Warning about distressing information
This guide contains information that some people may find distressing. If you experienced abuse as a child or young person in an institution mentioned in this guide, it may be a difficult reading experience. Guides may also contain references to previous views, policies and practices that are regrettable and do not reflect the current views, policies or practices of the department or the State of Victoria. If you find this content distressing, please consult with a support person either from the Department of Health and Human Services or another agency.
Disclaimer
Please note that the content of this administrative history is provided for general information only and does not purport to be comprehensive. The department does not guarantee the accuracy of this administrative history. For more information on the history of child welfare in Australia, see Find & .
Source
Department of Health and Human Services Records Management Unit agency history files
List of records held by the department
For information relating to the central management of care leavers and wards of state, please consult the guide to Central department wardship and out-of-home care records. These collections date back to the 1860s and include ward registers, index cards and ward files.
Infant Life Protection File (c.1939–c.60)
File; Permanent VPRS Number 10094/P0000 and 10094/P0001
Content: This collection comprises a number of loose papers and files related to Part II of the Children’s Welfare Act 1928 which consolidated the Infant Life Protection Act 1909. The Adoption of Children Act came into force in 1928.
The Children’s Welfare Department was initiated in 1924 and heralded a new era in the Government's understanding of ‘neglected children’ and the stigma attached. Matron Mary Mclean Loughron, was one of the first in the role of Secretary of the Department of Children's Welfare. In the early 1940s, her title changed to Chief Inspector. The first two boxes of the collection contain files created and maintained by Mary Loughron in the role of Chief Inspector and Secretary to the Department.
The Children’s Welfare Act 1928 required the registration of carers who cared for children placed out of their usual homes, and where an exchange of money took place for the care of the children. The premises were required to meet the current living standards of the time. This related specifically to the care of children under the age of five. Most parents utilised this service when in difficult situations and often the children were returned to their care. If parents could not make the payments required for the children’s care, they risked the children becoming wards of the state. This sometimes led to de facto adoptions of these children, with the parents' consent. There are many de facto adoptions registered in this collection.
The care and adoption of these children was often deferred to religious denominations and foster homes where people were eager to adopt. The department was only responsible to document the carers and the children who were placed in care or adopted. Carers were often referred to their lawyers to legally adopt children.
This collection outlines the expansion of the department’s role in the community. Inspectors were employed to visit homes on a regular basis. Inspectors also assessed the registration of new carers and assessed their suitability of their homes to care for children.
The collection also includes miscellaneous letters to the department and ward files. The Secretary of the Department was responsible for the care of Wards until the age of 18.
It appears that the department took a general interest in the social development of the community in Melbourne. There are some newspaper clippings on the need for day care for children. Often community members made general enquiries and were referred to the appropriate department, such as Child Endowment, Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children or to the police.
Registers Of Deaths, Infant Life Protection (1908–54)
Volume; Permanent VPRS Number 4980/P0001
These registers record information about the deaths of children who had been placed in the Infant Life Protection Scheme. Children placed under this scheme were not made wards of the State.
For each death, these volumes record the following information:
- infant life welfare protection registration number
- name of the deceased and their dates of birth and death (information about the child's parents is not recorded)
- cause of death
- date the infant was placed in a home (replaced during 1933 with date placed with nurse), and
- an indication as to whether a coronial inquiry or inquest was held. (Judging from these registers, inquests were rarely held.)
Entries were made in these volumes in chronological order according to the death of the child. The volume at PROV in consignment VPRS 4980/P0, spanning 1908–29, contains an alphabetical index to the volume which refers users to the page containing the relevant entry. The remaining volume does not contain an index.
Registered Persons Homes Register (1927–64 and 1908–c.27)
Volume; Permanent VPRS Number 4978/P0001 and 4978/P0002
These records comprise large hard bound volumes of Registered Persons and Homes (contents 1908–c27; refer Folio 136 for registration renewal 26/05/1927) maintained by the Neglected Children's Department (1887–1924), the Children's Welfare Department (1924–60), and eventually held by the Child Protection Branch of the Departments of Community Services (also known as Community Services Victoria, 1985–92) and Health and Community Services (1992–96).
It appears that this Register was transferred to the Adoption Information Service, which used it for locating details of adopted children. However, the information in this register relates primarily to the registration of persons and premises for the purposes of providing non-parental care to infants (which included nursing and maintaining infants and the brokering of adoptions). The cover of the register is marked, 'Infant Life 1908–1918'.
