Following the deaths of Cambridge schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, parents are considering having their children microchipped in case they are abducted. Women's Editor Christen Pears reports.

BY her own admission, Anne Cassidy's children are like prisoners in their own back yard. While their friends play in the streets or wander to the shops, the four Cassidy youngsters are never allowed out of their mother's sight, and now she's so afraid they'll be abducted, she's having them electronically tagged.

The disappearance and deaths of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman last month shocked the nation, prompting parents up and down the country to be extra vigilant when allowing their children out of the house. But some are going a step further and having them fitted with microchips which will track their movements whenever they leave the family home.

Anne admits George, 12, Michael, 11, James, eight, and Emily, five, are living like prisoners but, after the events in Soham, she has become obsessed with their safety. The children are now on a register, waiting to be tagged, and they are expected to be fitted with the chips later this year.

Unlike the chips which are used to identify dogs, the £20 tags do not need to be read using a hand-held scanner. They will send a signal via a mobile phone network to a computer, which will be able to pinpoint the children's exact location on an electronic map.

That means peace of mind for Anne and freedom for her children. She says: "I don't want anybody taking my kids. I'm so frightened they might be abducted that I never allowed them out on their own to play. They have been like little prisoners in the backyard this summer and I think they'll be over the moon about getting chipped because they will be able to play out.

"Even before Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman were killed I wouldn't let them out because I'm so terrified somebody might take them away. It's just brilliant to know their names are on the register. It's magnificent. I'm absolutely over the moon and the bairns will be as well because for once they'll have freedom."

The 37-year-old is just one of 50 parents from across the country who have put their children on a register for the chip. The technology has been developed by Kevin Warwick, who is based in the cybernetics department at Reading University. The controversial scientist previously made the news when he wired his own nervous system to a computer, in an experiment he hopes will eventually give paralysed people more control over their own bodies.

The tagging procedure involves putting a small transmitter, measuring about one inch long, into a child's arm or stomach, and will be carried out by a GP under local anaesthetic. Watches with a similar function are now on sale in the US but Mr Warwick says they are too easy to remove and discard. He believes the microchip is a much more effective alternative.

"A potential abductor wouldn't know the child had the device and it could be switched to sleep mode when it wasn't needed, to conserve its battery," says Mr Warwick.

But his latest project has attracted criticism from several quarters, including the children's charity, Kidscape. A statement issued earlier this week, said: "We do not think this is a good idea.

"Children should be taught about the possible dangers, rather than having something stuck on them that can maybe track them, and perhaps then only when it's too late."

Mr Warwick concedes that some parents might abuse the system or over-react if their children were late home. He also admits it is up to society to decide if the procedure is ethical and whether parents, the police or a judge would have the power to activate the chip.

"There are, of course, many more questions to be asked and I suspect there will be objections to the implant. But if the general trend in Britain is in favour of such an operation, it will be ready to go by Christmas."

Anne can't wait for her children to benefit from the new technology.

She says: "At the moment they are missing out tremendously. They have no friends to knock on the door and play with them. That's why I've got them a computer, a Playstation, a pool for the backyard and I take them to the pictures and McDonald's because they aren't allowed anywhere on their own."

While some people are unsure about the both the effectiveness and ethics of the implant, Anne remains convinced she is doing the right thing and says she knows plenty of other mothers who would follow suit.

She is hoping to have her children chipped by Christmas and adds: "I can't think of a better present. At last I'll have peace of mind."