The Cottage By The Sea was established in 1895. It initially housed convalescing children for two or three week stays, but over time received children in general need. Since 2010, Cottage By The Sea provides short-term relief care for children whose families are experiencing difficulties. The ‘Cottage By The Sea’ was established to provide care…
In 1991 the Copelen Street Family Centre was renamed Copelen Child and Family Services. In 1998, it merged with Grassmere Youth Services to form a new organisation known as Copelen.
The Catholic Social Service Bureau was established in 1935 by Archbishop of Melbourne Daniel Mannix. One of the Bureau’s functions was to administer applications for children to be admitted to the many Catholic children’s homes in Victoria. It also counselled unmarried mothers and arranged foster care placements and adoptions. In 1956, it changed its name…
The Adoption Information Service, Uniting – Connections began in 1984 with the introduction of the Victorian Adoption Act, which provided for the first time rights to the parties to adoption to access to information. Adopted persons, adoptive parents, parents who have relinquished their child and other family members can obtain information about an adoption organised…
Woodbine came into being in 1954 with the establishment of a hostel of the same name in Warracknabeal. As well as the hostel on Craig street, Woodbine also ran a number of family group homes in Warracknabeal. In 2018, Woodbine provides accommodation, day and employment programs and training to people with intellectual disabilities in regional…
The Wesleyan Church Neglected Children’s Aid Society came into being in 1891. Previously it was known as the Central Dorcas Association Help and Rescue Society. The Society ran the Methodist Children’s Homes in Cheltenham. Responsibility for the day-to-day running of the Homes however lay with the ‘ladies’ of the Executive Committee.
Connecting Home was established in April 2010 to replace Stolen Generations Victoria Ltd, and to continue to provide support and advocacy for members for the Stolen Generations and their families.
The Presbyterian Sisterhood began in Warrnambool in western Victoria. It was established by the Rev. Donald A. Cameron, who was Director of Home Missions within the Presbyterian Church of Victoria. The aim of the Presbyterian Sisterhood was ‘to rescue and help women in distress’ (Argus, 1908). From around 1901, the Sisterhood ran a refuge in…
The Young Christian Workers’ Movement (YCW) was established in the late 1930s in Melbourne. It was part of a worldwide YCW movement, founded in Belgium in 1912. By 1950, YCW groups had been established in 60 countries. The group established in Melbourne was originally for boys – there was also a National Catholic Girls Movement,…
On 1 February 2010, Wesley Mission Victoria came into being. It was previously known as Wesley Mission Melbourne. The name change reflected an expansion of Wesley’s services into regional areas of Victoria. In July 2017, Wesley Mission Victoria merged with 21 UnitingCare agencies to form a new organisation: Uniting (Victoria and Tasmania) Limited.