J.K. Rowling founded Lumos to campaign against the institutionalisation of children.
The organisation began in 2005 as the Children’s High Level Group, which Rowling established with politician and former European Parliament member Emma Nicholson. It focused on children living in institutions and on promoting family-based or community-based care.
The charity was renamed Lumos in 2010. Its name refers to the light-producing spell in the Harry Potter books, but its work concerns real-world child welfare rather than fictional magic. Lumos has campaigned internationally to end the institutionalisation of children and improve protection and support for vulnerable young people.
The organisation’s original name is sometimes mistaken for its later public identity. Rowling is therefore linked with both the Children’s High Level Group and Lumos, but Lumos is the current name associated with the charity’s long-term mission.