ABOUT CHILD SEARCH
Behind every search,
there is a story.
Child Search exists because every child and family deserves the opportunity to find answers, connection and a pathway forward.
OUR PURPOSE
Bringing the pieces together.
An Australian not-for-profit organisation with a child-focused purpose.
Child Search supports children, parents and families impacted by parental child abduction, parental alienation, family disconnection, missing family relationships and prolonged loss of contact.
Founded by Jeannie Magri, Child Search was born from both lived experience and years of working alongside separated families experiencing complex and distressing circumstances.
IN JEANNIE’S WORDS
Why I created Child Search
My journey to Child Search is deeply personal.
For many years, I experienced firsthand the complexity of the Australian family law system and the enormous emotional, practical and financial impact that prolonged family conflict can have on a parent, a child and an entire family.
My own journey included 14 years navigating the Family Court system, 20 court applications, domestic violence proceedings, child protection involvement and an experience involving the abduction of my child.
I know what it feels like when your family circumstances become bigger than you can manage alone. I know the frustration of navigating different systems, professionals and processes while desperately trying to determine what the next right step should be.
That experience gave me a determination to ensure that other families did not have to navigate these circumstances without direction, support and someone willing to look at the whole story.
That lived experience was followed by years of professional work supporting vulnerable children and families, including residential and foster-care support, supervised high-risk family contact and work with families experiencing complex separation and conflict.
Over time, one issue continued to stand out:
Families were often moving between systems, professionals and organisations — but there was no single pathway connecting all the pieces.
That became the foundation for Child Search.
MORE THAN FINDING SOMEONE
The whole journey matters.
Our approach considers what has happened, the barriers that remain, the information needed and the professionals who should be involved.
Through case management, specialist investigation pathways, professional collaboration and family support, we aim to bring the right expertise together around each individual case.
Where reconnection is safe and appropriate, our goal is to help create a pathway towards restoring that connection.
Where it is not possible or appropriate, our role may instead be about helping a family find answers, clarity and a way forward.
OUR VISION
Somewhere to turn.
A pathway to begin.
Our vision is to build a trusted national and international network where investigators, family professionals, legal practitioners, child specialists, organisations and community partners work collaboratively.
We want children searching for parents to have somewhere to turn, and parents searching for children to know where to begin. Adults who have lived for years without answers about their family deserve to know that their questions still matter.
We can commit to searching for answers, creating pathways and never losing sight of the people behind every case.
Child Search cannot promise that every person will be found or every relationship restored.
A place to begin
You don’t have to find the pathway alone.
Whether you are searching for answers or ready to contribute your expertise, there is a place to start.