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Victorian Heritage Database

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Harnett House, also known as the Melbourne City Mission, is of local historical and architectural significance to the City of Moreland. Historically, it is significant for its continuing association with the Mission which established in Brunswick on this site to assist Brunswick's poor through a missionary program.

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Childcare, early learning and kindergarten in Brunswick

Hartnett House is a community hub with heart, combining the features of a heritage building with modern engaging classrooms and sizeable, secure outdoor playgrounds ready for exploration.

Newly completed renovations mean a limited number of extra childcare places are now available.

Secure your child's place now! Call 03 8625 4419.

Long day care services

We provide long day care for children from six weeks through to six years and a 4-year-old kindergarten program.

At Hartnett House, we work in partnership with you and your child to build an individual program based on your child's needs, interests and culture.

With families from 19 different countries, and staff from 13 cultures, we foster and promote diversity, inclusion and respect. From sleep and feed times through to important celebrations, we take the time to get to know you and your family so we can welcome and support you as part of our community.

Our on-site cook prepares fresh, nutritious meals daily, including breakfast, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and a late snack. We can also cater to all dietary requirements.

Learning through play

We provide experiences and opportunities for children to learn through play and to develop their own natural curiosity, enjoyment and confidence. Our programs are led by experienced early childhood educators and aligned to the National Early Years Learning Framework.

We embrace emerging learning and curriculum methods to develop engaging, evidence-based programs. We offer a flexible routine to ensure each child's interests are at the forefront of our educational program.

Our expansive outdoor area also provides the perfect setting for adventures, fun and learning for active young minds.

Specialised support for families

In addition to providing childcare and kindergarten services, we deliver Early Childhood Development programs from Hartnett House, which support children with developmental delay or disability. Our specialist staff can support children and families to:

develop skills, goals and strategies

access information, support and resources

promote inclusion in other children's services and activities

connect with therapy options including speech therapy, occupational therapy, physiotherapy and education support

We also have local council Maternal Child Health nurses co-located at Hartnett House.

Government fee assistance

You may be eligible to access support from the Federal Government through the Child Care Benefit (CCB) and Child Care Rebate (CCR). Your eligibility for these subsidies is based on your income and determined by the Department of Health and Human Services.

Learn more about access and eligibility for the CCB or CCR on the My Child website.

Hartnett House Location

We're located at: 123 Albion St, Brunswick VIC 3056.

Conveniently located less than 10 minutes' walk to Anstey train station and the Number 19 tram, Hartnett House is ideally located for commuting to work.

Give your child the best head start at Hartnett House - book your tour today
Our newly completed renovations mean additional spaces are now available - places are filling fast so contact us today to learn more or book a tour.
Enquiries: 03 8625 4419 or earlylearning@mcm.org.au
Phone number: 03 9385 3208

PROPOSAL: Melbourne City Mission Website Redevelopment Project

Enrolment

To enrol directly with Hartnett House, please visit us for a tour or complete and return the Enrolment Form available for download below. We do have a waitlist policy and you may need to add your child's name to our waitlist until your preferred times and days are available.

PROPOSAL: Melbourne City Mission Website Redevelopment Project

Hartnett House participates in the City Of Moreland Central Childcare Register, which enables you to register your interest for multiple local services in the area. To find out more about the central register please visit the C ity of Moreland website.

No Jab No Play

In January 2016, the Victorian State Government introduced legislation that requires all children to be fully vaccinated to be enrolled in a childcare or kindergarten service.
To enrol your child in an early childhood education and care service you must provide evidence of immunisation.
As part of the Victorian Government 'No Jab, No Play' legislation, we require evidence that your child is:

fully immunised for their age, or

on a recognised vaccination catch-up program, or

unable to be fully immunised for medical reasons.

Conscientious objection is not an exemption to the legislation. We require an immunisation status certificate to enrol your child in our services.
An Immunisation History Statement from the Australian Childhood Immunisation Register (ACIR) is required as immunisation evidence.

