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Find and Connect
Tailored Services

Find and Connect

A free service for those who spent time in institutional or foster care before 1990. Funded by the Australian Government Department of Social Services and delivered by Relationships Australia NSW’s Wattle Place centre.

Enquire Via Wattle Place

Overview

Who It's For?

Find and Connect is for those who were placed in out-of-home-care such as children’s homes, foster homes, orphanages or other institutions anywhere in Australia before 1990. Forgotten Australians, Stolen Generations and Former Child Migrants placed in out-of-home care by the government are all eligible for this service.

How We Help

Find and Connect is the Australian Government’s response to the Forgotten Australians Inquiry. It includes the Find and Connect web resource and Find and Connect Support Services in each state. Relationships Australia NSW’s Wattle Place centre runs the Find and Connect Support Service in NSW.

What to Expect

This service helps you understand more about your past and about the historical context of child welfare. Our services provide customised and personalised assistance to each individual and their experiences. We're based in Parramatta, but we offer support statewide via our phone and online services.

Many individuals placed in out-of-home care as children struggle with ongoing challenges as a result of their experiences. 

The long-term impacts of a childhood spent in institutional care are complex and varied. But there is hope. We’re here to work with you to develop skills and strategies to help ease the burden of those impacts. We understand that each person visiting Wattle Place is unique, so we tailor our support services to your individual needs.

Lack of trust and security
Lack of life and interpersonal skills
Low self-esteem
Difficulty initiating and maintaining stable, loving relationships
Inadequate parenting skills
Health problems or disabilities resulting from physiological trauma

Our Find and Connect service can offer you:

01
Face-to-face and telephone counselling
02
Assistance and support to access your institutional and personal records
03
Assistance and support with family tracing
04
Support to reconnect with family members, where possible
05
Assistance with information and referrals to other services
06
Social activities and special events
07
The Drop-in Centre
Find and Connect

“Wattle Place provides a community of people who share the experience of being placed in institutions or foster homes as children. We know how isolating and challenging life can be when you feel like no one understands what you’ve been through or what you are going through now. Wattle Place staff do understand, they listen and work to earn our trust slowly, through compassion, honesty and reliability.”

- Wattle Place client

Find and Connect

“I finally felt acknowledged and that’s all I have ever wanted. It’s a long-term process but I’m hopeful I can manage what I’ve been through as a part of my life now and not feel like I need to constantly run away. Everyone at Wattle Place made me feel so safe and supported.”

- Wattle Place client

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