Topic Lifecycle: Dormant
This topic is currently dormant in the news cycle. It was last covered on Friday 25 September 2026 and has not appeared in recent broadcasts.
Coverage trend (last 30 days)
How much coverage this topic got from each channel over the past month.
On screen
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Recent stories
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What was reported
A plain summary of this topic, built from the channels that covered it.
An inquest has heard that three-year-old Noah Woods left a play area through a gap in the fence in Suffolk before going missing earlier this month. ITV1 and BBC ONE West reported that he became separated from a relative at a play park in Brantham, and that his disappearance prompted a search effort involving more than 1,000 people. His body was found in a nearby lake or pond the following day. ITV1 reported that Noah went down a path towards Decoy Pond, with a relative following and trying to keep up before losing sight of him after about 200 metres. BBC ONE West reported that the relative shouted after him and that Noah could no longer be seen after around 200 metres, and that Noah was partially deaf with delayed speech. ITV1 reported that Noah's body was found five metres off the bank of the lake within submerged tree roots. BBC ONE West reported that the body was around five metres from the shore and that the water there was about 1.8 metres deep. ITV1 reported that the cause of death is yet to be confirmed, that Noah was last seen just after 2.30pm on 15 September, and that his death was confirmed by paramedics around 4.30pm the following day. BBC ONE West reported that Noah had got out through the gap in the fence, which led to a memorial garden, and from there left through an open gate. ITV1 reported that the play park became a memorial site with flowers, balloons and toys. ITV1 reported that the family were not at the inquest and issued a statement. Both ITV1 and BBC ONE West reported the family describing Noah as a happy, cheeky, playful three-year-old who loved to laugh and giggle and brought joy wherever he went. ITV1 reported the family added that they wanted his memory to be one of joy. BBC ONE West reported that the inquest was opened and adjourned to a later date.
Key Claims by Channel
Wednesday 16 September 2026
| Claim | Channel 5 | BBC News | BBC One | Channel 4 | GB News | ITV | Sky News |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noah was last seen running down an alleyway towards a new building housing estate. | · | · | · | ||||
| Noah is non-verbal and has partial hearing loss. | · | · | · | ||||
| Hundreds or possibly thousands of volunteers joined the search. | · | · | |||||
| A nearby lake has been cordoned off by police. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| Noah Woods is three years old. | · | · | · | · | |||
| Noah went missing from a playground in Brantham, Suffolk. | · | · | · | · | |||
| Police said Noah will not respond to his name being called. | · | · | · | · | |||
| The search involves police, fire and rescue, Coast Guard, helicopters and volunteers. | · | · | · | · | |||
| The last confirmed sighting of Noah was at 2.37pm in the playground. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| CCTV footage showing Noah in the playground has been released. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| Local MP James Cartlidge said police are sending more resources to Brantham. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Police are focusing searches on areas containing water, including a lake and pond. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| Volunteers are being coordinated in groups of 10. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| Residents were asked to check gardens, sheds and doorbell cameras or video footage. | · | · | · | · | |||
| Noah's father urged people not to give up on him. | · | · | · | · | |||
| Police said there is nothing to indicate any element of criminality. | · | · | · | ||||
| Police divers recovered a child's body from Decoy Pond. | · | ||||||
| Noah's family had been informed of the development, but formal identification was still pending. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| Police thanked the public for their support. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Noah remained missing for around 24 hours with no sightings since the previous afternoon. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| The coroner will be informed. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Volunteers were advised to avoid open water and hazardous areas. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| The death is not suspicious but unexplained. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Noah was reported to be autistic and non-verbal. | · | · | · | · | · | · |
Thursday 17 September 2026
| Claim | Channel 5 | BBC News | BBC One | Channel 4 | GB News | ITV | Sky News |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noah is non-verbal and has partial hearing loss. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| Hundreds or possibly thousands of volunteers joined the search. | · | · | |||||
