'I find it scary that it is a year on, but we are no closer to finding Claudia'

Written and personally signed, in a card depicting a countryside scene, Dr John Sentamu simply stated that his thoughts and prayers are with the father of Claudia Lawrence.

Correspondence has arrived from across Britain and Europe in the run-up to the first anniversary of Miss Lawrence's disappearance, but it is Dr Sentamu's message which has provided perhaps the greatest solace. York Minster has remained a refuge for Mr Lawrence during a surreal, heart-breaking 12 months which both he and his family would much rather forget about if they had any option. Mr Lawrence has sat within the grand confines of the cathedral, where he is a regular among the congregation, and bowed his head in silent prayer to reflect on the ordeal he has endured since discovering his daughter had disappeared.

Yet despite his best efforts to keep the case of the missing woman in the headlines, Mr Lawrence, 63, a solicitor from Slingsby in North Yorkshire, is no closer to finding out what has happened to her.

Mr Lawrence, who has an elder daughter, Ali Sims, 38, a mother-of-two, said: "I never thought that we would be here a year on. I thought it might take a few days or even weeks before we found out what had happened, but never this long. I suppose I am the eternal optimist, and I thought that first press conference would bring out the information we needed. That is the amazing thing, there has been no resolution to this and we are now a year on. Somebody cannot just disappear into thin air in a country like this. Someone out there must know something."

The Archbishop of York has kept a photo of Miss Lawrence on his computer at his official residence, Bishopthorpe Palace, and continues to remember her in his daily prayers.

Dr Sentamu said: "We must continue to pray for Claudia and hope for her safe return. This must be a difficult time for the family as we reach the anniversary of Claudia's disappearance, but we must not give up hope."

The name of Claudia Lawrence has now become synonymous with a police investigation which has thrown up far more questions than there have been answers.

She was last seen walking close to her terrace home in Heworth Road in York on the afternoon of March 18 last year, and spoke to both her parents, who are divorced, that evening on her mobile phone.

But since then, there has been nothing – no further contact, no confirmed sightings and no clue as to where she has vanished.

Miss Lawrence's mother, Joan, stayed with her other daughter and grandchildren in Derbyshire last weekend for Mothering Sunday as the family attempted to come to terms with the impending first anniversary.

Mrs Lawrence, a town councillor from Norton, near Malton, said: "I keep going every day, there is always something that needs doing. The support from family, friends and local people is wonderful, it's a huge comfort to me and I am so grateful. The pain never goes away, the emptiness inside me. The reminders are all over my flat, presents, notes, cards, photographs. Many is the time I come across something

by accident and stop and shed a tear."

Detectives involved in the North Yorkshire Police inquiry still maintain that they believe that the missing York University chef has come to harm at the hands of someone she knows.

The investigation is the biggest inquiry which the North Yorkshire force has overseen in recent years, but officers have still not been able to provide a definitive answer as to what has happened to Miss Lawrence.

The longer the case has continued, the more intense the speculation has become.

A 30-strong team involved in what has become a murder inquiry is continuing to delve into Miss Lawrence's personal life in an attempt to find one vital piece of evidence that will shed new light on an enduring mystery.

But as they have looked back into her past, it has become increasingly apparent that she led a life that was perhaps not as carefree and untroubled as it may have first seemed.

The officer leading the inquiry, Detective Superintendent Ray Galloway, has admitted that the missing woman's tangled love life has continued to present one of the biggest challenges to the murder investigation.

Miss Lawrence embarked on a series of relationships with married men, but previous partners have frustrated police as they have often been reticent to admit they had even met her.

And lurid headlines in certain sections of the national media about Miss Lawrence being a marriage wrecker have compounded the heartache of her family and close friends.

Among them is Suzy Cooper, who regularly met up with Miss Lawrence in The Nag's Head pub just a few doors away from the missing woman's home.

The 45-year-old office administrator will be in the pub tomorrow afternoon along with a group of close friends to watch the Cheltenham Gold Cup on the television, which was a regular date in Miss Lawrence's social diary.

