Please contact the Freedom of Information Team at the Department for Child Protection:
Phone: (08) 8226 4399
Postal address: GPO Box 1072, Adelaide SA 5001
Email: DCP.FOI@sa.gov.au
Website, Out-of-Home Care information: https://www.childprotection.sa.gov.au/research-and-publications/freedom-information/provision-information-care-leavers
Website, Adoptions information: https://www.childprotection.sa.gov.au/support-and-guidance/adoption-processes/applying-for-adoption-information
Quote this number to access your records: State Records of South Australia Series ID, GRG27/1
These records are part of Records created by the State Children's Department (1886 - 1927).
These correspondence files cover all aspects of the State Children’s Department’s business and include information on the maintenance of state wards, the placement of children, the suitability of foster homes, absconded state wards, applications by parents for the return of children, applications by state wards for their wages, and more. They also contain some correspondence relating to Homes run by the Salvation Army under the control of the Department.
Access to the records in this series is restricted for 100 years in order to protect personal privacy. Those records over 100 years old are open and can be accessed by any member of the public. People mentioned in these records have a right to access information about themselves. To request access to these records please contact the Department for Child Protection Freedom of Information team. To arrange access to open records please contact State Records of South Australia.
This is a large series, spanning 23 linear metres of records. However, most files dated earlier than 1891 from this series were destroyed due to damage caused by poor storage. In cases where information about children in care in the late 19th century cannot be found in the files of the State Children’s Department, State Records of South Australia recommends consulting the records of the Police Department on welfare and destitution matters, as these cases were often referred to the police.
State Records of South Australia have created an index to help identify items of relevance in this series. The index is ordered by date, and lists the file number, name of the writer of the piece of correspondence (which can include the parents of children in care, foster carers, and children’s Homes), and the reason for the correspondence, which can include the names of children in care or children who have been placed for adoption.
The index also includes some contextual information about the history of the State Children’s Department, and an essay about the architecture of the Adelaide Destitute Asylum. This index is accessible online via the following url: https://www.archives.sa.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/829760/GRG27_1_Correspondence-of-the-State-Childrens-Department_1887-1899.pdf