It is the ultimate nightmare

IF ANYONE can understand the anguish being felt by the parents of missing four-year-old Madeleine McCann, it is Marjorie Marks.

Just over five years ago, Marjorie's daughter, Caroline Stuttle, died after being thrown from a bridge in Bundaberg, Australia. She was 19.

"My heart goes out to the McCanns, just as it goes out to any parent who has lost a child, or whose child is missing," says Marjorie.

"Your child is the most precious thing in your life. If you've lost a child, you're suffering a life sentence which never, ever goes away."

Following the desperate search for Madeleine in Portugal "breaks my heart every day," says Marjorie. "I know what they are going through. I can really feel for them. I just hope that everything will be all right and that she will be found."

The haggard, anguished faces of Gerry and Kate McCann and photographs of their bright-eyed, laughing daughter have dominated the front pages since the little girl disappeared from the family's holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal two weeks ago.

What Mr and Mrs McCann have gone through in the days since is every parent's worst nightmare, as they desperately cling to hope and dignity while the search for their missing daughter continues.

The disappearance and possible abduction of Madeleine while on holiday will have struck fear in the heart of every parent planning a holiday abroad with their young children.

So what can you do to protect your children on a family holiday?

Marjorie Marks has dedicated her life since the murder of her daughter to trying to make travel abroad safer for young people.

The charity she set up with her son, Richard, in Caroline's memory - Caroline's Rainbow Foundation - offers advice to young backpackers and their parents, in the hope of making overseas travel as safe as possible.

That advice is mainly aimed at teenagers, Marjorie says. But the principle remains the same if travelling abroad with young children: be prepared and do your research. Know about the area you are planning to visit, so you can take steps to ensure you and your family remain safe.

Julie Durrans, a mum-of-three and independent travel counsellor from York, who spends her working life organising the perfect break for holidaymakers, agrees.

As a mother, Julie says her heart goes out to the McCanns.

"It is your worst nightmare," she said. "I, like most people in this country, have been following the news anxiously every day, and just hoping and praying that everything works out all right and that Madeleine is found safe and well."

But what parents have to remember, Julie says, is that you cannot let fear stop you from living.

The disappearance or abduction of children is a very rare occurrence - and it can happen from the safety of your own home, as much as from a foreign hotel or apartment. Look at the awful case of the little six-year-old girl who was snatched from her bath in North Tyneside a year ago, before being assaulted and dumped naked in a freezing street, she says.

The danger of focusing on worries about a child being snatched or abducted is that other dangers are overlooked, Julie says - such as health or the risk of sunburn.

The good news is that being prepared and alert cuts any risks to a minimum.

So what is Julie's advice to parents who are planning a holiday with young children?

First, she says, decide whether you are going to want child care during your holiday. "If you have young children and you are likely to want time to yourselves, find a place that has child care, and use it," she says.

A travel agent will give details of resorts and destinations with a range of child-care facilities, from children's clubs to crèches and baby-sitters, Julie says.

She went on holiday to the Caribbean with her three young children a few years ago. "They had great child care facilities - a crèche that was available between 9am and 10pm, for example."

It is vital to prepare before leaving, Julie says. Make sure you have contact details for the local British embassy or consulate, in case something goes wrong. Children should be vaccinated before departure, and parents should obtain an EHIC form entitling them to free health care in Europe, if that is where they are going.

Travel insurance is important too, so travellers can be flown back to the UK in an emergency.

If your children have allergies, have the name of their condition translated into the local language. And take a first aid kit, plus an up-to-date photo of your children in case they are lost.

On arrival, Julie says, travellers should familiarise themselves with the local environment. Check whether there are balconies to rooms, and whether they are safe for young children. Find out where the local doctor is based, and whether there is supervision or a lifeguard service at the beach or the hotel pool.

When parents go out with their children, they should dress them in bright clothes, which makes it easier to spot them if they are lost. Always tell children what to do if they get lost - to go to the town square, for example, and wait there - and make sure they understand.

And slip a card in their pocket with your mobile telephone number on, to make it easier for anyone who finds you to contact them.

The key is to be sensible and not to take any more risks than at home - it can be easy to let your guard down when you are on holiday, Julie say.

Parents who follow all of those steps should be able to enjoy their holiday knowing they have taken every sensible precaution.

"There is lots you can do to make sure you have a nice, safe family holiday," Julie says. "And if you do take a few precautions, you will feel you can relax that little bit more."

* Julie works with Travel Counsellors, an independent travel group which offers travel advice and tailor-made holidays. She can be contacted on 0845 058 7248.

* The Caroline's Rainbow Foundation website is at www.carolinesrainbowfoundation.org

How would such a case be handled in York?

THE Portuguese police came in for harsh criticism in the critical early stages of the search for Madeleine McCann.

Local police responded within ten minutes after Madeleine was reported missing from the McCann's apartment, where she had been sleeping with her younger brother and sister, Sean and Amelie. But they assumed she had woken up and wandered off.

It was 12 hours before border police were alerted - and even then, one detachment was filmed sheltering from the rain in a car while vehicles drove by towards Spain.

By consensus, the Portuguese police then upped their game, but those first few hours following a crime are always held to be critical.

So how would a disappearance like this have been handled had it happened in York?

North Yorkshire Police today refused to criticise the Portuguese authorities or to make any comment about Madeleine.

But they did refer The Press to the Child Rescue Alert (CRA) scheme, launched last year in conjunction with Humberside Police and local media in March.

The system aims to ensure a rapid, co-ordinated response in cases of suspected child kidnapping or abduction, with members of the public being alerted so that they can help in the search.

Once a CRA is issued by a senior investigating officer, an urgent appeal for information will be broadcast on television, radio, and newspaper websites.

Under the terms of an agreement with broadcasters, they will give the key information quickly and repeatedly.

North Yorkshire Police have also set in place plans to deal with the expected surge in calls from the public once an appeal has been launched.

A CRA can only be issued if there is reasonable belief the child has been kidnapped or abducted or is in imminent danger.

But the system represented a "fantastic step forward in the protection of children" Detective Inspector Jon Reed, of York CID, said, launching the scheme last year.

DI Reed, right, who once won an award for his quick actions when a ten-year-old girl was abducted at knifepoint in Tang Hall, York, told The Press: "I want people to be running out of their houses to help us look for abducted children."

The occasions on which would be used would hopefully be very rare, DI Reed stressed.

"But it will be reassuring to parents and the public that this is available when a child has been abducted and we have information that can be circulated."