Bamburra Hostel

Bamburra Hostel opened in 1970 in Yokine. It was for Aboriginal teenage girls from remote areas attending high school and other education and training, although from 1994 (or possibly earlier) boys were also admitted. Bamburra was run by the Churches of Christ Federal Aborigines Mission Board from 1970 to 1984.

Bamburra Hostel was an Aboriginal Education and Employment Hostel. It opened in 1970 in Yokine for Aboriginal teenage girls from remote areas to stay during the school year so they could attend high school and other education and training. The Churches of Christ Federal Aborigines Mission Board ran Bamburra under a formal agreement with the Department of Community Welfare.

In 1975, Bamburra Hostel was described as providing short term care for ‘secondary school girls in a hostel-like setting’, the average length of stay being nine months. The hostel at this time was reported as being a brick building that was ‘integrated into the community’. Bamburra Hostel had a garden with a swimming pool, seven bedrooms (five doubles and two bedrooms which could sleep three or more girls), a lounge room, dining room, four bathrooms and toilets; and various amenities including television and piano. The young people walked or took a bus to their schools and home lunches were provided. Holiday activities included camping trips. (Department of Child Welfare Submission to the Committee of Enquiry into Residential Child Care, July 1976, reported in Signposts, 2004).

It was run by the Churches of Christ Federal Aborigines Mission Board from 1970 to 1984, when Bamburra was transferred to the Department for Community Welfare. The government-run entity on the site from 1984 was called Bamburra House.

National Redress Scheme for people who have experienced institutional child sexual abuse

The Western Australian government has agreed to be a funder of last resort for this institution. This means that although the institution is now defunct, it is participating in the National Redress Scheme, and the government has agreed to pay the institution’s share of costs of providing redress to a person (as long as the government is found to be equally responsible for the abuse a person experienced).