The Commissioner for Children was established in 2000. It is an independent, statutory office responsible to the Parliament of Tasmania. In 2014, the Commissioner’s functions include promoting the rights and well-being of children along with examining the policies, practices and services provided for children and any laws affecting their health, welfare, care, protection and development….
Ashley Home for Boys, in Deloraine, replaced the Boys’ Training School in 1926. It was a government run reformatory which took in boys aged eight to 18, until the 1950s when it only took in boys over 14. From 1988, Ashley also accommodated girls. The Home operated on a privilege system, with boys working under…
Glenhaven Children’s Home, run by the Christian Brethren Assemblies of Tasmania, was located near Ulverstone. It opened in 1959. It was a small approved cottage Home for older children and teenagers. Glenhaven Children’s Home became Glenhaven Family Services in the late 1980s. Glenhaven Children’s Home had a number of locations before settling in Ulverston in…
Kennerley Boys’ Home opened in West Hobart in 1869. As an industrial school, it provided accommodation and training for boys considered to be neglected. In 1969, it became Kennerley Children’s Home. On 20 March 1876, the wealthy businessman, philanthropist, and Premier, Alfred Kennerley (1810-97), issued a Deed of Gift to enable ‘The Boys’ Home’, established…
Clarendon Children’s Home, run by the Anglican Church, opened in 1922 in New Town, on the same site as the Home of Mercy (the two Homes were jointly run by the Church of England). Clarendon Children’s Home accommodated children over the age of three (babies and younger children were at the Home of Mercy). In…
St Joseph’s Orphanage, run by the Sisters of Charity, opened in central Hobart in 1879. It was for Catholic girls who could be placed there by relatives for a fee, or by the Government. In 1958, the Sisters renamed it Aikenhead House. It began accepting young boys in 1963. The Listen to the Children inquiry…
The Department of Health and Human Services succeeded the Department of Community and Health Services in 1998. Through its Children and Youth Services program the Department ran child and youth welfare services, including out of home care and adoptions, in Tasmania. In 2018 the Children and Youth Services program and the department’s functions regarding child…
The Department of Community and Health Services replaced the Department of Community Services in 1993. It provided health care, including mental health, financial and other assistance to people with inadequate incomes, and managed family and children’s services, including the supervision of state wards. In 1998, its name changed to the Department of Health and Human…
The Department of Community Services replaced the Department for Community Welfare in 1989. It provided housing, financial and other assistance to people with inadequate incomes, and managed corrective, mental, family and children’s services, including the supervision of state wards. In 1993, it became the Department of Community and Health Services. In July 1989, shortly after…
The Social Welfare Department replaced the Social Services Department in 1961. It provided financial and other assistance to people with inadequate incomes and managed children’s services, including the supervision of state wards. In 1983, it became the Department for Community Welfare. The name, Social Welfare Department, was an attempt to avoid confusion with the Commonwealth…
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