The search for 18 missing people from the West Midlands at Christmas

Whilst Christmas is a time known for good spirits, celebration and family, for many it is a tough period of the year.

And that includes those - around one million people -  who are affected by a disappearance of a loved one or a family member every year.

The Missing People charity supports people whose loved ones are missing or have felt the need to go missing themselves. 

They report sightings, help with appeal for information and also publish pictures and profiles of missing people from all regions of the UK, with a drop down menu allowing users to specify a region.

Currently they have listed 37 people from the West Midlands area listed on their website.

They include:

Alan Murray who has been missing from Birmingham since April 15 2010 and was 63 when last seen.

Michael Perkins who has been missing from Stourbridge since June 1 2002 and was 55 when he disappeared.

Andrew Dill who went missing in Birmingham on May 20 2003 and hasn't been seen since.

Phillip Harris from Sandwell Valley who was reported missing on July 28 1999 at the age of 15.

Terrence Potts who has been missing from Birmingham since November 10 1999.

Patricia Lashley from Dudley who was reported missing on September 24 1998 at the age of 33,

One of the longest missing people on the website is Maria Aldridge who has not been seen for over 56 years.

She went missing from Birmingham on May 5 1968 at the age of 17.

Sami Tafere who went missing from Bilston on October 22 2018 at the age of 16.

Stephen Hadley disappeared from Birmingham at the age of 26 on September 20 2006.

Daniel Wayzel, also from Bilston who was 17 when he went missing on October 17 2018 and has not been seen since.

Jason Salt-Pearce who disappeared from Stafford on April 19 2018 aged 30.

Nicholas Edmunds who was 45 when he went missing from Walsall on May 13 2015.

Shafi Shaikh is listed as disappearing from the West Midlands area on November 8 2010 when he was 67 - he would now be around 81.

Brian Wafer, who was aged 66 when he went missing from Wolverhampton on July 25 1977.

Natalie Putt who was 17 when she went missing from Dudley on September 1 2003.

To report a sighting to the website of anyone who may be listed as missing you can go to https://www.missingpeople.org.uk/sightings-and-giving-information-form.

The website also gives advice around helping people who are vulnerable or look as though they are.

It says: "If you see someone that worries you because of their behaviour, or who doesn’t seem to be well, you might feel you want to help them. 

" Ask yourself, does it feel safe to approach them and ask how you can help, or can you get some help for them?  

"Consider calling 999 if it seems to be an emergency. "

If someone seems to be rough sleeping and you are worried about them, you can use Streetlink website  to get them some help from an outreach team.