You can obtain an ACIR Immunisation History Statement:

online through your MyGov Medicare

by visiting your local Medicare or Centrelink service centre

by calling the ACIR on 1800 653 809

For further information please visit No Jab No Play on the Better Health website or download the Immunisation Toolkit here (PDF).

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Hartnett House is a community hub with heart, combining the features of a heritage building with modern engaging classrooms and sizeable, secure outdoor playgrounds ready for exploration. Newly completed renovations mean a limited number of extra childcare places are now available. Secure your child's place now! Call 03 8625 4419.

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Hartnett House history in brief

In 1900, Sister E Hartnett founded the Melbourne City Mission Maternity Home.

Until 1903, it was situated in rented premises in East Brunswick, and then moved to Albion Street, Brunswick, to a building formerly used by the Salvation Army as the Brunswick Girls' Home.

It functioned as a 'pre-maternity home' for pregnant women and was registered to care for babies. Sister Hartnett arranged the adoption of some of the children in the home's care and supported other mothers to maintain their parenting role.

In 1913, a new maternity home was built on the Albion Street site. In 1935, a nursery, kitchen and reading room were added. In 1942, the home accommodated 22 infants, some mothers, and one state ward.

In 1949, there were eight state wards and 34 infants in residence under the infant life protection provisions. In 1947, a new children's home for residential care was built, adjoining the pre-maternity home, and in 1950 a nursery was added.

From 1948-75, the facility was classified as a category 2 home. For category 1 classification, it was modified to include residential care of children; day kindergarten; family care centre; and a day nursery.

In 1955, The separate components of the home were amalgamated. It was to be a short-term residential unit but, in practice, was used for long-term placements.

In 1958, the home was renamed Hartnett House. Circa mid-1960s, the Melbourne City Mission's residential units became approved children's homes.

A report from 1969 indicated that an individual file was kept on each child, containing reception centre material, medical history, copies of correspondence and a very brief general report made by the matron about every six months. The same report stated that adoptions averaged about 100 per year, the babies being born to either girls living in the house or referred by local doctors.

In 1971-72 Hartnett House was providing the following services:

a 24-bed maternity home for single girls

a counselling and casework service, with a focus on single mothers

an adoption agency (completing an average of 90 adoptions per year)

a 32-bed babies' home

a 25-bed children's home, with children cared for in small groups.

By 1973, the Melbourne City Mission was renamed the Community Welfare Foundation and had a new board of management, including two departmental representatives.

In 1972-73, the numbers of single mothers using the maternity home had declined to a weekly average of only nine, and finalised adoptions were down by 53 from the previous year. In 1973, Hartnett House ceased its maternity home and adoption operations but continued as a children's home.

In 1974, the department provided additional funding to Hartnett House following the recent closure of the Methodist Babies Home, The Haven, Alexander Toddlers Home and Overton Residential Nursery.

By the mid-1970s, Hartnett House's children's home was catering almost exclusively for wards and it was reclassified as a category 1 Children's Home. In 1975, Hartnett House established a family centre for vulnerable local families.

In the late 1970s Hartnett House became a multipurpose organisation focusing on the residential care of children, a registered day kindergarten, the family care centre and a registered day nursery, and also provided family support.

By 1982, Hartnett House was a multiservice agency. It operated a longer-term residential unit for eight children with rostered staff; a short-term/emergency unit for eight children with rostered staff; a family centre providing family support services; and the child development and enrichment centre.

In 1982 Hartnett House was allocated 'conversion funding' to allow it to stay in long-term care, provided it closed its long-term residential unit and established two family group homes in the north-west region. In 1983, the Melbourne City Mission terminated family support services at Hartnett House.

In 1984, the Melbourne City Mission converted its medium and long-term residential care of children from a campus program to family group home. During the mid-1990s, the longer-term residential program and the Child and Family Development Unit were phased out. In their place, Melbourne City Mission established additional temporary care units and a long-term youth accommodation unit.

The Albion Street property is now the Melbourne City Mission's base for its northern region operations.

