Megan Mitchell (born ) is an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

public servant and children's advocate who served as the first Australian National Children's Commissioner (within the

Australian Human Rights Commission The Australian Human Rights Commission is the national human rights institution of the Commonwealth of Australia, established in 1986 as the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) and renamed in 2008. It is a statutory body fu ...

) from 25 February 2013 to 24 March 2020. She previously held the role of New South Wales Commissioner for Children and Young People between 2010 and 2013.

Early life and education

Mitchell was born at St Margaret's Hospital, Sydney to a single mother, Florence Pianta, who had moved to

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

from

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

when she was discovered she was pregnant, and had changed her name by deed poll to Toni Mitchell and told staff she was pregnant to avoid questions about her marital status. She was raised by her mother with the support of an extended network of friends. In 2012 Mitchell made contact with her brother for the first time. She has credited her upbringing to her view that children should be seen as well as heard. Mitchell originally studied education at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

and Sydney Teachers' College, before obtaining master's degrees in psychology and social policy in 1982 and 1989.

Early career

After studying, Mitchell held a number of government and other roles, including executive director of the ACT Office for Children, Youth and Family Support, executive director for Out of Home Care in the New South Wales Department of Community Services, executive director of the Australian Council of Social Service and Director, Strategic Policy and Planning in the NSW Ageing and Disability Department. She was appointed NSW Commissioner for Children and Young People in 2010, a position which she held for the following three years.

Appointment as National Children's Commissioner

On 25 February 2013, the Gillard government appointed Mitchell as the first National Children's Commissioner within the

, a role that had been flagged in the previous year to ensure that the voices of young people were heard by Government. Her appointment, for a five-year term, was designed to "focus solely on the needs of children and their rights and their interests and the laws and policies and services that affect them". She was reappointed for a second two-year term in 2018 and finished the role on 24 March 2020.

Honours

Mitchell was appointed a Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

in the

2021 Australia Day Honours The 2021 Australia Day Honours are appointments Australian honours system, to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by Australian citizens. The list was announced on 26 January 2021 by the Governor General of Australia, Da ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Megan 1950s births Living people Alumni of the University of York Activists from Sydney Members of the Order of Australia Children's Ombudsmen Ombudsmen in Australia 21st-century Australian women public servants 21st-century Australian public servants