While she remains baffled as to her friend's whereabouts, Miss Cooper is adamant that the missing woman has been taken against her will.

She said: "I find it really quite scary that it is a year on, but we are no closer to finding out what has happened to Claudia. I do feel guilty that I have let her down, that there is something I should be doing to help.

"But you feel helpless and powerless, it is awful. I feel angry towards the person who has taken her away, but that cannot be directed at anyone, and all the emotion sometimes comes out in the wrong way.

"I do think too much focus has been put on Claudia's personal life, and she could have been taken by a random stranger or someone who sat in the pub obsessing about her. We simply do not know, it is all speculation, but the one thing I am sure of is that she would not simply disappear of her own free will."

The police investigation has pursued leads as far away as Cyprus, where Miss Lawrence regularly went on holiday, and Ireland after one of her previous lovers was traced there.

Miss Lawrence had mentioned that she might consider working in Cyprus for a summer season, and her mother spoke in May last year of her "gut instinct" that her daughter could now be abroad.

But Miss Lawrence's family and friends have maintained that she would have told them if she was planning to move away from her life in York.

However, privacy experts have stressed that anyone who wants to vanish can do just that – if they know what they are doing.

Frank Ahearn has been involved in more than 50,000 missing person cases in America in a career spanning more than 25 years. He now carefully selects clients to help them escape their existing lives, although he is keen to stress he will not help people fake their deaths – known in the trade as "pseudocide" – or evade prosecution. The number of people, mostly men, seeking his help has increased by 10-fold in the last five years and, of the thousands of people who go missing in this country each year, a significant number will have deliberately decided to disappear beneath the radar.

Mr Ahearn said: "Some people have a grand plan, while other people simply just pack up and leave. I'm not saying this has happened with Claudia, but we simply do not know. There are so many variables, and you cannot jump to any one conclusion.

"People deal with a lot in their lives, and sometimes it gets to the stage where they just decide to walk away and drop off the grid.

"The questions remain over Claudia – was she abducted or did she decide to simply go away?

"Claudia's family will still be holding on to the hope that she is out there somewhere, and in many ways that is what will be keeping them going."

The point has been made that people go missing all the time across Britain. The fact is, however, that people like Miss Lawrence do not disappear without trace. An attractive and popular young woman with a middle-class upbringing and with apparently everything to live for has simply vanished from a cathedral city in one of the safest parts of the country.

Police have found no evidence that she fled her life in York after becoming embroiled in money worries or personal troubles. Indeed, her bank cards and passport were found at her home after Miss Lawrence vanished.

Her father has been given assurances from North Yorkshire Police's Chief Constable Grahame Maxwell that there are no plans to scale back the inquiry team.

But the fear remains that without new leads, the police investigation, which has already cost more than 600,000, cannot simply be left to continue at the current level.

And without new leads, the heartache for Miss Lawrence's family will remain unabated.

Mr Lawrence said: "There are times when you are not rushed off your feet and you suddenly have time to think. That's when it is hard. We always saw quite a lot of each other and not being able to do that is very difficult. She is a best friend – we used to talk a lot.

"I would simply appeal to anyone with information to come forward. It could be the missing piece of the jigsaw which we are all desperate to find.

"I just hope that we can find some kind of resolution to all of this, whatever that may be."

Anyone with information can contact North Yorkshire Police on 0845 6060247 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

THE FACTS AND FIGURES

Number of calls to the police incident room, including calls to the BBC's Crimewatch studios – 1,270.

Cost of the investigation at the end of last month – 615,000.

Number of statements and reports, including statements from the public and police officers' reports – 2,797.

Number of officers and staff working on the investigation – between 20 and 30.

Countries visited in the inquiry – Cyprus and Republic of Ireland.

Number of properties searched – more than 1,300, including 1,000

rooms in York University's halls of residence.

