Reformatory (1860 - 1980)

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The first reformatory in New South Wales was the vessel NSS Vernon, which was for boys. A second vessel, Sobraon, also served as an industrial school. Girls attended Newcastle Industrial School for Females from 1869 to 1871, before they were moved to a new Industrial School, Biloela, on Cockatoo Island. The Shaftesbury Reformatory, for girls, was located at Watson's Bay (1880-1904).

Reformatories were, in the first instance, an arm of the prison system but later moved to the province of child welfare administration. The Parramatta Industrial School became the main reformatory for girls, and Mt Penang was the main reformatory for boys. The Institution for Girls at Hay and the Institution for Boys at Tamworth were also reformatories.

Although reformatories were intended for criminal children and industrial schools were intended for poor children, in reality the terms were used interchangeably. Poor children who had been charged with neglect often ended up sharing the same quarters as children who had been charged with criminal offences, and felt stigmatised as a result.