Betty Checkley interviewed by Joanna Penglase for the Forgotten Australians and Former Child Migrants oral history project [sound recording]
- Bib ID:
- 5883416
- Format:
- Audio
- Author:
- Checkley, Betty, 1928-, interviewee
- Online Access:
- National Library of Australia digitised item
- Access Conditions:
- Access open for research, personal copies and public use.
- Description:
-
- 2012
- 1 sound file (ca. 105 min.)
- Series:
- Forgotten Australians and Former Child Migrants oral history project.
- Technical Details:
- Mode of access: Online.
- Summary:
-
Betty Checkley talks about her employment with NSW Child Welfare Department (aged 17); her role as social worker and then field officer; her concern about lack of training for workers; her reasons for studying Social Work; the nature of Family Welfare Bureau; her family background and its role in her choice of profession; the Department when she entered it, nature of employees, mode of career progression; the geographic area for each officer, tasks and how this influenced motivation; accountability; centralised administration; the large areas covered by Field division, caseloads and inadequacy of field officer numbers; rates of pay; the Department being predominantly male and reasons; the difficulty for women of achieving Field Officer status, how structuring of Department affected this; the specialist nature of female roles; debarring of women from Field Officer jobs, gradual change through Training School innovation; the high number of adoptions; how the Supporting Mother's Benefit came about, her role and the Department's role; the Department's relationship with non-government Children's Homes.
Checkley discusses the meaning of state wardship and procedure for achieving this status; the scarcity of community resources for supporting families in crisis; heavy caseloads; the procedures for children becoming state wards, the strict definition of 'neglect'; the removal of children from family; foster homes; the policy of returning children to natural families where possible and rarity of this occurrence; the difficulties for parents attempting to get their children back; evictions from huge public housing settlements; her career progression at an early age; being vocal about need for training for officers; being directed by the Director of Department to do something about it; difficulties of establishing training centre; devising the course, finding lecturers; the development of course after the first year and outcomes; the beginning of professionalisation of Department; objectives of training schools and capacity for achieving them; Parramatta Girls Training School; Percy Mayhew; her retirement from Department after her marriage; her involvement in voluntary work; following her husband's retirement from Department, becoming home directors of Africa Inland Mission (1981); her views on government children's services today, comparison with past system; outcomes for children in care then and now.
- Notes:
- Recorded on 30 March 2012 in Chatswood, N.S.W.
- Index/Finding Aid Note:
- Timed summary (6 p.)
- Subject:
- Occupation:
- Social workers
- Other authors/contributors:
- Penglase, Joanna, interviewer
- Related Records:
-
This belongs to the Forgotten Australians and Former Child Migrants oral history project.
This collection contains 208 records. - Copyright:
-
In Copyright
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- Reason for copyright status:
- Until 2082 [Created/Published Date + 70 Years]
Copyright status was determined using the following information:
- Material type:
- Sound Recording
- Published status:
- Unpublished
- Creation date:
- 2012
Copyright status may not be correct if data in the record is incomplete or inaccurate. Other access conditions may also apply. For more information please see: Copyright in library collections.
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