MYSTERY AND HEARTBREAK: THE 12-MONTH SEARCH FOR CLAUDIA LAWRENCE

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

5.30am: Chef Claudia Lawrence, 35, leaves her home in Heworth Road to walk to York University to start work for a 6am shift.

2.05pm: CCTV footage shows Miss Lawrence leaving Goodricke College after finishing work.

2.05pm-2.40pm: Miss Lawrence calls her mother, Joan, while walking home. She is then picked up by a female work colleague who gives her a lift back to her house.

3.05pm: A friend, Linda Chapman, sees Miss Lawrence walking near her home. It is the last confirmed sighting.

8.10pm: Miss Lawrence speaks to her mother shortly after calling her father, Peter, on her mobile phone.

8.23pm: She sends a text message to a friend.

9.12pm: She receives a text message from a friend. It is not known if she opened and read the message.

Thursday, March 19

6am: Miss Lawrence does not arrive for work.

9pm: Miss Lawrence had been due to meet her best friend, Suzy Cooper, at their local pub, The Nag's Head in Heworth Road. She does not turn up, but Miss Cooper believes her friend may have fallen asleep after her early start.

Friday, March 20

Miss Cooper attempts to contact Miss Lawrence on her mobile phone, but fails. She contacts Miss Lawrence's father. Mr Lawrence uses a spare key to enter his daughter's home. It appears that she had left for

work the previous day with a small green Karrimor rucksack with her chef's whites inside, her mobile phone and house keys. Her bank cards and passport are still in the house. Mr Lawrence reports his daughter missing.

Monday, March 23

Mr Lawrence makes an appeal for information during a press conference at Fulford Road police station.

Wednesday, March 25

Det Supt Ray Galloway, who is leading the police inquiry, reveals he believes that Miss Lawrence has "come to harm" and could be being held by someone she knows.

Monday, March 30

Det Supt Galloway makes an appeal for information on the BBC's Crimewatch programme. Friends of Miss Lawrence's family condemn a "despicable" website urging the public to donate to a bogus appeal to help find her. A City trader in London is later dismissed from his job.

Thursday, April 16

Det Supt Galloway reveals police are attempting to trace a man and a woman seen arguing by a car early on March 19 close to York University. He also urges two men who were seen at the front door to Miss Lawrence's house in the early afternoon of March 10 or March 13 to come forward.

Tuesday, April 21

The Yorkshire Post reveals potential leads in the search for missing Miss Lawrence have not been pursued by police for up to four weeks. Concerns are raised that detectives are being swamped by the amount of information.

Friday, April 24

Detectives confirm they have launched a murder inquiry into Miss Lawrence's disappearance and Crimestoppers offers a 10,000 reward for new leads.

Wednesday, June 3

Det Supt Galloway claims Miss Lawrence was involved in relationships of "complexity and mystery".

Friday, September 4

Miss Lawrence's mother defends her daughter's private life following allegations about a string of affairs with married men. Mrs Lawrence claims the allegations are "blackening" her daughter's name.

Friday, September 18

The six-month anniversary since Miss Lawrence was last seen. Detectives reveal officers have travelled to Cyprus to interview friends of Miss Lawrence.

Monday, November 16

Police confirm an investigation is underway into a message posted on the Facebook internet site which claims to have been left by Miss Lawrence. An 18-year-old man from Oxfordshire is later arrested and cautioned .

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Previously unseen CCTV footage of Miss Lawrence is released ahead of the missing woman's 36th birthday. Some of the footage has to be retracted after police admit the images were of someone else.

Friday, February 26

Detectives confirm they are pursuing a major new lead after a renewed appeal on BBC's Crimewatch programme, although it is later discounted.

Wednesday, March 3

Det Supt Galloway speaks of his continued frustration over the failure of Miss Lawrence's ex-lovers to co-operate after the murder inquiry switches to Ireland, where one of her previous partners lives.

Sunday, March 14

Mr Lawrence and Mrs Sims disclose they believe the missing woman could have fallen victim to a jealous partner of one of the married men with whom she had a relationship.