Jamie-Leigh Kelly, 31, left a Family Assessment Centre in north-west London on Tuesday evening with her three-year-old daughter and new born baby boy against the wishes of staff

A woman has issued a tearful plea to find her missing sister and her children who vanished from a family assessment centre.

Jamie-Leigh Kelly, 31, left a family assessment centre in north-west London earlier this week with her three-year-old daughter and her new born baby boy, against the wishes of staff. She hasn’t been seen or heard from since but her sister Rebecca Kelly has issued a touching plea to her sister to see her return home safely with her beloved niece and nephew.

Speaking to The Mirror, she revealed that she learned her sister had gone missing when police turned up at her door, and searched her flat, just hours after she’d gotten back from holiday. She said: “I was on holiday with my children, when I got home on Wednesday morning I was asleep, I didn’t get home until 7:30am, and about 1.30pm I had the police knocking on my door.

"They asked where my sister was and I was like ‘what do you mean? I don’t know’ I said I’ve just got back from Tenerife and they came in and searched my flat and told me what happened, that’s she’s ran away with the kids.”

Sisters Jamie-Leigh Kelly and Rebecca Kelly (

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An image of Jamie-Leigh released by the Met Police (

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The shocking news hit Rebecca hard, and officers also turned up the next day to enquire if she’d had any contact with Jamie. Rebecca had messaged and tried to calling her sister but to no avail. She added: “I’ve messaged her on Snapchat, I’ve tried ringing her but her phone’s off. I think she left her phone behind where she panicked, I’ve tried contacting her and put things on social media.”

And in a heartfelt plea to her sister to come home, she said: “I’d tell her to come home, she can get help, we can provide help for her. She’s not alone. I just know that she’s scared. She’s a brilliant mum, she’s not really got the support or help she’s been crying out for. She’d never hurt her children, ever, she’d never put them at risk.

"She ran because she wants to keep her children to be with her. I told social services, you’ve scared her, you need to approach her in a different way. Whilst she’s been missing, I’ve been telling social services, you’ve got to put her needs first as well, you’ve got to think about her.”

On Wednesday a man in his 50s was arrested in connection with investigation. He remains in custody in Essex. Police are now appealing for the public’s help in finding the mum and her two kids. Ms Kelly is described as white with green eyes, of slim build and 5ft4ins tall. She was wearing a white jumper or long-sleeved t-shirt, white jogging-style trousers and white trainers.

The children are under care orders and should not have been removed from the Colindale address which provides 24-hour social care support for vulnerable mothers and children. Around 7.40pm on Tuesday Jamie-Leigh left the address with the children against the wishes of staff, who were unable to prevent her from putting the children into a blue Ford Fiesta which then drove away at speed.

From CCTV enquiries, police believe the driver was a woman. Today, police said they located the car and made a second arrest. They arrested a 30-year-old woman on suspicion of child abduction. She remains in custody.

There is no indication that the children have been harmed, but detectives are clearly extremely concerned about their welfare. The baby boy was born in mid-September and so as a new-born is extremely vulnerable.

Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford who leads the Met’s Public Protection command in East Area, said: “We are making significant progress in our investigation but we remain extremely concerned about the welfare of Jamie-Leigh and her children, one of whom is less than one-month-old.

“Jamie-Leigh, I continue my direct appeal to you to contact with us so we can ensure the children are safe and well. We know you have no intention for the children to come to harm, so we are asking you to please pick up the phone and have a conversation with us so we can meet with you. The baby may need medical care as he is new-born, so please put him first and contact us on 020 7175 0793.”

Detective Superintendent Basford added: “We believe Jamie-Leigh continues to be assisted, and we ask anyone in Essex or London or further afield who may have information to call our incident room without delay, or dial 999 with any real time sightings. If you are helping Jamie-Leigh, it is not too late to do the right thing by the children and contact us.

“My thanks go to my team of detectives and our colleagues at Essex Police, as well as both Thurrock and Havering local authorities who have been extremely supportive, as we continue efforts to locate the family.”

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Met Police incident room on 020 7175 0793 with information or call 999 immediately with live sightings. Alternatively, information can be reported 100 per cent anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. They never ask for personal details and they do not trace your device.