Author, Researcher, Historian
21 June 2015 (Revised 26 June 2015) Thanks to good people who offered positive feedback on this blog item. I hope the changes have made it clearer and a better read. Several profound changes have taken place over recent decades that have had a significant impact on how child welfare records are now compiled, stored, […]
A forgotten cohort? Including people from out-of-home care in Australian higher education policy, by Andrew Harvey, Lisa Andrewartha and Patricia McNamara in the Australian Journal of Education Abstract “People from out-of-home care backgrounds are largely absent from Australian higher education equity policy. Compared with the UK, Australia has moved slowly to consider legislative and programme incentives for young people […]
On several occasions while participating in public events aimed at raising public awareness of Care Leaver/Forgotten Australian issues and demands, I have been personally attacked. Not with physical violence, thank goodness, but I have been insulted, yelled at, falsely accused of corruption, and otherwise taunted. And so have others who put their heart and soul […]
‘Children the main perpetrators of sex abuse in out-of-home care, royal commission told’ That’s the headline in the Sydney Morning Herald (10 March 2015, here); but what’s the substance of the story? According to the story: ‘The vast majority of child sexual abuse occurring in Australian foster homes and residential care facilities is perpetrated by […]
Child Sexual Abuse has not been consigned to the garbage bins of history. In an opinion piece in a Sydney paper today, Claire Harvey rightly takes umbrage at a statement made to the Royal Commission into Child Sexual Abuse last week by the former Principal of the prestigious Knox Grammar School in Sydney where sexual abuse was […]
The Australian National Museum’s exhibition, Inside: Life in Children’s Homes & Institutions, has now ended its national tour of capital cities (it had time in Canberra, Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane – but not Sydney, Adelaide or Darwin). From the website comes this WARNING: This website contains confronting and disturbing content, and names and images of […]
The UN convention on children’s rights (CRC) – now 25 years old – sets global standards for children’s education, health care, social services, penal laws, and protection from economic and sexual exploitation, violence and other forms of abuse and neglect and establishes the right of children to have a say in decisions that affect […]
NEW: 31 January 2015 The child welfare system in many first-world nations is stuffed: that’s the verdict of many of its sternest critics. Forget about tinkering around the edges of the system, they say. It would be far better to start again from scratch. In Australia, life in residential ‘care’ remains as degrading and brutish as […]
UPDATE 30 January 2015 Confusion Reigns: who will do the honours for Sir Phil? Apparently, Tony hasn’t yet told the Queen whether she can dub her hubby personally, or Tony will do it, or it can be a Selfie. A spokesman at Buckingham Palace says: “The Queen acts on the advice of the Australian government […]
UPDATE: Further allegations of unethical actions by insurance companies in regard to child sexual abuse were aired by the BBC on 24 February 2015. More details here. What is the role of insurance companies in dealing with allegations of sexual assault of children? Is it right and proper that they be involved at all? […]