The Church of England Children's Home on Wilson Street assisted children and adolescents in need of support and a home from the 1890's until the 1980's. 

The Church of England Children’s Home, Wilson Street Brighton

The properties at 64 and 66 Wilson Street, Brighton, were owned by the Church of England (later the Anglican Church in Australia) from the 1890s until the 1980s. During this time the Church used the properties to house babies, children and adolescents who were in need of support and a home. The sisters of the Community of the Holy Name, an Anglican order of nuns based in Cheltenham, were responsible for running the home. They were supported by the Mission to Streets and Lanes, other Church of England charities and the local community.

The Home was established by the Mission to Streets and Lanes in response to the plight of people, particularly children, living in slums in some of the inner suburbs surrounding the City of Melbourne. The need for support for these children was unquestionable. Some children were homeless, were sleeping in parks and were starving. Some parents suffered from alcohol addiction and/or had mental health issues. In some cases children were referred to a Court of Law because of the neglect. The Courts had the power to direct that children in such dire circumstances should pass into the care of charitable institutions such as the home run by sisters of the Community of the Holy Name.

In response to this overwhelming need in 1894 Sister Esther of the Community of the Holy Name undertook to set up a Children’s Home in Brighton. It was hoped that the sea air would provide a healthier climate than the inner city with its concentration of factories and crowded dwellings. Initially, two terrace houses in Wilson Street were leased. A fund to support the project was set up with two unexpected donations from a lady travelling from Scotland, each donation consisting of one hundred gold sovereigns. These provided the impetus for further donations. Sister Esther advertised in the press and as a result a further two hundred pounds was raised.

Around 1897 the prayers of the Sisters, this time for a more permanent solution, were answered and a one thousand pound legacy was received from a former councillor, Dr Aubrey Bowen. This enabled the purchase of a nearby property in Wilson Street and the building of a purpose-built facility for the home. About forty children were accommodated in five dormitories, mainly girls up to 15 years of age, but also boys up to 7 years of age. Initially education and training were the responsibility of the Home, but after 1910 the children went to Wilson Street State School, conveniently located nearby on the corner of Wilson and Male Streets.

The Annual Report for 1915 records that the Home was unable to take all the babies who were referred to it. This growing need was influenced by family disruption caused by World War 1. It was said that the Sisters had long hoped and prayed for an opportunity to buy the adjacent property. In 1916 this prayer was answered and 66 Wilson Street was purchased by the Mission to Streets and Lanes. The Sisters were then able to take more babies from twelve months to three years of age. However in 1927, contrary to the earlier view about Brighton’s healthy climate, it was decided that the seaside air was too bracing for delicate children. As a result a property was purchased in Malvern, near Darling station, and this property operated for many years as a Babies’ Home.

In 1929 the beautiful on-site chapel, known as ‘The Chapel of the Holy Innocents’ and sometimes called the ‘Chapel of the Innocent Blessed’ was completed. For many decades this Chapel was a very significant part of the Home. It was deconsecrated in 1984.

Wilson Street Orphanage

In the twentieth century, especially during the first half, the Home was supported by local churches and auxiliaries. They gave financial support and material aid (such as clothing), as well as conducting working bees, sometimes from men’s organizations. Such help must have been particularly welcome during the Great Depression.

There is not a great deal of information about the day-to-day life of the children who lived at the Wilson Street Home. Inevitably experiences varied, troubled backgrounds influenced perceptions and circumstances varied markedly over the years. An example of a positive outcome is revealed in the archives of the Mission to Streets and Lanes: a non-verbal toddler suspected of having a severe intellectual disability was referred to the Home. After some months in the care of the Sisters his development caught up with that of his peers and he blossomed into a happy and healthy child. He was adopted into a family where it is hoped he subsequently lived a full and rewarding life.

On the less positive side Brighton Historical Society has access to the reminiscences of a home-sick 11-year-old girl who was required to clean three outdoor toilets before going to school. Another task – surely a more desirable one – was to stir the breakfast porridge.

As the 20th century progressed government and community attitudes to providing for needy children changed. It was acknowledged that there were better ways to assist children and adolescents who required support. Thankfully, society became more affluent and thus more able to support different models of care. The Home at Wilson Street moved away from an institutional approach. In the late 1950s and early 1960s the buildings were renovated to reflect these current attitudes. In 1962 a Social Worker was employed for the first time. In 1966 the main house at Brighton was converted into self-contained flats. This arrangement mirrored family life more closely and made it possible for siblings to live together. In the late 1960s the children were housed in four flats: St Anne’s, St Margaret’s, St Elizabeth’s and St Faith’s. Each flat or unit accommodated about seven children. The Darling Babies Home closed in 1967 and nine very young children were transferred to Brighton. In 1971 school age boys from the Home spent a week at camp with boys from Brighton Grammar School, no doubt a valuable and interesting experience for all.

In 1968 the Mission to Streets and Lanes established a Family Counselling Service on the premises at Wilson Street to complement the residential care. This service was known as the Brighton Family Centre and delivered preventive services and counselling to families. The organization was re-named The Home for Children and Family Counselling Service, also known as the Brighton Family Centre. The aim was to help families stay together. However, times and attitudes had changed and the Children’s Home closed in 1974.

Over the decades many sisters from the Community of the Holy Name cared for the children at the Wilson Street home. Almost certainly the only one who had a national (perhaps even international) presence beyond the Church community is Rosalie Kunoth. Before joining the Community of the Holy Name she had starred in the film ‘Jedda’, thus becoming the first aboriginal woman to play a leading role in a feature film. Sister

Rosalie left the order after ten years, married and became an activist for her people.

From 1974 to 1984 the accommodation facilities were used by the government to house homeless teenagers. Number 62 Wilson Street was known as St. Faith’s and number 64 Wilson Street was known as Unit 64.

Through the prism of our twenty-first century sensibilities we feel uncomfortable with the idea of the institutional care of children. But ‘the past is a foreign country’ and it must be acknowledged that the Brighton Children’s Home filled a vital need at the time it was established and in subsequent decades.

 By Catherine Wallace

Originally published in BHS Journal no.204 (Winter 2023)

Sources

• BHS Archives
• www.naidoc.org.au