Every year the names and faces of a handful of missing people become embedded in the national consciousness.

They appear on the front pages of the national newspapers and are discussed on television news shows.

But for every Suzy Lamplugh and Milly Dowler there are hundreds of others who may have had troubled backgrounds, mental health problems or, for numerous other reasons, do not receive the same level of attention from police or Press.

Carmel Fenech disappeared in 1998 when she was 16.

The year before she went missing she had moved with her family to Crawley from Peckham, South London.

She had fallen in with drug dealers and started using crack cocaine so her mother, Deirdre, decided she needed a fresh start.

Carmel had run away before and, when she disappeared in 1998, Deirdre thought she would turn up but she hasn't seen her daughter since.

Deirdre said: "When Milly Dowler went missing everyone was talking about it but each disappearance has different circumstances.

"Carmel had absconded before but Milly Dowler disappeared on her way home.

"I thought Carmel would turn up in a few weeks but in other cases the families know there is something wrong straight away."

She is 5ft tall with black hair and brown eyes. She has a Mediterranean complexion and a 2in scar on her forehead.

According to the National Missing Persons Helpline (NMPH), there are 20 children missing from Sussex.

Brian Cowan, spokesman for the NMPH, said: "Some of them may have come into the country as unaccompanied minors and disappear the next day.

"There is always the suspicion of trafficking. Any child who comes into the country as an unaccompanied minor could potentially be involved in trafficking.

"We are involved in every aspect of missing persons. We tend to publicise those we believe are high risk."

Sisters Lingshan, 15, and Lingran Lin, 11, had arrived in Brighton as part of a language tour trip.

The sisters, from the Fujian province of China, disappeared on July 31, 2006.

They were both wearing blue, three-quarter-length trousers and white T-shirts and carrying rucksacks and bumbags.

They texted family in China and said they were staying with a friend in Brighton but have not been heard from since.

Racheal Usagiede, 17, disappeared from Worthing on December 3, 2005.

She is originally from Nigeria and had not been in the country long before she went missing.

Racheal is 5ft, of slim build, with short black curly hair and was last seen wearing a black coat, jeans and white trainers. She may have a small, black suitcase with her.

Atanda Boladale Shobanjo, 17, is originally from Nigeria but disappeared from Littlehampton on January 2, 2006.

Atanda is slim, has brown eyes and short brown hair and was last seen wearing a navy-blue Reebok jacket, jeans and trainers.

Damilola Adelaja was 16 when he went missing at the end of July last year.

According to a spokesman from the missing persons helpline, there is very little information regarding Damilola's disappearance.

Damilola, who is originally from Nigeria, is 6ft, with brown hair and brown eyes.

Chinese teenager Ting Wu went missing from Chichester on August 5, 2006.

Sixteen-year-old Ting speaks little English and is described as 5ft, of slim build, with brown eyes and long black hair.

Louise Kay went missing from Eastbourne in 1988.

Eighteen-year-old Louise had spent the night with friends at a club in the town and was last seen dropping off a friend in her father's Ford Fiesta.

She is now 36 and her family have never given up on seeing her again.

At the time she went missing, Louise was 5ft 6in, slim, with green/grey eyes and light-brown hair. The car Louise was last seen in was a distinctive gold colour and had a white driver's door.

James Funnell went missing from Hastings on November 13, 2005. He was last seen by his wife just before midnight.

He is described as 6ft 3in, with a stocky build and grey curly hair. He was last seen wearing green jeans, a yellow shirt, a cardigan and a darkgrey overcoat.

James was 50 when he went missing but will now be 51.

The last thing anyone heard from Malcolm Leeves, from Bexhill was a note he left at his home which said: "I'm going out."

This was on June 22 at about 8pm, this year.

His friends and family have said his disappearance is out of character and they think he might be unwell.

They are extremely worried about him and just want to know he is okay.

Malcolm was 42 when he went missing but is now 43.

He is 5ft 9in, slim, with cropped, dark-brown hair and blue eyes.

Worthing man George Manville, 56, disappeared on April 29, this year.

George is 6ft, slim, with short greying, dark-brown hair and brown eyes.

He has various tattoos, including a star on each forearm, the word Daffy on his left arm and a further tattoo on his lower stomach.

He was last seen wearing dark-blue jeans, a black/grey long jacket and white trainers.

Elise Langham, 17, has been missing since September 26, this year.

She is from Herstmonceux but went missing from Plaistow, east London.

She sometimes uses the surname Taylor and is 5ft 9in, slim, with darkbrown hair and dark eyes.

  • Click here to see a photo gallery of all the missing persons mentioned in this article

NMPH is confidential and can be contacted on Freefone 0500 700700.

It is a registered charity (No.

1020419). Donate £1.50 to the charity by texting "missing" (standard rates) to 84010 or online at www.missingpersons.org

  • Anyone with information about any of the people features can contact any of the following numbers, 0500 700700, message home helpline 0800 700740, or the runaway helpline 0808 8007070.