Dad of missing six-year-old boy says he'll never forget the people who found him asleep outside in freezing cold in Milton Keynes

On January 17 last year hundreds of people from Newport Pagnell turned out in the cold and dark to search for six-year-old Aadil Umair Rahim.

The little boy wandered off from Newport Pagnell Service station after his school trip coach stopped for a comfort break.

More than 1,000 people joined the nine-hour overnight search, which involved police, a helicopter, tracker dogs, firefighters and the Bucks Search and Rescue (BSAR) volunteer unit.

CCTV showed Aadil running through a car park on the north side of the service station but there was no sighting after that. Police closed off the service station from both directions of the M1 and scoured every inch of the town.

The news quickly spread to the town's Facebook group, 'Newport Pagnell general chit chat', and people took to the streets in their hundreds to help.

"It reached the early hours of the morning and lights were blazing in houses all over the town. You could see that nobody was sleeping. We were all desperately worried about this little boy and, sadly, starting to fear the worst. There was even speculation that he may have been abducted and driven off down the motorway," one resident recalled.

People took to Facebook in their hundreds to check for news, while the Citizen worked through the night providing updates.

Aadil's dad Umair Rahim, a 31-year-old used car dealer, drove from Nottingham and had to sit with police in a police car during the desperate wait. He said officers were "immensely supportive".

Meanwhile, firefighters from Bucks Fire and Rescue water unit used their water rescue boat to search the flooded stream near the service station and the lake at nearby Little Linford

As hopes were fading, finally, at 3.40am, the rescue helicopter spotted a tiny shape in a fenced-off area right next to the M1. Half a mile away from the service station, It houses the electrical equipment used to power the large matrix signs on the motorway.

Aadil was found huddled on a concrete block, where he had fallen asleep. He was shivering but seemingly none the worse for his ordeal. The rescuers wrapped him up in a foil blanket and took him back to his dad.

Incredibly, he had survived from 7.15pm until 4am outside in near freezing temperatures, wearing just his school uniform and no coat.

"Suddenly he just appeared in front of me," said Mr Rahim.

"I gave him the biggest hug. I didn’t want to let him go. That was the best feeling. My boy was safe and well and not hurt."

The people of Newport Pagnell invited Aadil to be guest of honour at their annual carnival in the summer. Sadly though, the event had to be cancelled due to Covid.

This week Mr Rahim said his son was thriving and seemed to have forgotten all about the dramatic night.

He told the BBC: "Looking back at this time last year, it feels like a terrible dream.

"I'm really pleased to say that Aadil is absolutely fine now and he has forgotten all about it and has moved on with his life."

He has again thanked all the people who helped in the search and rescue.

Mr Rahim said the school, which had taken a class on a trip to visit a London museum, had held an internal investigation into Aadil's disappearance. He said he does not blames anybody.