Search Home Office, Children Sent To Western Australia

You can find information including name, date of emigration, and the parish or union they came from.

The Home Office, Children Sent to Western Australia records document the migration of children from the United Kingdom to Western Australia during the 19th and early 20th centuries. This movement was part of a broader colonial initiative to send orphaned, abandoned, or disadvantaged children to the Australian colonies, where they were placed with families or in institutions. The program, often referred to as "child migration," aimed to provide these children with better opportunities and to help populate the colonies with a steady labor force.

The Home Office played a central role in organising and overseeing the migration process, which was intended to improve the lives of impoverished children. However, the program has been criticised for the exploitation and mistreatment many children faced upon arrival. While some were cared for and integrated into their new communities, others suffered abuse, neglect, and forced labor. The records include detailed information on the children involved, their backgrounds, the arrangements made for their care, and the outcomes of their migration, offering a complex picture of a controversial chapter in the history of British child welfare and colonial policy.

These records are a valuable resource for genealogical research and for understanding the experiences of children sent to Western Australia, shedding light on both the positive and negative aspects of the child migration programs.