Owen Harding disappeared from his home in Saltdean, near Brighton, last week as a nationwide appeal is launched to find him.

The teenager was reportedly upset he couldn’t visit his girlfriend in Pocklington due to the lockdown and there are fears he may have attempted to walk 280 miles north.

He is particularly vulnerable given the current Government guidance on the need for social distancing during the coronavirus outbreak.

Undated family handout photo of Owen Harding with girlfriend Meg. The heartbroken mum of the 16-year-old boy who has not been seen since last Thursday has issued a nationwide plea for help.

In a heartfelt plea, his mother Stella Harding said yesterday: “We’re all desperately worried about him and the situation is an emergency as it is now six days since he went missing.

“When Owen left, he was upset that he wasn’t going to be able to get a train to visit his girlfriend, Meg, in East Yorkshire due to the lockdown.”

TV presenter Nadia Sawalha, who is a friend of the family, is among those to share the appeal.

Owen is described as white, between 5ft 11in and 6ft, and of athletic build, with short brown hair. He normally wears white trainers and a dark hoodie, and is thought to have been wearing dark joggers, police said.

Undated family handout photo of Owen Harding. The heartbroken mum of the 16-year-old boy who has not been seen since last Thursday has issued a nationwide plea for help.

Sussex Police officers have been conducting searches in the local area.

Ms Harding added: “While it is extremely out of character for Owen to leave and not be in contact, Covid-19 has put everyone under lots of strain and we don’t want to rule anything out.

Some of his friends believe that he may have attempted to walk from Saltdean to the North.

“Because search activity and resources are limited right now, I’m begging the UK public to look out for him whilst out on their daily walks. But please make sure that, in doing so, you adhere to social distancing and government guidance and do not put yourself or anyone else at risk.”

Stella Harding, mother of missing teenager Owen Harding

Investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Alasdair Henry, who is leading the search for Owen, said: “Along with Owen’s family and friends, we are very keen to hear from anyone who can help us in our search for him.

"Were you driving in the Saltdean and Telscombe Cliffs area the evening of his disappearance and might you have captured dash-cam footage of him? Did you see Owen in the Saltdean area after 6pm on Thursday?

"We would like to thank the public for their support in our investigation and, while we appreciate people would like to help with our searches, we are urging everyone to abide by government guidance at all times.

"We are utilising all our available resources to search locally and will, of course, link up with colleagues across the country if there is anything to suggest that he has travelled out of Sussex."

Editor’s note: first and foremost - and rarely have I written down these words with more sincerity - I hope this finds you well.

Almost certainly you are here because you value the quality and the integrity of the journalism produced by The Yorkshire Post’s journalists - almost all of which live alongside you in Yorkshire, spending the wages they earn with Yorkshire businesses - who last year took this title to the industry watchdog’s Most Trusted Newspaper in Britain accolade.

And that is why I must make an urgent request of you: as advertising revenue declines, your support becomes evermore crucial to the maintenance of the journalistic standards expected of The Yorkshire Post. If you can, safely, please buy a paper or take up a subscription. We want to continue to make you proud of Yorkshire’s National Newspaper but we are going to need your help.

Postal subscription copies can be ordered by calling 0330 4030066 or by emailing [email protected]. Vouchers, to be exchanged at retail sales outlets - our newsagents need you, too - can be subscribed to by contacting subscriptions on 0330 1235950 or by visiting www.localsubsplus.co.uk where you should select The Yorkshire Post from the list of titles available.

If you want to help right now, download our tablet app from the App / Play Stores. Every contribution you make helps to provide this county with the best regional journalism in the country.

Sincerely. Thank you.

James Mitchinson, Editor

Missing Brighton teenager may have tried to walk to Yorkshire to see girlfriend