Table of Content
Abandoned by her mother as a baby and then by ‘Mamma’, her volatile grandmother, as a young girl, Kate was shunted between Aboriginal relatives and expected to grow up fast. Throughout the first half of the 20th century the demand for accommodation for unmarried mothers continued to grow and new buildings were erected on the site. At one stage there was a Mothercraft teaching facility for nurses as well as a maternity hospital on the Croydon site. St Anthony's was operated by the St Vincent de Paul Society until 1952, when it was taken over by the Sisters of St Joseph.
St Anthony’s Family Care is committed to ensuring the safety and wellbeing of children and young people and has zero tolerance of child abuse. Every person employed or volunteering at SAFC, has a responsibility to understand the specific role they play individually and collectively, to ensure a safe and appropriate environment for users. All staff and volunteers must acquire or hold, and maintain, a Working with Children Check and National Criminal History Check. The Saint Anthony's Family Care tradition of caring for community and enabling fulfilling lives continues on today through our work in Figtree, EPIK and Forge. St. Anthony's Home believes that the resident's care is improved in an environment where staff development and learning take place.
Voluntary Children’s Homes Files (c.1930–
In January 1966, Kate Howarth gave birth to a healthy baby boy at St Margaret’s Home for unwed mothers in Sydney. In the months before the birth, and the days after, she resisted intense pressure to give up her son for adoption, becoming one of the few women to ever leave the institutionwith her baby. Kate Howarth vividly recounts the first seventeen years of her life in Sydney’s’ slums and suburbs and in rural New South Wales.
John’s monthly E-newsletter gives you an opportunity to learn more about St. Anthony of Padua and how he continues to inspire the Franciscan friars in their work today, especially among the poor. St. Anthony's Home believes that the medical, social, physical, psychological and spiritual needs of each person should be fulfilled. Wychbury was converted to a school and new wings, including a fibro cottage for 25 'girls' were added by 1929. The gates of the former Devonshire Street Cemetery were donated to the Home by the Mayor of Redfern, Alderman Gilmore. The site was consecrated and opened by Archbishop Kelly in May 1925.
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Therefore, the school offers many activities in which the students can explore and deepen their spiritual lives. In 1985, St Joseph's established a small residential unit for single pregnant women at Loongana Avenue, Glenroy. In 1901, the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart established St Joseph's Foundling Hospital as a purpose-built infants' home for up to 300 babies. St Joseph's was a very large institution that also provided accommodation for expectant mothers, mainly single women.
But our history dates to the 1800s and was founded on a deep commitment to caring for the most marginalised children, young people and families in our community. This guide contains information that some people may find distressing. If you find this content distressing, please consult with a support person either from the Department of Health and Human Services or another agency. In 1940, an inspection report recorded 130 mothers and 260 children in residence – among them 73 state wards and 17 babies under ‘Infant Life Protection’.
St Joseph’s Foundling Hospital; Babies’ Home history in brief
Unfortunately there do not appear to be any records surviving for the years before 1952. After 1952, expectant mothers had their babies at St Margaret's Hospital, also under the care of the Sisters of St Joseph, and children aged 3-6 years were accommodated at nearby St Joseph's Croydon. St Margaret’s Home for Unwed Mothers, Surry Hills, was attached to St Margaret’s Hospital from 1894. It was a home for unmarried mothers who were waiting to give birth, and for their babies. It was part of St Margaret’s Hospital, and was run by the Sisters of St Joseph from 1937.
These collections date back to the 1860s and include ward registers, index cards and ward files. In 2004 St Anthony’s changed its name from St Anthony’s and St Joseph’s Centre of Care to St Anthony’s Family Care. This was a recognition of the need to provide services to families not only at a “Centre” but more importantly in their own community. More than anything else, what separates Saint Anthony’s from other high schools is the very real Franciscan spirit that permeates this community. While we are here to develop our minds, we are reminded daily that a mind and body, without a spiritual dimension, is shallow and without character.
