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Major events and legislation in the history of child welfare in Australia

The Victorian Premier, Jacinta Allen, delivered the State Apology to the First Peoples of Victoria on 9 December 2025. The Apology was shaped by the findings of the Yoorrook Justice Commission, and was part of the Treaty negotiated and signed in November 2025.

Mount Paradise Reformatory for Boys at Pakenham opened in 1896 to accommodate approximately five Roman Catholic boys. It was a private reformatory, established by Mr James Joseph Millane and run by him, his mother, and his siblings. It experienced problems with those who attempted to abscond and by 1911 no boys were accommodated there. Mount Paradise Reformatory was deemed to be an approved Reformatory School by the Department for Reformatory Schools under the Juvenile Offenders Act of 1887. The Department sent state wards to the school, and provided financial support for each boy sent there. The Superintendent, James Millane, provided annual reports to the Department, and the school was periodically inspected by government inspectors. Boys at Mount Paradise performed farm work at the reformatory, including ploughing fields, fencing, cutting hay, growing and harvesting fruit and vegetables,

We understand that people are concerned about their privacy, and we abide by the 13 Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) of the Commonwealth Privacy Act 1988 (Privacy Act). For details of these Principles, see the Australian Privacy Principles on the Australian Government’s Office of the Australian Information Commissioner website. The Find & Connect program includes the Find & Connect support services and the Find & Connect web team. Our contact forms require you to enter your name and email address so that the Find & Connect program can respond to your enquiry. When you submit a contact form, your name, email address and message will be directed to the Find & Connect support service in the state where you live now. The Find & Connect web team will also retain

The Stolen Generations (also known as Stolen Generations survivors or Stolen Children) are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children who were forcibly removed or separated from their families and communities by governments, churches and welfare bodies using official laws, practices and policies that legitimised compulsion, duress or undue influence. Each of the terms ‘compulsion’, ‘duress’ and ‘undue influence’ are defined in the opening sections of the Bringing Them Home report. The period in which these laws applied spanned from the mid-1800s to the 1980s, with variations by jurisdiction. Children were placed in institutions, missions, training farms and schools, foster care or adopted; separated from their culture, family, land and identity and many suffered abuse and neglect. Not all people forcibly removed during this period will choose to identify as ‘Stolen Generations’ … Stolen Gene

On 17 September 1997, Premier Kennett issued an apology in the Legislative Assembly to the Aboriginal people for the past policies leading to the removal of Aboriginal children from their families and communities. The apology began with the words: That this house apologises to the Aboriginal people on behalf of all Victorians for the past policies under which Aboriginal children were removed from their families and expresses deep regret at the hurt and distress this has caused and reaffirms its support for reconciliation between all Australians.

The Bukawert Reformatory School opened in 1894 near Toora, in the county of Buln Buln, South Gippsland. It was gazetted as a ‘reformatory school for Protestant boys’ in 1894, and was located on the premises of Henry Beresford Sadleir, who was appointed as the Superintendent. It closed in 1899. The Bukawert Reformatory School was a private reformatory, which attempted to extend to the boys who were sent there the advantages of the boarding out system. The policy intended to ‘strengthen the hand’ of the superintendent by placing as few children as possible in each school, thus enabling him to take an interest in each boy in order to exert a reforming influence. The School was privately run by Sadlier, but was deemed to be an approved Reformatory School by the Department of Reformatory Schools under the Juvenile Offenders Act of 1887. The Department sent state wards to the school, and provided fin

Wanslea Family Services Records is an archival collection of records dated between 1940 to 2004. It includes records about the Wanslea Hostel, Cottesloe and the Wanslea ‘Community Care Program’ (‘foster care program’). In 2026, the organisation known as Wansley Family services became known as Uplyft. Uplyft has paper files, microfilm, photographs and digital files that include admission records, case notes, letters, and annual reports. Access Conditions This collection classified as ‘Closed’ by Uplyft because these records may contain personal or private information.. This means only some people, such as people who experienced ‘care’ through Wanslea Family Services, can access these records. The series titled Wanslea History is open and can be viewed by members of the public. If you want to access these records you need to contact Uplyft. Records Index cards – List children by name, alphabetical by surname/family name (1979 – 1997) Index

Wanslea Family Services was established as the Wanslea Hostel Committee in 1946 and incorporated as Wanslea Family Services Inc in 1948. It ran the Wanslea Children’s Home in Cottesloe and in 2013 offered foster care and other family support services. In 2026, it became known as Uplyft Family Services.