| A nearby lake has been cordoned off by police. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| The last confirmed sighting of Noah was at 2.37pm in the playground. | · | · | |||||
| Noah's father urged people not to give up on him. | · | · | · | · | |||
| Police said there is nothing to indicate any element of criminality. | · | ||||||
| Police divers recovered a child's body from Decoy Pond. | |||||||
| Noah's family had been informed of the development, but formal identification was still pending. | · | · | · | · | |||
| Police thanked the public for their support. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| Volunteers were advised to avoid open water and hazardous areas. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Noah Woods, a three year old boy, went missing from a playground in Brantham, Suffolk on Tuesday afternoon. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| A GoFundMe page for Noah's family exceeded its target of £20,000. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Flowers, soft toys and other tributes were left in memory of Noah. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Police said they were keeping an open mind about the disappearance. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| The death is not suspicious but unexplained. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Noah was reported to be autistic and non-verbal. | · | · | · | · | · | · |
Friday 25 September 2026
| Claim | Channel 5 | BBC News | BBC One | Channel 4 | GB News | ITV | Sky News |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noah is non-verbal and has partial hearing loss. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| Police divers recovered a child's body from Decoy Pond. | |||||||
| Noah's family had been informed of the development, but formal identification was still pending. | · | · | · | · | |||
| The body was formally identified as Noah Woods. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| A fundraiser for Noah's family raised tens of thousands of pounds, reportedly over £100,000. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| Noah went missing from a playground in Brantham, Suffolk, on Tuesday, with reports of a last confirmed sighting at 2.37pm, him running off from a relative at around 3pm, and going through a gap in a play area fence. | · | · | · | · | |||
| A large search operation for Noah involved hundreds to around 1,300 volunteers, including people from across the country, along with police, helicopters and the Coast Guard, and focused on areas including a large pond and wooded area beyond the housing estate. | · | ||||||
| Police cordoned off Decoy Pond and deployed divers there during the search. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| Police treated the case as a missing-person investigation with no indication of criminality, and later said the death was unexplained but not suspicious. | · | ||||||
| Noah's father said emergency services were confident that high-risk areas had been cleared. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Noah Woods' cause of death had not yet been confirmed. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Noah Woods was last seen just after 2.30pm on 15 September, and paramedics confirmed his death around 4.30pm the following day. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| The play park became a memorial site with flowers, balloons and toys left as tributes. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Noah Woods' family did not attend the inquest and issued a statement. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Noah Woods' family described him as a happy, cheeky and playful three-year-old, the sweetest and most innocent little boy, and said they wanted his memory to be one of joy. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| The inquest was opened and adjourned to a later date. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| It was a usual routine for Noah Woods to visit the play park with family members. | · | · | · | · | · | · | |
| A relative followed Noah Woods and lost sight of him after about 200 metres while shouting after him. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| Noah Woods left the play area through a gap in the fence, passing through a memorial garden and open gate, and went down a path towards Decoy Pond. | · | · | · | · | · | ||
| The relative who was with Noah Woods has not been named. | · | · | · | · | · | · |
This is a cross-channel consensus summary, not an objective account. Consensus can be uniformly wrong, or omit what only one channel covered.
Timeline
Where this topic appeared. Cells show coverage time and are darker when there was more coverage.
| Date | Channel 5 | BBC News | BBC One | BBC Two | Channel 4 | GB News | ITV | Sky News |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friday 25 September 2026 | 1m 59s 5.4% | — | 1m 35s 1.6% | — | — | — | 2m 3s 2.6% | — |
| Saturday 19 September 2026 | 14s 11.7% | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Thursday 17 September 2026 | 2m 51s 10.2% | — | 1m 58s 1.3% | — | — | — | 3m 41s 4.4% | 11m 20s 11.1% |
| Wednesday 16 September 2026 | 8m 11s 20.9% | 5m 35s 4.7% | 13m 7s 13.0% | — | 1m 44s 3.4% | 1m 33s 1.9% | 13m 40s 11.0% | 17m 58s 18.6% |