Meerindoo Hostel was opened at Bairnsdale in 1972 as a hostel for Aboriginal students from regional communities in Eastern Victoria attending school in Bairnsdale. It had capacity for up to 12 students aged between 12 and 17 years old. At times children who were wards of the state were placed at Meerindoo. Many of the…
Aboriginal Hostels Limited (AHL) was established in June 1973 to provide hostel accommodation and related services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people across Australia. AHL was established by the Commonwealth Government as a not-for-profit company, with the AHL board reporting to the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs. It ran at least one children’s home/hostel for…
This is a youtube video that contains approximately one minute of footage of Turana from the early 1980s.
Glenn’s story is a short film by Arnold Zable from 1979. It features the story of 15 year old Glenn Broome who was in the maximum security section of Turana. In the film, Glenn also mentions his time in foster care, and the institutions Allambie and Baltara. Some of the scenes were shot at Turana.
This is a photo of the Wirraminna Hostel, run by Aboriginal Hostels Limited, at Essendon, Melbourne. It shows a brick suburban cottage with white bay windows at the front. This image was published in the 1980 Aboriginal Hostels Limited annual report.
Wirraminna Hostel was a family group home for Aboriginal boys opened by Aboriginal Hostels Limited at Essendon in 1973. Wirraminna was run by a married couple who acted as house parents to the boys who lived there. Typically there were five or six boys in residence at Wirraminna, although the hostel was reported to have…
A Resource for People with Experience of Adoption and/or Out-of-Home Care
This is a copy of the text of the speech given by Premier Jacinta Allan at the Apology to Victorians who experienced historical abuse and neglect as children in institutional care on 8 February 2024.
Premier Jacinta Allan delivered a formal apology to people who historical abuse and neglect as children in institutional care in Victoria on 8 February 2024. Members of both houses of parliament gathered in the Legislative Assembly for the speech delivered by Jacinta Allan. It included these words: Today we acknowledge a shameful chapter in our…
Redress for Historical Institutional Abuse opened on 10 December 2024. The redress scheme is for people who lived in a Victorian institution as a child for a period of at least 6 months, before 1 January 1990, and experienced physical, psychological or emotional abuse or neglect in the institution. People found eligible for this redress…
Dec 17, 2025
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