Please contact the Executive Manager, Out of Home Care, Uplyft: Postal Address: Box 1047, Bentley WA 6983 Phone: (08) 9245 2441 Website: https://www.uplyft.org.au/contact

Records of the Anglican Church’s Poonindie Mission (based around St Matthew’s Church), comprising financial records, records relating to wool sales, monthly pay sheets, reports from the medical officer and school master, annual reports and balance sheets, quarterly native residents’ returns, correspondence and printed reports. Access Conditions For access to many Anglican records held at the State Library of South Australia, you will need permission from Anglicare SA. This is called ‘mediated access’. Records which require mediated access are clearly identified in the State Library catalogue and/or findings aids and State Library staff will also be able to advise you if this is necessary. Mediated access is required when records contain personal information about individuals whose privacy needs to be protected. For access to Anglican records a written application to Anglicare SA is required. You will also need to provide proof of your identity. If you are requesting ac

Please contact the Archives Department, Sisters of Nazareth: Postal Address: Archives Department, Nazareth House, PO Box 6900, Middle Camberwell VIC 3124 Phone:  0439 464 927 Email: archives.aus@nazarethcare.com

Nazareth House Records are held by the Sisters of Nazareth. The collection contains admission information about former residents of: Nazareth House, Ballarat St Joseph’s Home/Nazareth House, Sebastopol Nazareth House, Wynnum Nazareth House, Camberwell Nazareth House, Geraldton Access Conditions Conditional Access – Former residents and their families seeking information in the records can contact the Archives Department at Nazareth House in Camberwell, Victoria. Records The Sisters of Nazareth Archives hold the following records for each of the Nazareth Houses that existed around Australia: Child Resident Register containing Name / Date of Birth / Baptism details / Parents Names / Recommended By / Date Entered / Date Departed & Comments Some extra records may exist depending on the House and the date range. For example, for Nazareth House, Wynnum, there is an Obs

On 21 March 2013, the Prime Minister Julia Gillard apologised on behalf of the Australian Government to people affected by forced adoption or removal policies and practices. The national apology was delivered in the Great Hall of Parliament House, Canberra.

The Sisters of Nazareth, a Catholic religious order of women, were founded in London in 1851 by Mother St Basil (Victoire Larmenier 1827-1878). The Sisters of Nazareth began work in Australia in 1888. They were part of the Catholic Migration Scheme which brought children to Australia from Britain and Malta after World War II. The Sisters of Nazareth ran children’s homes in Western Australia, Queensland, and Victoria.

St Joseph’s Home, Sebastopol, was established in around 1911. It accommodated boys aged between 6 and 16, and some girls until the age of 6 when they were transferred to Nazareth House, Ballarat. Residential childcare ceased at St Joseph’s in 1980. The site of St Joseph’s Home was on Grant Street, Sebastapol (in the Ballarat district). It was formerly known as Leckie Mansion, and Blythewood Grange. The foundation stone for the St Joseph’s Home was laid in 1911. Dr Higgins, Catholic Bishop of Ballarat, opened the home in February 1913. St Joseph’s Home was for boys and girls up to six years of age. When girls turned six, they were transferred to Nazareth House in Ballarat. Boys could remain at St Joseph’s until they were 16. From 1961 to 1975, the institution was known as Nazareth Boys’ House. It reverted back to the name St Joseph’s Home in 1975. In the words of Gabrielle Short: St Joseph’s baby’s home was run by the Poor Sisters of Nazareth also known as th

