Among the Chief Secretary's Department's continuing responsibilities from 1855 were the prison system and associated social control and welfare programs. It was ultimately responsible for the care of 'neglected' children and juvenile offenders. For example, the Department of Neglected Children was a sub-department of the Chief Secretary's Department. It was ultimately separated into the newly established Social Welfare Department in 1970 after the passage of the Social Welfare Act in the same year.
The Chief Secretary's administrative involvement in child welfare means that the records of the Chief Secretary are a potentially rich source of information about children and families' interactions with the 'care' system. For example, the Registers of Licences contain records of children licensed to the care of private persons between 1874 and 1878. Further references to children in institutions may be found in the Chief Secretary's correspondence, registers and indexes. These records are in the custody of Public Record Office Victoria (PROV).
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The Find & Connect Support Service can help people who lived in orphanages and children's institutions look for their records.
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The Find & Connect Support Service can help people who lived in orphanages and children's institutions look for their records.
Last updated:
28 February 2019
Cite this: http://www.findandconnect.gov.au/guide/vic/E000377
First published by the Find & Connect Web Resource Project for the Commonwealth of Australia, 2011
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