Benmore Presbyterian Children's Home (1947 - 1962?)

Benmore Presbyterian Children's Home, 1947, courtesy of Uniting Church Archives, Western Australia..
Details

From

1947

To

1962?

Categories

Children's Home, Farm School, Home and Presbyterian

Alternative Names

Benmore (also known as)
Benmore Farm Training School (also known as, 1947 - ?)

Benmore Presbyterian Children's Home (often known as Benmore Farm Training School) was established by the Council Presbyterian Children's Homes in 1947 in Caversham. Originally, it was an agricultural school for older boys but by 1956 girls and boys as young as 5 years old were placed at Benmore. Children who were wards of the state and private children were admitted. Benmore had closed by 1963.

Benmore Presbyterian Children's Home was established by the Council Presbyterian Children's Homes as a farm school for older boys. The official opening and dedication ceremony was held on 17 May 1947.

In 1954, Benmore was described as being able to accommodate 35 boys aged from 10 years. Renovations were proposed in 1954, with the addition of a dining and recreation hall to be known as the 'Withnell Memorial Hall', and new kitchen, laundry and ablution block.

By 1956, Benmore admitted children from under 6 years, both boys and girls. Children who were wards of the state were placed at Benmore, and most children were 'private admissions'. Younger children went to Middle Swan Primary School and others attended Midland Junction High School.

Benmore closed in the 1962-1963 financial year, possibly at the end of the 1962 school year.

Events

1947 - 1962?: Location - Benmore Presbyterian Children's Home was situated on 20 hectares of land along the Swan River on Middle Swan Road, Caversham. Location: Caversham

Run By

Council Presbyterian Children's Homes (1938? - 1963?)
Date: 1947 - 1962?

Related Archival Collections

Uniting Church (Synod of Western Australia) Archives, Records (1918 - 1980s)

Related Archival Series

Related Glossary Terms

Ward (1927 - 2004)

Related Organisations

Burnbrae Presbyterian Children's Home (1938 - 1956)
Benmore and Burnbrae were the two Homes run by the Council Presbyterian Children's Homes. By mid-1957, all the children from Burnbrae had been transferred to Benmore.

Date: 1956? - 1957?

Publications

Online Resources

Care Leavers Australia Network (CLAN) [website], 2000-2011, http://www.clan.org.au/. Details
Information Services, Department for Community Development, 'Table 3: Young People at Benmore Presbyterian Children's Home 1947 to 1962', Signposts: A Guide for Children and Young People in Care in WA from 1920, Government of Western Australia, 2004, https://signposts.communities.wa.gov.au//pdf/pdf.aspx. Details
Mofflyn, 'Submission No. 160 Inquiry into Children in Institutional Care: Submissions', in Inquiry into Children in Institutional Care - Submissions received by the committee as at 17/3/05, Senate Community Affairs Committee, Commonwealth of Australia, August 2003, http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Community_Affairs/Completed_inquiries/2004-07/inst_care/submissions/sublist. Details

Photos

Title: Benmore Presbyterian Children's Home
Type: Image
Date: 1947
Source: Uniting Church Archives, Western Australia.

Details

Title: Dedication and Official Opening of Benmore
Type: Document
Date: 17 May 1947
Source: Uniting Church (Synod of Western Australia) Uniting Church Children's Homes File, Western Australia Archives
Note: ‘Dedication and Official Opening of Benmore’ gives information about the Benmore Presbyterian Children’s Home

Details

Title: John Moss C.B.E. U.K. Child Welfare Expert. Visit to Australia. Part II
Type: Document
Date: 1951 - 1952
Source: National Archives of Australia
Note: Burnbrae and Benmore had applied to join the post-World War Two British child migration program but the institutions were not approved. Page 31 of the John Moss Visit to Australia file Part II gives some insight into the reasons for this decision.

Details

Title: The Children's Homes, 1953 [Presbyterian Children's Home Council, excerpt]
Type: Document
Date: 1953
Source: Uniting Church (Synod of Western Australia) Uniting Church Children's Homes File, Western Australia Archives
Note: ‘The Children’s Homes, 1953 [Presbyterian Children’s Home Council, excerpt]’ gives information about the Benmore Presbyterian Children’s Home

Details

Sources used to compile this entry: Information Services, Department for Community Development, 'Table 3: Young People at Benmore Presbyterian Children's Home 1947 to 1962', Signposts: A Guide for Children and Young People in Care in WA from 1920, Government of Western Australia, 2004, https://signposts.communities.wa.gov.au//pdf/pdf.aspx.

Prepared by: Debra Rosser

Created: 15 March 2011, Last modified: 7 October 2014

Benmore Presbyterian Children's Home (1947 - 1962?)