Toddlers Park (Former Ballarat Orphanage)

The project was led by the City of Ballarat, in collaboration with a Working Group, comprising former residents of the Ballarat Orphanage and Children’s Home, the Stolen Generation Officer at the Ballarat and District Aboriginal Corporation, plus consulting historians and interpretation designers. This approach ensured lived experience remained central to the planning and delivery of interpretive elements at the site. 

The city invited ideas and stories from the Working Group to inspire design outcomes. This innovative method was significant as the history of the place had always been written by the authorities. The project gave the former residents a safe space to tell their deeply personal stories as children growing up in Ballarat.

The interpretation is located alongside the site’s remaining historic features, including two public reserves centred around significant trees, the entrance to the Toddlers Block (1929) now an early learning centre, and the redbrick school (1919) now part of the shopping centre redevelopment.

Entry Arch

On the corner of Victoria Street and Caselli Street, two offset curved arches form the entrance to the renamed Toddlers Park. Not being a complete circle represents the former resident’s experience of often feeling like there was something missing. Each arch contains numerous images and text revealing the site’s history. 

Curved Seating

Curved seating walls with bricks recovered from the site’s demolished historic buildings feature over 4,000 circular mosaic tiles to subtly reflect the vast numbers of children, from all over Victoria, and many indigenous children from the Stolen Generation who went through the institution. Children’s quotes recorded whilst living in the institution have also been embedded in bluestone pavers.

Sculpture 

Oversized marbles sit playfully in the landscape, representing the few playthings that the children were allowed to enjoy. The mirrored marbles host photos of key events and memories and reflect the sky, alluding to a freedom which contrasted to their highly structured daily lives.

Toddlers Blocks

At the entrance to the adjacent Early Learning Centre, large children’s building block have been installed. The blocks feature historical photographs and Henderson Nursery Rhyme paintings, which were once on display in the Toddlers’ Block and are illuminated at night.
Interpretive Shelter

A covered shelter at the centre of Toddlers Park features a circular table which interprets a typical day in the life of the children at the institiution.

Planting

Significant trees (mature elms and magnolia tree) have been protected with responsive design approaches. Understorey planting was carefully designed to reveal country through the installation of many indigenous plants – strengthening connection to country.
The planting palette also features plants with specific meanings, such as remembrance, innocence, and resilience. The inclusion of roses is significant as the children were expected to tend to them but were never able to enjoy them, until now.  

Gathering Spaces

The Toddlers Park provides an accessible place to meet and interact as well as a being a place for play, interpretation and reflection. The nearby Magnolia Reserve, also part of the project works, offers a place of contemplation–we are here, never forgotten. Former residents have a safe welcoming space but people new to the space / history can choose to visit and learn as they wish.

Helping to bring this vision to life:

• City of Ballarat
• Former Residents
• Child and Family Services Ballarat
• Site developers
• Consulting historians from Ash Tree Projects
• Interpretation designers from GML Heritage
• Builders Challis Design and Trifecta Landscapes