Cooinda Hostel was established by the Mentally Retarded Children's Association in Mount Gambier in 1969. It provided hostel style accommodation on week days for school aged children from country areas who were attending the Mount Gambier Special School. Cooinda closed in 1994.
Cooinda Hostel was established by the Mentally Retarded Children's Association in Derrington street, Mount Gambier in 1969. It provided hostel style accommodation on week days for school aged children from country areas who were attending the Mount Gambier Special School. It was the first Hostel to be established in a country region.
During the 1990s the policy of the Education Department was to integrate children with special needs into its schools. This reduced the demand for Special Schools and the need for Hostels for children attending them. The expectations of the families of children with intellectual disabilities also began to change. In response to these societal changes, Cooinda closed in 1994.
Sources used to compile this entry: Lewis, Ian, Making a difference: sixty years of service to the people of South Australia, 1950-2010, Orana, 2010, http://web.archive.org/web/20150311192731/http://oranaonline.com.au/Portals/0/PDFs/Orana%2060%20Year%20History%20Book_Final.pdf.
Prepared by: Karen George and Gary George
Created: 29 April 2014
Last updated: 7 August 2023
Cite this: https://www.findandconnect.gov.au/ref/sa/biogs/SE01295b.htm
First published by the Find & Connect Web Resource Project for the Commonwealth of Australia, 2011
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