An alphabetical index of Names of Registered Persons with corresponding folio numbers is located at the front of the volume. Subsequent entries are arranged numerically by application number and registration or renewal date on the left-hand folio page under the heading 'Registered Persons' with column sub-headings: Number of Application, Date of Registration or Renewal, Name, Condition (single, married, or widow), Occupation of Applicant or of Husband if married, Age, Religion, and Age and Sexes of Applicant's own Children (if any). The right-hand folio page is headed 'Registered Houses' with column sub-headings: Locality, Street and Number, Number and Measurement of Rooms (Number of Bedrooms to be specified), Number of Persons living in House, Reference to Register of Infants and Remarks.
Applications to Board Out Infants Register (1905–72)
Volume; Permanent VPRS Number 17823/P0001
These volumes record applications (applicants were usually the birth mother or father) to board out infants to foster parents or nurses without the birth parents losing guardianship of the child. These registers were transferred to the Adoption Information Service, which used them for locating details of adopted children.
Each register has an alphabetical index of the Names of Applicants with corresponding folio numbers located at the front of the volumes. Subsequent entries are arranged numerically by application number. Additional information provided includes: Name and Address of Applicant; Name of Infant; Date of Birth; Religion; Name and Address of Registered Persons (i.e., nurse or foster parent); Name and Address of Infant's Father; Occupation; and Address of Registered Persons (i.e., nurse or foster parent); Name and Address of Infant's Mother; Occupation; and Remarks regarding payments per week or noting child's committal to state wardship when birth parents defaulted on payments.
Volume four has correspondence dated 19 April 1944, see typed insert in volume affixed to the front page from the Chief Inspector of the Children's Welfare Department addressed to the CWD Secretary, stating that:
'As requests are frequently made by the Endowment Authorities regarding the parentage of children who are boarded out under Part 11 of the Children's Welfare Act 1928, I should like your ruling on the matter of supplying them with these particulars, especially in the case of illegitimate children. Supplying this information would appear to be a breach of Section 104 of the Act. The Child Endowment Act provides that notwithstanding anything contained in the law of any State all books, documents, papers and information in the possession of any person are to be available to the Commissioner or any other officer doing duty under the Act. Further, the Act provides for an oath of secrecy to be subscribed to by officers. This matter was discussed with the Department Commissioner Social Services in July 1941, when it was recognised that there was no alternative but to supply the desired information.'
[Information as to Parentage of Infant to be Confidential - Section 104 - Information as to parentage of an infant to be kept by the Secretary in a "Private Register", and shall not be disclosed to any person except by order of the Chief Secretary, or where proceedings are taken for maintenance under the Children's Welfare Act 1928.]
Also consult volume five for:
1. Children's Welfare Department Memo for the Chief Inspector, dated 28 April 1938, and signed by E J Pittard, Secretary, stating:
'From reports we are from time to time receiving regarding inspections of children from 2 to 5 years, it would appear desirable that more frequent inspections should be made to the homes of these children. As you indicated to me yesterday, there does seem to be a weakness at present in not inspecting the homes and seeing these children more frequently. Would you, therefore, in future kindly arrange that children ranging from 2 to 5 years shall be seen by an inspector at least once in every 3 months. I know we are giving special attention to children under 2 years. Children over 5 years and of school age have become more established and do not need Departmental inspection so frequently. I must thank you for bringing this matter under my notice for I consider it very important that all of our children should be kept under the close supervision of the Department.'
2. Memorandum addressed to Miss Bissett, dated 2 July 1942, and signed by E J Pittard, Secretary, regarding Infant Life Protection (ILP):
'Several cases have come under notice recently where children have been placed under ILP and agreements have been accepted from mothers whose circumstances are such that it is quite obvious that sooner or later they will be unable to comply therewith. Such cases include married women whose husbands are overseas and who desire to free themselves of illegitimate children before their husbands return. The ILP provisions of the Act are not to be used to facilitate any mother escaping from her obligations to her child, illegitimate or otherwise, and no placement under ILP should be agreed to unless it is reasonable to assume that the mother is in a position to comply with, and continue, the undertaking as to payment into which she enters. Married women who desire to relieve themselves of children for whom their husbands are not responsible should be instructed that placement under ILP is not going to relieve them of their responsibilities. They should be advised to contact one or other of the Part VIII homes with a view to transfer of guardianship, or, if the child is without means of support, to make Section 24 application and request that it be boarded out. They could, if they so desire, indicate with the Section 24 application that adoption would be agreed to. These remarks would also apply in any other cases where the mother's position is such that she is obviously unable to comply with an ILP undertaking, or where there is a doubt about her so doing.'
Reviewed 29 August 2016