Former Child Migrants Referral Index

The Former Child Migrants Referral Index is an Access database index of all children who came to Western Australia as unaccompanied child migrants from the UK and Malta during the years 1913 to 1968 to the following Homes: Bindoon (St Joseph’s Farm and Trade School), Castledare Junior Orphanage (St Vincent’s Boys’ Home), Clontarf (St Joseph’s Clontarf Boys’ Town), Fairbridge Farm School, Pinjarra, Mofflyn, Victoria Park, Nazareth House, Bluff Point, Geraldton, St Joseph’s Orphanage, Subiaco, St Vincent’s Foundling Home, Subiaco, Swanleigh, Middle Swan and Tardun (St Mary’s Agricultural) Farm School. The index contains the names of 2,941 former child migrants.

Access Conditions

Access to these records is restricted and confidentiality is protected by Child Protection and Family Support (CPFS) Protocols for Access. If you believe the Department may hold records about you, or about a family member, you are encouraged to apply. CPFS has an application form which you must use to apply for records.

Records

The Former Child Migrants Referral Index was developed by the Department for Family and Children’s Services and leaders from the agencies who held historical records about the Homes which ‘received’ child migrants. The Department was also able to establish an agreement with the Government of the United Kingdom to share information held in the UK. This agreement means that the Department has access to information (where records still exist) about children who were sent from England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

The amount of information that will be available for people will differ from person to person, but the index is designed to identify:

• Family name
• Given name
• Other name(s) known by
• Date of birth
• Name of ship on which s/he came to WA
• Date of arrival in WA
• Placements
• Location of any records about that child, including if there are records known to exist in the UK