TEACHERS reported seven cases of forced marriages in Greater Manchester schools last year.

But police believe that the figures are just the tip of the iceberg with as many as 100 suspected cases involving victims of all ages reported locally every year.

Children as young as 12 have been forced into marriage abroad - and boys as well as girls are among the victims.

Now new guidelines are being drawn up to tell Manchester council staff how to spot at-risk youngsters and what action to take.

The move comes amid concerns from care sources that some schools are failing to act quickly enough when youngsters go missing.

The MEN can reveal that in the last year, teachers at two Manchester secondary schools phoned police after fearing pupils had been taken abroad to wed against their will.

In Oldham there were four cases reported by schools and one suspected case in Bury.

The schools involved have not been named to avoid identifying victims, nor was the nature of the action taken by authorities revealed.

But child protection experts believe many more cases go unreported.

A support worker at Saheli service for Asian women suffering domestic abuse said the group dealt with around 10 cases in Greater Manchester every year featuring young child victims.

The worker, who did not want to be named, said: "In most cases it tends to be girls who are aged 17 to their early 20s but we do come across situations where there are children aged 12.

Warning signs

"Just because someone goes abroad on holiday does not mean they are being forced into marriage but there are normally warning signs that should tell teachers that there is a problem and they should follow this through.

"The community closes their eyes to the issue and it doesn't get addressed."

All councils keep a database of children they fear are likely to go missing, which can be accessed by police and social workers.

Fears have been raised that some schools do not raise the alarm when youngsters fail to return to school - with some registered as being on "unauthorised holiday" rather than flagged as priority missing children.

The care source told the MEN: "Every September we wait to find out who is coming back and who isn't."

The council is in the process of re-issuing its advice to teachers about forced marriages. And new guidelines are being drawn up to inform all council staff who deal with young people - including librarians, carers and social workers - what action to take.

They will be advised to look for pupils suffering from signs of depression such as self-harming, or are anxious about a family holiday.

Around 400 cases of forced marriages nationally are reported to the Forced Marriage Unit, a team jointly funded by the Home Office and Foreign Office which locates victims and works with local police and consular staff to rescue them.

Up to a third of their cases are understood to come from the North West and more than 15 per cent involve male victims.

Although the majority of cases involve families from Pakistan, Bangladesh or India, victims have also come from African, South America and European communities.

Although there is no formal record of the number of forced marriage cases reported to Greater Manchester Police, officers believe there are several dozen cases every year.

On many occasions the alarm was raised by boyfriends or girlfriends of the victim.

There is no criminal offence of forcing someone to marry - although a number of related charges such as kidnapping and sexual assault can be brought.

New legislation will come into place this year to give courts greater power to protect victims of forced marriage or those at risk.

It will allow judges make wide-ranging orders such as barring relatives from contacting the victim or confiscating their passport to prevent the marriage happening overseas without criminalising members of their family.

Because victims may often be reluctant to come forward, the act allows cases to be brought by third parties such as friends, teachers and social workers.

Det Sgt Pete Astbury, from GMP's vulnerable persons unit, said: "The most common thing is for a girlfriend or boyfriend to turn up at the front desk of a police station and express concerns. Often the parents have taken the child away to be married because they perceive the relationship to be unsuitable.

"One thing we tend to avoid doing is making things worse for a potential victim by blundering in and questioning the family straight away. Normally we will make discreet inquiries to make sure an individual is safe.

"If the circumstances require it they can be taken into social care to ensure the child is adequately protected.

"A common theme is that the victim will be taken abroad to marry and forced to stay there until they become pregnant and then will be allowed to come back but forced to sponsor their spouse for entry into the UK. There is still support for these people and a way out of their situation."

Education chiefs claim high levels of migration and the transience of some families have made it impossible to keep track of some pupils.

Jenny Andrews, Manchester council's head of education services, said: "Our priority and those of all Manchester schools is being vigilant in safeguarding the well being of pupils. We do have guidance for schools on how to deal with suspected cases of forced marriage and this gives clear information on how to proceed."