State Records of South Australia is the government archives of South Australia and holds a large part of the state’s official documentary heritage, including records relating to institutions for children.
Many records relating to institutions for children in South Australia are subject to access restrictions. Records which contain a high level of sensitive personal information about individuals are usually restricted for at least one hundred years from the date of their creation. Information relating to adoptions is closed to general public access in perpetuity but may be made available to the relevant individuals on application. Written Permission must be obtained from the government agency which created the record in order to access restricted material. In the case of records relating to children, the agency responsible is the Adoption and Family Information Service of the Department for Communities and Social Inclusion. A Research Centre Members card, obtainable at the State Records, is required to research records held at State Records.