The Children’s Court of New South Wales was established in 1905, with the passing of the Neglected Children and Juvenile Offenders Act. Children’s Courts were proclaimed at Sydney, Newcastle, Parramatta, Burwood and Broken Hill. A Children’s Court is a hearing, intended to ensure children receive specialist support and they are sheltered from adult courts. While children usually attend courts in specialised buildings in main centres, Children’s Courts can be convened by a Children’s Court Magistrate in any room of any courthouse in New South Wales.
Since 1905, Children’s Courts in NSW have dealt with all matters relating to children, including offences by them, and against them. Children’s Courts were the first legal method of removing children from their families and were able to place “neglected” or “delinquent” children under probation (supervision), send those convicted of offences to reformatories or industrial schools and order maintenance or boarding out payments for deserted mothers. It also made decisions about truancy, boarding out, institutionalisation and other matters. The Children’s Court is still is the major arbiter of decisions relating to children.
Children’s Courts that operated in the past but were closed by the 1980s were in Surry Hills (Metropolitan Children’s Court), Burwood, Campsie, Parramatta, Hornsby and Haberfield (Yasmar).
