New appeal as Shannon hunt goes on

The youngster has not been seen since she left school on Dewsbury Moor, Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, last Tuesday afternoon.

Detectives say they have not given up hope of finding her alive.

Chief Superintendent Barry South from West Yorkshire Police said: "I think the size of the search, the extent of what we're doing, the resources going in - we're not going to lose hope.

"My priority has been the same right from the very outset - we are doing our best to locate Shannon safe and well."

Officers have searched more than 200 homes and received over 300 calls from the public.

But the police operation, which has involved 250 officers and desperate searches by friends and relatives, has so far failed to find any trace of Shannon.

The community has rallied around the family, with worried neighbours and relatives donning T-shirts with pictures of the schoolgirl and gathering at the residents' association hall near her home.

On Monday, 50 specialist police officers were drafted in to search wheelie bins on the route Shannon would have taken home from West Moor Junior School. Police were particularly interested in tracing items of Shannon's clothing and her distinctive boots.

Mr South said on Monday that the investigation would not be scaled down and house-to-house inquiries would continue.