The History of Foster Care in Queensland
In Queensland, before the notion of foster care was conceptualised, children requiring care were placed in large government run or government subsidised denominational institutions. These institutions consisted of hospitals, orphanages, and industrial and reformatory schools (Department of Children's Services, 1979; Office of Economic and Statistical Research, 2009). There were growing concern for the health and wellbeing of children living in these environments with opponents describing their influence as "drawfing children and causing them to degenerate into mere hacnines" and "breeding contagious moral diseases such as vice and crime" (Queensland Parliament. Record of Proceedings, August 19, 1875). This report details what has influenced and shaped foster care from its early beginnings to today.
Principal Researcher: Elizabeth Bowerman