Nazareth House, Wynnum, was operated by the Congregation of the Sisters of Nazareth. It accommodated the aged, orphans and children from various backgrounds. Nazareth House opened in 1926 and ceased taking children in 1982. Nazareth House, situated at 272 Wynnum North Road, Wynnum, was operated by the Congregation of the Sisters of Nazareth. It opened in 1926 and was licensed under the lnfant Life Protection Act 1905 on 10 February 1927. It was later licensed under the State Children Act 1911 on 10 July 1964 and the Children’s Services Act 1965 on 4 August 1966. It closed 28 November 1982. Nazareth House was designed by the architectual firm Hennesssy, Hennessy, Kessing & Co. The foundation stone was laid by Archbishop Duhig on 13 April 1924. It was located at Wynnum, on the outskirts of Brisbane. A departmental child care officer in 1974 described the building: The design of the building itself is along the lines of a monastery, with cloiste

The Female Home, or Poor House, began in 1851, and was then named the ‘Servants’ Home’. From 1854, destitute or orphaned children under 10 years of age were admitted. It was established by the Ladies’ Friendly Society, but by the mid 1850’s was run under the supervision of the Governor via officers of the Colonial Secretary’s Office. From 1902, children were instead admitted to the Government Industrial School and Receiving Depot. The Female Home (Women’s Home) in Perth closed in November 1909 and moved to Fremantle. The Female Home, or Poor House, began in 1851 as a Servants’ Home’, a temporary Home for female servants who had left one position and were searching for another, run by the Ladies’ Friendly Society. Mrs Fitzgerald, the wife of the Governor, stimulated interest in the venture. Later in 1851 the Governor, widening its function to include a reception home for ‘immigrant’ servants awaiting work in the colony, used public funds to pay for a matron and staff, and purchase a

Child Migration to Australia refers to children who were sent to Australia unaccompanied under various migration schemes, and who had no family ties or contacts in Australia. Child migrants were generally aged between 7 and 14, although some were younger, and were sent to Australia from Britain and Malta under formal child immigration schemes. Although some children went to placements in private homes, the vast majority were placed in institutions such as orphanages or farm schools, where many experienced abuse of all kinds, lack of education and nurturing, overwork and physical labour, and loss of identity and connections to family. Child migration schemes involved non-government religious or charitable organisations working with the Imperial and Commonwealth governments. These organisations saw emigration as a means of creating opportunities for children in institutions in Britain, many of whom had been placed there because of family poverty or because their mothers were unmarrie

Files (Aboriginal Matters) is a records series created by the Department of the North West, and held by the State Records Office of Western Australia. It contains records created and used by the department relating to the administrations of missions, the removal of Aboriginal children from their families, movement of Aboriginal people, applications for employment, education, notices of births, deaths, and marriages, and other means of control of the lives of Aboriginal people. It includes a number of files relating to individuals and families, who are identified by name in the titles of the files. Access The majority of the records in this series are open. However, access to some records is restricted to protect personal privacy. For permission to access restricted records please contact the Aboriginal History Research Services. For access to open records please contact the State Records Office of Western Australia.

The Home of the Good Shepherd, Leederville was established in 1902 in Perth by the Sisters of the Good Shepherd for women and girls. The Home supported itself by operating a commercial laundry. In 1904 the institution moved to Leederville to a purpose built property which included an industrial laundry. At the time of the move to Leederville, there were 50 children living at the institution. In 1906, the number of people living in the Home were over 100, with girls as young as 14 years old. The Home of the Good Shepherd Industrial School for Girls opened in June 1909 in buildings alongside the existing home. The Home was a reformatory that was regulated by the State Children Act 1907. Its foundation stone was laid on 7 February 1909. Both Homes were run by the Sisters of the Good Shepherd. Girls were sent to the reformatory by the Children’s Court, and their term could extend until they were 21 years old. The industrial school remained a registered institution until it c

The Royal Institution for Deaf and Blind Children was the new name given to the Institution for the Deaf, Dumb and the Blind in 1957, when Queen Elizabeth II conferred the title ‘Royal’ on the Darlington school and residential facility. It was run by a board of directors. The Institution moved to North Rocks in 1962 and the old building was acquired by Sydney University. In 1973 the organisation changed its name to the Royal Institution for Deaf and Blind Children. By 1959 the directors of the Royal Institution for Deaf and Blind Children were aware that the Darlington premises were no longer suitable. It purchased land at North Rocks and commenced building a complex that was officially opened in 1963. The Institution partnered with the Department of Education to provide services to deaf-blind children in 1965 and by 1967 a preschool had been established at the North Rocks site. The organisation changed its name to the Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind Children in 1973.

The Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind Children, at North Rocks, was the new name adopted in 1973 by the former Royal Institution for Deaf and Blind Children, which continued work started by the Deaf and Dumb Institution in Sydney in 1860. It was a school and disability institution, with residential facilities, including the Special School for Multi-Handicapped Blind Children. It was run by a board of directors and management committee. In 2014 the Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind Children was a leading non-government provider of services to children with visual and auditory impairments, across a number of sites in Sydney. The Deaf and Blind Children’s Centre was mentioned in a 1979 Commonwealth Government report called Why are they in children’s homes: report of the ACOSS children’s home intake survey. In 2014 the Institution ran the Garfield Barwick School, Alice Betteridge School (formerly the Special School for Multi-Handicapped Children). Thomas Pattison School and

The Deaf and Dumb Institution, founded in 1860, was renamed the New South Wales Institution for the Deaf, Dumb and Blind in 1868. It was run by a board of Directors as a public charitable institution for the education of deaf and blind children and had a residential facility for school-aged children. Initially based at Ormond House (Juniper Hall) in Paddington, the Institution moved to a new building in Darlington (Newtown), on the Princes Highway in 1872. At its peak the New South Wales Institution for the Deaf, Dumb and Blind had 242 children enrolled in its school, many of whom were boarders. In 1957, Queen Elizabeth II conferred the title ‘Royal’ on the Institution, at which point it became the Royal New South Wales Institution for Deaf and Blind Children. The New South Wales Institution for the Deaf, Dumb and Blind was the most important institution for educating children with deafness and blindness in New South Wales. It was begun by Thomas Pattison, a deaf and dumb Scottish m

Chinnery Family Home was opened by the government in Stuart Park in 1968. It provided long term accommodation for up to nine Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children from babies to teenagers under the supervision of cottage parents. Chinnery Family Home was opened in Henry Street, Stuart Park in 1968. It was one of three Family Homes opened by the Welfare Branch of the Northern Territory in the suburbs of Darwin that year. The other two Homes were the Harney Family Home and the Hamilton Family Home. Chinnery Family Home, named after a former Director of Native Affairs, Mr EP Chinnery, was located in Stuart Park on land handed over to the Government by the Methodist Overseas Mission. A purpose built five bedroom family residence was constructed on the site. The Chinnery Family Home provided accommodation for up to nine Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children, from babies to teenagers. Children remained in the Home for various periods of time, often long term. The Home had the capa

Government Agricultural Farm, Scheyville, located at Pitt Town, was a training farm for youth from 1905, and, from 1911, a camp for British migrant boys and youth in the Dreadnought and Big Brother schemes. During World War II it was converted to a military training camp and after World War II became a Commonwealth migrant camp. It stopped housing youths and children in 1940. Scheyville began in the 1890s as a labour co-operative known as the Pitt Town Co-operative Labour Settlement, which failed. It was then taken over by the New South Wales Government. In 1905 the State Labour Bureau set up a training farm to alleviate unemployment amongst city youths. Boys, mostly aged between 14 and 16, spent one month attending the Labour Depot in Randwick, then were sent to the Training Farm for City Lads, on the Pitt Town property. A Casual Labour Farm, for men, was on the same property. By 1910 both farms were known as the Government Agricultural Training Farm. In 1911 the government ente

The Department of Labour and Industry was established by the State Government of New South Wales in 1896 to provide assistance to the unemployed and their families. In 1912 the State Labour Bureau was merged into the Department of Labour and Industry, and renamed the State Labour Branch. The State Labour Branch maintained responsibility for the Government Agricultural Training Farm at Scheyville, which it had run since 1905. In 1940 the Department of Labour and Industry became the Department of Labour and Industry and Social Services.

The State Labour Bureau was established by the State Government of New South Wales in 1905. It was formed to provide assistance to unemployed people in accessing employment and training. It ran the Government Agricultural Training Farm at Pitt Town, which was intended to lower unemployment among teenage boys from the city by apprenticing them as farm labourers. In 1912 the State Labour Bureau was merged into the Department of Labour and Industry, becoming the State Labour Branch of the Department.

