Neerkol Action Support Group (Qld)
The Neerkol Action Support Group began meeting in mid-1997. Survivors of the St Joseph’s Home, Neerkol (near Rockhampton), approached the Sisters of Mercy seeking an apology and access to counselling and other support services for the abuse and neglect they experienced as children in the institution. The group, though small, was instrumental in instigating the broader political movement towards the Commission of Inquiry into Abuse of Children in Queensland Institutions (1999), commonly known as the Forde Inquiry. The group’s approaches were also influential in subsequent models of recognition and redress used across Australia.
Primary documents relating to the Neerkol Action Support Group are held at the CLAN Orphanage Museum.
CLAN
The Care Leavers' Australasia Network (CLAN) was founded in July 2000, to be a membership organisation for people who grew up in out-of-home care. It has led many campaigns and protests aimed at achieving justice for its members, and holds an enormous repository of documents relating to out-of-home care at its museum based in Geelong, Victoria.
Voice of a Survivor
The Voice of a Survivor is a private company that helps victims of institutional abuse to find justice. It does this primarily through legal support, but also through social and political activism. It was founded in 2017 by Russell Manser, a survivor of institutional abuse. The Voice of a Survivor was featured in a report on the 7.30 program on ABC TV in February 2023.
Victorian Redress Campaign
Through the latter half of 2022 a social media, media and in-person campaign led by CLAN (Care Leavers Australasia Network) resulted in the Victorian Government announcing a new redress scheme for people who grew up in out-of-home care with the precise scope and terms of the scheme to be co-designed with survivors. It came after similar Victorian schemes were introduced in relations to the Stolen Generations and Forced Adoptions.
Territories Stolen Generations Redress Scheme (ACT, NT)
The Territories Stolen Generations Redress Scheme (ACT, NT) is a financial and wellbeing package for Stolen Generations survivors removed from their families in the Northern Territory, ACT, or Jervis Bay. Applications to the scheme are open between 1 March 2022 and 28 February 2026.
knowmore
knowmore is a legal advice service for survivors of sexual abuse. It was established in 2013 to support people who were giving information to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. It has offices all over in Brisbane, Sydney, Adelaide, Perth and Darwin, and provides services around Australia.
Who Am I?
A Victorian-based research project that focussed on recordkeeping and archiving practices for people who experienced out-of-home care as children. It developed the web resource known as Pathways, which was later expanded to have a national scope and became the Find & Connect web resource.
