Castledare

Castledare was established by the Christian Brothers in Queen's Park (later, Wilson) on the site of the former Castledare Special School. It began as a residential primary school for boys aged from around 6 to 12 years, including boys who were wards of the State and boys who were placed privately (by family or others), in premises previously used for the 'Castledare Special School'. Mostly, boys placed at Castledare were aged 8-10 years. Australian-born boys were sent to Castledare, as were child migrants (1947-1966). Castledare has had many name variations over the years, usually keeping 'Castledare' somewhere in the title. Castledare closed in 1983.

In Case Study Number 11, the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in December 2014, found Castledare to be neglectful in its care and supervision of its residents. The Royal Commission in fact found that three serial offenders, in particular, inflicted much physical and emotional abuse on some of the children in residence. The three Brothers were – Brothers Murray, Murphy and Dick. As one victim told the Royal Commission, while sexual abuse occurred in all parts of the institution, Castledare was described by him as a place where the Brothers used to come to the boys’ beds at night and sexually abuse them. In the end, the Royal Commission concluded that the Christian Brothers from 1947 to 1968 knew of allegations of sexual abuse against Brothers in Castledare, and that they failed to manage the institution so as to prevent the sexual abuse of children living there.

We invite former wards/residents who were sexually abused during their placement at Castledare to contact us to tell us confidentially what information they may have, and we will explain what options are available to help with these cases.

Call us or complete the below confidential enquiry form below.