Devonleigh Maternity Home was established in 1931, following an extension of the Devonleigh Hospital (which had opened in 1926). It was located in the Perth suburb of Peppermint Grove. It was privately run until 1948, when it was taken over by Public Health Department. Babies were adopted from Devonleigh Maternity Home. It closed in 1979 following a decline in patient numbers. From 1979 it was used by Mental Health Services to accommodate children with intellectual disabilities.

The Northern Territory Spastics Association, originally known as the Darwin and Districts Spastics Paralysis Association, was established in 1973 to advocate on behalf of and provide support for people with disability. In 1977 the Association opened the Harry Giese Centre to provide assessment, treatment, and residential care for people with disabilities, including children. In 2017 the organisation was renamed to Carpentaria. In 2026 it continued to provide support to people with disabilities.

The Hospital for the Insane replaced the Lunatic Asylum in 1859. It remained on the same site. Day to day management of the hospital was run by a Superintendent. General oversight of the Hospital was the responsibility of the Commissioners of the Hospital for the Insane until 1885, when this over was responsibility was transferred to the Charitable Grants Department. In 1937, the Mental Diseases Hospital replaced the New Norfolk Hospital. The Gentleman’s Cottage, which in 1941, became an institution for men and boys with intellectual disabilities, was built in 1859. The Ladies Cottage, which later became ‘J’ Ward, opened in 1868. In later years, J Ward became a maximum security ward for disabled adult women and occasionally held girls with ‘behaviour problems’. As the name implies, the Ladies Cottage was for patients from a privileged social class. It was a one storey building enclosed by walls and fences and at some distance from the original Barracks. It had a ‘ha ha’ wall alon

The Commissioners of the Hospital for the Insane was a government body established by the Colonial Government of Tasmania in 1859 to provide care and treatment for persons in mental health hospitals in Tasmania, including the Hospital for the Insane, New Norfolk . It was established following the passing of the Mental Hospitals Act 1858. Each hospital was to have its own board of at least five commissioners, including two with medical qualifications. The Commissioners were required to inspect and report on the hospital and its patients periodically, could make and establish rules and regulations for the hospital, could order the discharge of any patient, and had the ability to suspend the Superintendent or other officers of the hospital in cases of misconduct. Deaths, discharges, and escapes of patients were also reported to the Commissioners. Day-to-day running of the hospital was to remain in the hands

The Vernon was a tall ship purchased by the New South Wales Government in 1867 and converted to a Nautical School Ship. It was a reformatory and industrial school and housed more than 100 boys, training them in nautical and other trades. It was run by the Office of the Colonial Secretary until 1880 when reponsibility for it was transferred to the Department of Public Instruction. The Vernon was first anchored between Garden Island and the Government Domain, and from 1871 at Cockatoo Island. The Vernon was replaced by another ship, the Sobraon, in 1892. The NSS Vernon had been a merchant vessel. In 1867 it was fitted out as an industrial school and reformatory. NSS Vernon was the only industrial school for boys at the time. More than 100 boys lived on board the ship, which was anchored alongside a substantial shore facility that stretched between Garden Island and the Government Domain. The shore facility included a gymnasium, a spacious r

Newcastle Reformatory School for Females was established on 19 January 1869 under the control of the Colonial Secretary of NSW. The Reformatory School was located in the North Wing and grounds attached to the Newcastle Public Industrial School for Girls with the same matron serving both schools. The Reformatory was established to house girls who had committed criminal offences. The Reformatory School was closed on 20 July 1871 and relocated to Cockatoo Island becoming Biloela Reformatory School for Females. On 19 January 1869, following the introduction of the Reformatory Schools Act, a reformatory was established on the same site as the Newcastle Industrial School for Girls, in the Officer’s Barracks. This created twin institutions. The Reformatory School was overseen by the same Matron as the Industrial School, Mrs Agnes King, but a new superintendent, Mr J. H. Clarke was employed. There were many issues associated with both the Industrial School and the Reformatory S