Australia’s homeless children: ‘We’re easily manipulated’

When Rachel was 12 years old, she saw her father murder her mother. Traumatised, she ended up homeless.

Melbourne, Australia – Rachel* was just 12 years old when she saw her father murder her mother. She became a ward of the state and was placed in a government-run residential care home, where she lived alongside other children and young people – many of whom had experienced similar trauma. Despite being from the rural town of Shepparton, where her grandmother also lived, Rachel was placed in a care home 192km (119 miles) away in Melbourne.