News for former child migrants
Ex-gratia payment scheme for UK child migrants In December 2018, the UK Government announced that it will pay £20,000 (approximately $36,000 Australian dollars) to any former British child migrant who was alive on 1 March 2018, or beneficiaries of any former child migrant who was alive on 1 March 2018 but had since died. The offer is for a ‘common experience’ payment, in recognition of the fundamentally flawed nature of the historic child migration policy, regardless of whether the person suffered abuse. The claimant must have been
a child migrant sent from the United Kingdom and Crown Dependencies (England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Channel Islands and the Isle of Man). In addition, the claimant must have been sent to Australia by a church, state, voluntary or other organisation, and must not have been accompanied by an adult family member, or sent to live with a member of their birth family. Applications will be accepted by the Child Migrants Trust from 1 March 2019, and the scheme will remain open
for two years from its launch. Payments will be administered by the NHS Business Services Authority in the UK. Previous payments received under any other scheme, in any country, will not be taken into account. Claimants will need to provide identification when they apply. For further information, see https://www. childmigrantstrust.com/news or contact the Child Migrants Trust on Freecall: 1800 04 05 09.
Finding Terry O’Leary - after 71 years
8
As a young boy, Richard Smith remembers standing on a dock in South Hampton waving farewell to his 11-yearold friend Terry O’Leary as he sailed away on a ship bound for Fremantle, Western Australia. Terry had been living at St Mary’s Orphanage and School, Gravesend in Kent, and Richard in lived in Maidstone in Kent. Terry spent holidays, about four times a year, with Richard’s family and Terry loved it. They would come in the car to collect Terry, which was exciting. Richard’s father owned the large post office in Maidstone, in Kent. Whenever Terry stayed with Richard’s family, he called Richard’s parents uncle and auntie. Terry remembers that Richard
and he were great friends, and had many adventures, including the time he accidentally shot Richard in the shoulder with an air rifle. All was apparently forgiven, and they stayed in touch after Terry sailed for Australia under the child migration scheme and was sent to Tardun. However, soon after leaving Tardun, 17-year-old Terry lost all his belongings in a fire, including Richard’s address. Richard always wondered what happened to his childhood friend. He finally found him - 71 years later, after contacting Tuart Place. With help from Natalie at Tuart Place, Terry and Richard are now in email contact and are catching up on
Terry O’Leary with Natalie times past. Terry says receiving that phone call from Natalie changed his life. Terry and his wife Jannette will visit England in next year, after his hip operation, and plan to catch up with Richard and his wife Maggie.
