Researchers from the University of Melbourne, in consultation with a wide group of Victorian Community Sector organisations and care-leaver support groups have created Pathways - the first online resource to consolidate vital information for Forgotten Australians, Stolen Generations, and ‘care-leavers’ from Victoria searching for information about their past.

Chief investigator for the research project Professor Cathy Humphreys from the University of Melbourne says for many people who were raised in state care, providing this information is critical.

“This isn’t just about providing a pathway to records, but providing a pathway to discovering a lost part of someone’s childhood and allowing them to reclaim their identity,” she says.

Frank Golding from the Care Leavers Australia Network was raised in state care and says innovative projects like Pathways are essential to assist those trying to sift through the records maze, and help make sense of the stories the archives tell.

“Making sense of the records, and understanding the stories they tell, is not easy. You have to be
patient and persistent in the face of delays, and able to live with frustrations and blind alleys. You have to be prepared for the unexpected – to be confronted, confused, disappointed, bewildered, amused and excited,” he says. 

Pathways will enable access to information such as: where personal records may be kept, what to expect when and if they do find personal records; historical information about the institutions they were in; explanations of the legislation that led them to be in care and profiles of key identities involved in the administration of institutionalised care.