| Fairhaven Hostel, Esperance |
| Years of Operation | 13 February 1965 – December 1987 |
| Role Of Facility | The Australian Churches of Christ Indigenous Ministries advises that Fairhaven was established to provide alternative, appropriate secondary education opportunities that were not available at Norseman District High School for teenage girls from Norseman Mission [see entry]. Teenagers from Cundeelee [see entry] and the Goldfields region as far out as the Western Desert communities were cared for from the beginning because secondary schooling was not available in their home communities. Regular contact was kept with their families and they returned home for school holidays. Practical subjects (childcare, sewing and care of clothing, cooking, homecare, personal grooming) were taught at Fairhaven, by the staff at the hostel as part of the school curriculum. In addition to schooling, there were more post-schooling employment opportunities for the girls in Esperance than there were in Norseman.
Girls came to Fairhaven at the request of the Commonwealth Department of Education, their parents, or through the Western Australian child welfare system.
The girls who gained employment in the area were provided with accommodation, travel to work, and continuing care. |
| Sponsoring Agency | The Australian Churches of Christ Indigenous Ministries (ACCIM) [see entry], which was formerly called the Churches of Christ Federal Aborigines Mission Board Inc (CCFAMBI). |
Other facilities in
Signposts that are
related to the
Sponsoring Agency | See the entry “Australian Churches of Christ Indigenous Ministries” in the earlier section of Signposts, “List of Facilities” |
| Address(es) | Dempster Street, Esperance (now a private residence).
Esperance is situated approximately 720 kilometres east of Perth. |
| Brief History | At any one time, Fairhaven, owned and operated by the Churches of Christ Federal Aborigines Mission Board (now ACCIM), catered for up to 30 secondary school age girls from Indigenous backgrounds during the years of its operation
.
Departmental Annual Reports show 1 ‘native ward’ resident at 30 June 1969, and none in 1970.
When the Welstat (national welfare statistical collection) definitions were applied in 1979, there were a range of other facilities, operated either by the Department or non-Government agencies, which were defined as “Other Homes for Children”. Fairhaven was defined by this category. Such a definition referred to “a residential child care establishment that is mainly for children aged under 15 and/or still at school, and that consists of either a single dwelling that is not a family group home, or two or more dwellings that share cooking and eating facilities” and which were not (detention) Institutions or Hostels.
Residents at 1/10/1979: 12 Aboriginal girls aged 14-17 years (25 bed capacity).
In 1980, a Grant-in-Aid was received for freezers, refrigerators and stoves; in 1981 for floor covering. In the Report of the Interim Consultative Committee on Residential Child Care of 1980/81, a visit to the facility is noted: “We were most impressed by the activities of [the Churches of Christ Federal Aborigines Board]…meeting the needs of children in a family setting.”
“Extremely valuable and greatly appreciated support continues to be received from private child care organisations such as…Fairhaven.” (Annual Report of the Department for Community Welfare, June 30th 1982). It appears from Departmental records that Fairhaven was not being funded through the Consultative Committee on Residential Child Care in 1982.
In 1984, it was reported that the Divisional Substitute Care Officer in the Department’s Kalgoorlie office continued “to promote and enhance the alternate care service and receives the co-operation of local foster parents and institutions such as…Fairhaven”. (Annual Report of the Department for Community Welfare, June 30th 1984).
Fairhaven closed in December 1987. The building was sold in 1988, but has since been restored by the new owner. |
| Records | Departmental records for children placed by the Department of Community Welfare or the Department of Native Welfare may exist.
Additionally, the Department for Child Protection’s Aboriginal Index should be consulted for information.
Thousands of photos taken at the Churches of Christ Mission centres have been preserved, and identified where possible. In time, these will be available from ACCIM.
According to the The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies website www.aiatsis.gov.au , the State Records Office in Western Australia “holds extensive records relating to missions.” Contact details are below. |
| Access | While access to records is restricted to protect the privacy of individuals, people are encouraged to enquire. |
| Contact Details | For Photographs:
Australian Churches of Christ Indigenous Ministries
Box 1199, Wangara WA 6947.
Telephone: (08) 9309 3922
Email: admin@accim.info
For Personal Record Cards:
Freedom of Information
Department of Communities
Locked Bag 5000, Fremantle WA 6959
Telephone: (08) 6414 3344
Country free call: 1800 176 888
Email: foi@communities.wa.gov.au
Website: www.communities.wa.gov.au
For general information relating to missions:
State Records Office, Alexander Library Building
James St West Entrance
Perth WA 6000.
Search Centre: GroundFloor Mon-Fri:9.30am-4.30pm
Telephone: (08) 9427 3360
Facsimile: (08) 9427 3368
Email: sro@sro.wa.gov.au |
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