Search for a Record Access records and photographs of residents in the orphanages run by our founding congregations. By 1965, there were growing numbers of children being referred for placement. So too were the numbers of children with intellectual disabilities and mental illness for whom there were no suitable placements available. In 1957, one former nursery was converted to mothers’ quarters and the number of single mothers increased to about 40.
They soon outgrew these premises and the service was moved to the present location at Alexandra Avenue, Croydon. By the end of 1976, St Joseph's had moved from the old complex at Broadmeadows to establish the St Joseph's Babies Home in Glenroy. St Joseph's became increasingly involved in foster care and maintained a small four-bed residential unit, predominantly for babies awaiting adoption. They also established a community based Long Day Care for local children, while still continuing to maintain a small Pregnancy Support Service. In addition to this they provided short term foster care for younger children, initially in a large residential setting, and later in smaller group homes. The last of the foster homes closed in 2003 when it was recognised that larger organisations, such as Centacare and Burnside, were more suited than St Anthony’s to provide a professional and specialised foster home service.
Our Lady of the Lake is part of the Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System. In 1952 the St Vincent de Paul Society handed over the site and the activities to the Sisters of St Joseph. As the Society of St Vincent De Paul was financially overcommitted, the Petersham property was sold. A new building, the Archbishop Kelly Wing, was erected in 1936 and the Chapel was added in 1941. The home began providing pre-natal care to expectant 'girl mothers' in 1941, sending them out to give birth in Catholic hospitals. However, their number grew in the war years, so a 10-bed maternity hospital, with an operating theatre, was added in 1944.
In 1972, the three children's homes administered by the Sisters of St Joseph had two Sisters who were also social workers. The Order separated St Anthony's, Kew, into family group homes and established a temporary care unit as it sought to close its large institutions and localise operations in Broadmeadows and Carlton. By 1956, inspection reports noted only six mothers and 120 children in residence. Staffing difficulties, greater use of foster homes and fewer parents placing their children in institutions resulted in two of the home's nurseries closing. The philosophy of St. Anthony's Home is based on the Christian idea of service and respect for the dignity of every individual. Residents are supported with case management services, mental health counseling and assistance with negotiating the complex medical, financial and social service systems.
Staff participation in community activities relating to HIV/AIDS is encouraged. According to research done by the staff of the Northern Territory Department of Health, it was a place where children from the Northern Territory were sent. The home later relocated to Grattan Street and was managed by the Sisters of St Joseph. Again, unsupported women could stay during the last stages of pregnancy and return to live at the home until they found other accommodation or could return to their family.
In the late 1960s, the home had four completely self-contained nurseries each with about 20 children in groups with a range of ages. This enabled children to remain in familiar surroundings for longer with mothercraft nurses who provided plenty of individual attention. In the early 1930s, the department contracted St Joseph's Foundling Hospital to care for an additional 60 infant state wards, in addition to between 160 to 175 non-wards in residence at any one time. At the end of 1979, St Anthony's amalgamated with St Joseph's Home for Children, Croydon, and the remaining children were moved into St Joseph's Cottages. St Anthony's retained the goal of the original home, which was to ensure that Catholic children were raised in Catholic families. The Home was commended by the Child Welfare Department for its low rate of infant mortality and dedicated nursing.
Our history
In 1925, St Anthony's Home, which was run by the Society of St Vincent De Paul, moved from Petersham to Croydon. It was a home for unmarried pregnant women and cared for them and their babies for up to 12 months after the birth. Mothers then chose whether to keep their child or adopt the child to the Home.
While adoption was often presented as the most acceptable solution for unwed mothers, evolving societal attitudes and changes to government support for single mothers lead to a gradual drop in adoption rates. This was further strengthened in 1969 when the Victorian government extended its Family Assistance to include single mothers and in 1973, when the Federal government introduced the Supporting Mothers' Benefit. Such financial assistance saw Victorian adoption rates drop from over 50 per cent in 1967 to just 10 per cent in 1975. Correspondence from Children’s Welfare Department to heads of Catholic, Presbyterian and Methodist churches regarding the lack of children’s homes for boarding out; responses to correspondence, 1929. For information relating to the central management of care leavers and wards of state, please consult the guide Central department wardship and out-of-home care records.
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