Warning about distressing information

This guide contains information that some people may find distressing. If you experienced abuse as a child or young person in an institution mentioned in this guide, it may be a difficult reading experience. Guides may also contain references to previous views, policies and practices that are regrettable and do not reflect the current views, policies or practices of the department or the State of Victoria. If you find this content distressing, please consult with a support person either from the Department of Health and Human Services or another agency.

Disclaimer

Please note that the content of this administrative history is provided for general information only and does not purport to be comprehensive. The department does not guarantee the accuracy of this administrative history. For more information on the history of child welfare in Australia, see Find & Connect.

Source

Department's compiled agency histories.
Guide to out-of-home care services 1940-2000: volume one - agency descriptions, compiled by James Jenkinson Consulting, North Melbourne, November 2001.

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In 1900, Sister E Hartnett founded the Melbourne City Mission Maternity Home. Until 1903, it was situated in rented premises in East Brunswick, and then moved to Albion Street, Brunswick, to a building formerly used by the Salvation Army as the Brunswick Girls' Home.

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Hartnett House Mission Newspaper Clipping

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Hartnett House Mission Newspaper Clipping

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About - The Brunswick Club | Bar | Snooker and Billiards

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The Brunswick Club is a proud resident on Sydney Rd. Melbourne, offering bar and snack food, first-class snooker room, and many exclusive member benefits.

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Victorian Heritage Database

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The Lyric Theatre is of historical and architectural significance. It is the one of the oldest surviving purpose-built cinemas in Melbourne, predating Northcote (1912) Programmatically, its significance is in the incorporation of a ballroom, shops and billiard room into the cinema complex.

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Heritage Report

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Victorian Heritage Database

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The former Brunswick Wesleyan Church and Model Sunday School are historically significant for their integral associations with the Wesleyans and as monuments symbolising the Wesleyans' devotion to their church. The Model Sunday School is of historical significance for its ability to express the innovation that the Wesleyans brought to Christian teaching methods.

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21st Century

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20th Century

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19th Century

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Heritage Listing

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Victorian Heritage Database

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The buildings form a very large complex and demonstrate a substantial and extensive use of bluestone. The walls of the buildings are constructed of coursed, but random bluestone blocks and the large expanses of hipped roofs are of corrugated iron. Arched & rectanular openings are trimmed with simple dressed bluestone and two openings formed large entries for railway trucks.

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Former Melville's Grain Store Apartments

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Former Melville's Grain Store Apartments

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The Grain Store

Brunswick

This amazing feat of architectural design was at 1-7 Colebrook Street in Brunswick.

The building was a former Bluestone Grainstore and has been listed on the Victorian Heritage register.

With close cooperation from the local council and Heritage Victoria, this 3000 square metre icon is now home to eighteen 3 bedroom town houses and four 2 bedroom Townhouses.

The design managed to keep the charming solid bluestone walls as well as incorporate other heritage features into the building.

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Brunswick This amazing feat of architectural design was at 1-7 Colebrook Street in Brunswick. The building was a former Bluestone Grainstore and has been listed on the Victorian Heritage register. With close cooperation from the local council and Heritage Victoria, this 3000 square metre icon is now home to eighteen 3 bedroom town houses and four 2 bedroom Townhouses.

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Former Theatre

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Ballet School

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Former Cinema

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Victorian Heritage Report

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Present Day

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Providing strategic leadership and assistance to the film, television, and digital media sectors of Victoria.

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Facebook Page

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Progress Theatre - Coburg, Victoria, Australia - Performance & Event Venue | Facebook

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Progress Theatre, Coburg, Victoria, Australia. 11 likes. Performance & Event Venue

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Victorian Heritage Report

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Present Day Operation

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A new cultural enterprise presented by Next Wave Festival and Moreland City Council in the heart of Brunswick.

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Circa 1960

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From the 1850s, Mechanics' Institutes quickly spread thoughout Victoria wherever a hall or library, or a school was needed. Nearly a thousand were built in Victoria and 562 remain today.

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21st Century