Lumos is the charity associated with J.K. Rowling’s campaign to help children living in institutions. Rowling became president of the Children’s High Level Group, founded in 2005, and the organisation was renamed Lumos in 2010.
The charity works to end the institutionalisation of children and promote family- and community-based care. Its focus includes children separated from families because of poverty, disability, social problems, or inadequate support services.
Lumos is named after a light-producing spell in the Harry Potter books, but its work is a real-world child-protection programme. The name is sometimes confused with fictional organisations or with general children’s charities that support different causes.
Rowling has used her public profile and philanthropy to draw attention to the harms of large residential institutions. Lumos’s work includes research, advocacy, and collaboration with governments and local organisations to change care systems.