Castledare Boys' Home was a residential college in

Wilson, Western Australia Wilson is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia, located within the City of Canning on the north bank of the Canning River. It is a fairly old suburb with parks and close proximity to prominent shopping centres in South Perth. It is favoured by ...

owned and operated by the

Congregation of Christian Brothers The Congregation of Christian Brothers ( la, Congregatio Fratrum Christianorum; abbreviated CFC) is a worldwide religious community within the Catholic Church, founded by Blessed Edmund Rice. Their first school was opened in Waterford, Ireland, ...

from March 1929 to 1983 and established for the treatment and training of intellectually handicapped children. A 1929 newspaper article announcing the opening described it as a "training school for sub-normal boys". It opened with ten boys and under the directorship of Brother G. Hyland. The state psychologist, Ethel Stoneham, travelled to Europe and the United States to study similar institutions and was influential in the design of the home. Later it had a more general educational and residential focus, accommodating boys from various backgrounds, including child migrants,

wards of the state In law, a ward is a minor or incapacitated adult placed under the protection of a legal guardian or government entity, such as a court. Such a person may be referenced as a "ward of the court". Overview The wardship jurisdiction is an ancient ju ...

, and

orphan An orphan (from the el, ορφανός, orphanós) is a child whose parents have died. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents due to death is called an orphan. When referring to animals, only the mother's condition is usuall ...

s. The site was previously a pastoral property called "Niana" built by the Fleming family between 1906 and 1908, and when taken over occupied 83 acres. It is on the banks of the

Canning River The Canning River (Djarlgarra in Nyungar) is a major tributary of the Swan River in the South West Land Division of Western Australia. It is home to much wildlife including dolphins, pelicans, swans and many other bird species. Source a ...

and adjoins

Canning River Regional Park The Canning River Regional Park is the largest of eight regional parks within the Perth metropolitan area. The park covers approximately on both sides of the Canning River between the bridges carrying Nicholson Road and Leach Highway over the ...

. A Federation style homestead on the property is listed on the State Heritage Register. The first child migrants from the UK came to Castledare in the late 1930s. This ceased temporarily during World War II.

Nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

s were introduced in 1949, by which time there were 100 primary school children. The Mother of Perpetual Succour Chapel was constructed in 1957 and blessed and opened by Archbishop

Redmond Prendiville Count Redmond Garrett Prendiville (11 September 1900 – 28 June 1968) a former Australian metropolitan bishop, was the fifth bishop and second Roman Catholic Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Perth. In 1933, at the time of his consecration, age ...

. In 1977 the chapel became the parish church of Wilson. Castledare has a popular

rideable miniature railway A ridable miniature railway (US: riding railroad or grand scale railroad) is a large scale, usually ground-level railway that hauls passengers using locomotives that are often models of full-sized railway locomotives (powered by Diesel engine, d ...

which is open to the public. It has operated since the early 1960s. In 1994, the

Parliament of Western Australia The Parliament of Western Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Western Australia, forming the legislative branch of the Government of Western Australia. The parliament consists of a lower house, the Legislative Ass ...

was presented a petition with 30,000 signatures demanding an inquiry into the sexual and physical assault that took place in various institutions run by the Christian Brothers, including Castledare. Other institutions included in the petition were Bindoon, Clontarf and Tardun. In 1998 the site was redeveloped as an aged care facility and

retirement village A retirement community is a residential community or housing complex designed for older adults who are generally able to care for themselves; however, assistance from home care agencies is allowed in some communities, and activities and socializ ...

called Castledare Retirement Village and operated by Catholic Homes Incorporated.

References

{{Christian Brothers secondary schools in Australia Defunct Catholic schools in Australia Aged care in Australia State Register of Heritage Places in the City of Canning Miniature railways in Australia Former Congregation of Christian Brothers schools in Australia