FAMILY and friends of missing Bournemouth schoolgirl Asata Budd were last night walking the streets of Essex in a desperate bid to find her.

The distraught family of the missing 13-year-old are worried for her safety and yesterday a search party went to hand out leaflets and ask for information.

Asata, from the West Howe area, was due to start at Bournemouth's Kings High School this week, having recently left Avonbourne, but went missing while visiting family in Woodford Green, Essex on Monday night.

Children from the Wessex Christian Centre, of which Asata is a regular member, said special prayers for her safe return last night.

It is thought the youngster could have come back to Bournemouth and yesterday officers from the Metropolitan Police travelled here to liaise with Dorset Police.

Her auntie Leoni Finnegan said: "She is just a normal teenager, she is shy and her favourite pop star is Lisa Maffia. Asata is always dancing around the house.

"She's a very intelligent Christian girl.

"We're trying not to think the worst - I'm just trying to keep my mind blank and hope she is fine. If I could get a message to her I'd say 'come home - your auntie loves you and misses you'."

Rev Brian Downward of the Wessex Christian Centre in Hinton Road described Asata as "very vulnerable".

Asata has lived with her grandmother since birth and the pair had just returned from a holiday in Italy. The Metropolitan Police have been carrying out house-to-house enquiries and putting up posters in the area from where she went missing.

They are also planning to examine her home computer.

Asata is described as a light-skinned black girl, 5ft 6ins and slim with light brown eyes and dark brown shoulder-length hair that is tied back.

She has a scar in the centre of her forehead about an inch long and she wears a gold rope necklace with an African map pendant.

Supt Bryan Horsley, from Redbridge police, said: "We have no evidence to suggest Asata has come to harm but obviously a missing 13-year-old girl is of great concern to us."

Anyone with information is asked to contact Barkingside Missing Persons Unit on 0208 345 3538.