A Government Industrial School was established in 1893 at Claisebrook, and moved to Subiaco in 1897. It was originally for girls, and was then used for older children and for the ‘temporary reception’ of children awaiting other placements. By 1902 it was called the ‘Government Industrial School and Receiving Depot’ and by 1907 it was known as the ‘Government Receiving Depot’.
A Government Industrial School was established in 1893, after the passage of the Industrial and Reformatory Schools Act 1893. Although originally intended for young girls, the Government Industrial School was soon admitting older children and was increasingly used for the temporary reception of children awaiting more permanent placements, or while parents were unable to care for them. This ‘reception’ function soon became part of the institution’s title, persisting until 1980.
The ‘Report by the Superintendent of Public Charities and Inspector of Industrial and Reformatory Schools, 1902’ (p.16) noted that the ‘younger destitute children formerly detained in the Home for Women’ (Women’s Home, Female Home) ‘are now resident at Subiaco’.
By 1907, recognising that the institution that had begun as the Government Industrial School no longer functioned in that way, the words, ‘Industrial School’ were dropped from its title. The new name, Government Receiving Depot’ recognised the institution’s primary function as the temporary accommodation of children awaiting placement elsewhere.
From
1893
To
1907
Alternative Names
Government Industrial School and Receiving Depot
Government Industrial School for Boys and Girls
Government Industrial School and Receiving Depot for Boys and Girls
Industrial School, Subiaco
1893? - 1897
Government Industrial School operated from rented premises in Claisebrook, in the East Perth area, Western Australia (Building State unknown)
6 October 1897 - 1907
Government Industrial School was located on the corner of Railway Parade and Barker Road, Subiaco, Western Australia (Building Still standing)
Subsequent
