Archives



Blamey House, Kew

Blamey House, in Willsmere Road, Kew, was run by Melbourne Legacy. Until 1977, the Home had been known as Harelands. It provided accommodation for boys aged 13 years and older, who were children of deceased service personnel. It closed in 1980. Blamey House (1977-1980) was in Willsmere Road, Kew. The property had previously been a…

Four Flats Hostel

Four Flats Hostel was established in Power Street, Hawthorn in 1977 by the Jesuit Social Services. This hostel provided accommodation for young, homeless offenders aged between 17 and 21 years who were released from Victoria’s correctional institutions. The hostel closed towards the end of 1981. Four Flats moved to a non-residential centre in Collingwood. Four…

The Deborah

The Deborah, was a hulk (ship) anchored in Hobsons Bay. In July 1864 it became the colony of Victoria’s first Reformatory for Boys from the Industrial schools. By 1865, it accommodated 108 boys sentenced under the Neglected and Criminal Children’s Act of 1864. The Deborah was one of four ships used as reformatories or industrial…

St Paul’s Discovery Centre

St Paul’s Discovery Centre was established in 1979 by the Reverend Ian Paxton of the Mission of St James and St John. It was located on the site of the former St Paul’s Home for Boys at Newhaven, Phillip Island. St Paul’s operated as holiday camp for ‘disadvantaged’ children. St Paul’s Discovery Centre opened in…

Burwood Children’s Home

The Burwood Children’s Home was established in 1972. Previously known as the Burwood Boys’ Home, it changed its name when it began to accept girls from the early 1970s. The last child left the Home in 1986. It was around this time that the Home became the Child and Family Care Network. The Burwood Children’s…

Yooralla

Yooralla was established in Balwyn in 1945. It was a hostel and school for children with a disability. It accommodated some Victorian wards of state. Yooralla also ran a respite care home and two family group homes. The Balwyn site and facilities were sold in 1993. Yooralla purchased a property on the corner of Belmore…

Child and Family Care Network

The Child and Family Care Network came into being around 1986. It was known previously as the Burwood Children’s Home. The Network offered child and family welfare and educational programs. In 1996, it shifted its focus to children’s services and early intervention. In 2006, it changed its name to bestchance Child Family Care. The Child…

St Joseph’s Nursery

St Joseph’s Nursery was established in 1959 and was situated in Gellibrand Street, Kew, close to the St Anthony’s Home. It provided temporary accommodation for children (who would previously have been housed at St Joseph’s in Carlton) and for some single mothers. The Nursery closed in 1976. St Joseph’s Nursery was established in 1959. It…

Princess Elizabeth Kindergarten for the Deaf

The Princess Elizabeth Kindergarten for the Deaf, in Elgar Road Burwood, opened in 1950. It was the first residential and daily pre-school centre for deaf children in Australia. It was run by the board of the Victorian School for Deaf Children. From 1957 to 1971 the State Education Department were responsible for the teaching staff…

Travancore

Travancore was established in 1933 in Flemington. It was a school and residential centre that housed and educated ‘mentally defective’ children up to the age of 14. Since 2009, the Travancore School delivers a number of programs to link the mental health and education sectors. Travancore was established in 1933, by the newly-formed Department of…