J.K. Rowling founded Lumos to support disadvantaged children and promote family-based care. The organization began in 2005 as the Children’s High Level Group and was renamed Lumos in 2010.
Lumos focuses on ending the institutionalization of children and helping governments replace orphanages and other large residential institutions with family and community support. Its work includes advocacy, research, and programs intended to keep children safely with relatives or place them in suitable family settings.
The charity’s name refers to the light-producing spell “Lumos” from the Harry Potter books. Rowling has explained that children in institutions are often described as orphans even when one or both parents are alive, because poverty, disability, or lack of support can separate families.
Lumos is distinct from Comic Relief and Save the Children, which are larger organizations with broader or different missions. Its central issue is the welfare of children separated from families and the reduction of institutional care around the world.