You might feel like running away to be with someone; to family members, friends or a boyfriend or girlfriend. Someone might have asked you to move in or run away with them, or encouraged you to leave home to be with them.

It is natural to want to go and be with someone else, especially if being at home is difficult. If you are under 16, it is hard because you can’t choose where you want to live and you need to get help from parents and carers if you want to live somewhere different.

It is important to know if you run away that you are going somewhere safe, where you will be happy and you can stay.

If you are missing someone or an area, as hard as it can sometimes seem, try and be honest about your feelings with your carer and tell them you are struggling a bit and missing your family and friends. If it’s appropriate they can arrange a call for you.

If the person you want to be with is someone you have met online, then be very careful. There is a lot on the Runaway Helpline website about the dangers of meeting people you have met online. People of all ages can create whole new personalities and say a lot of things that are not true about who they are and where they are from. If you feel 100% sure that this person is genuine and you want to meet them, always take a friend, meet at a public place and tell your parents or carer exactly where you are going and update them if there is a change of plans.