from home or from care. Two voices I would like to commend to the Minister are the Children's Society and the Church in Wales, who, earlier this year, wrote a report called 'The Knowledge Gap', examining the safeguarding response to missing children in Wales. Now, the report includes some tangible and achievable recommendations that, if implemented, would help improve our safeguarding response to these children. Many people may be surprised at the scale of missing children in Wales, which, last year, saw around 4,500 children and young people going missing from home or care. And these children went missing more than 11,000 times collectively. In the police force area that covers my own region in north Wales, over 700 children went missing almost 1,500 times during 2015-16. Now, there are many reasons why children are, or feel forced to go, missing. A child may face a range of hardships at home, such as neglect, abuse or domestic violence. A child in care may be unhappy with his or her placement or may be placed into care outside of his or her local area, removing access to support networks and often causing them to go missing to the place they know as home. Children from home or care could also be groomed and exploited by people who they thought were friends, boyfriends or girlfriends. These are just some of the push-and-pull factors that many children and young people face that drive them into a missing episode.
Welsh: Diolch yn fawr, Ddirprwy Lywydd. Rwy'n ddiolchgar am y cyfle heddiw i drafod mater y mae angen rhoi sylw iddo ar fyrder, yn fy marn i, sef yr ymateb diogelu ar gyfer plant sy'n mynd ar goll neu sydd mewn perygl o fynd ar goll. Edrychaf ymlaen, hefyd, at glywed cyfraniadau gan Dawn Bowden a David Melding yn y ddadl hon y prynhawn yma. Nawr, mae'n fater amserol i'w drafod, oherwydd mae protocol plant coll cyfredol Cymru yn cael ei adolygu fel rhan o'r broses o ddiweddaru gweithdrefnau amddiffyn plant Cymru gyfan. Mae'r adolygiad hwn i'w groesawu, wrth gwrs, ond mae'n bwysig, wrth adolygu'r protocol, ein bod yn pwyso ar arbenigedd amrywiaeth o leisiau i lywio'r modd y gallwn ddiogelu plant sy'n mynd ar goll o'u cartref neu o ofal yn well. Dau lais yr hoffwn eu dwyn i sylw'r Gweinidog yw Cymdeithas y Plant a'r Eglwys yng Nghymru, sydd, yn gynharach eleni, wedi ysgrifennu adroddiad o'r enw 'Bwlch yn y Wybodaeth', a oedd yn archwilio'r ymateb diogelu ar gyfer plant coll yng Nghymru. Nawr, mae'r adroddiad yn cynnwys rhai argymhellion pendant a chyraeddadwy, a fuasai'n helpu i wella ein hymateb diogelu ar gyfer y plant hyn pe baent yn cael eu gweithredu. Efallai y bydd llawer o bobl yn synnu faint o blant coll a geir yng Nghymru, a'r llynedd, aeth tua 4,500 o blant a phobl ifanc ar goll o'u cartrefi neu o ofal. Ac aeth y plant hyn ar goll fwy na 11,000 o weithiau i gyd. Yn yr ardal heddlu sy'n plismona fy rhanbarth yng ngogledd Cymru, aeth dros 700 o blant ar goll bron 1,500 o weithiau yn ystod 2015-16. Nawr, mae llawer o resymau pam y mae plant yn cael eu gorfodi, neu'n teimlo gorfodaeth i fynd ar goll. Efallai y bydd plentyn yn wynebu amrywiaeth o fathau o galedi yn y cartref, megis esgeulustod, cam-drin neu drais yn y cartref. Efallai fod plentyn mewn gofal yn anhapus ynglŷn â'i leoliad neu efallai ei fod wedi cael ei roi mewn gofal y tu allan i'w ardal leol, gan olygu nad yw'n gallu troi at rwydweithiau cymorth a bydd hynny'n aml yn peri iddynt fynd ar goll i'r lle maent yn ei adnabod fel eu cartref. Hefyd, mae'n bosibl fod pobl y credent eu bod yn ffrindiau neu'n gariadon yn meithrin perthynas amhriodol â phlant oddi cartref neu o ofal neu'n camfanteisio arnynt. Dyma rai o'r ffactorau gwthio a thynnu y mae llawer o blant a phobl ifanc yn eu hwynebu sy'n eu cymell i fynd ar goll.