The long running Australian soap opera, Home and Away (1988-present), was the inspiration of television screenwriter, director & producer, Alan Bateman.

As the story goes, Bateman was in Kangaroo Point NSW when he became aware of locals complaining about foster children moving into the area. He thought this would be an excellent topic to explore and initially the show was going to be called Refuge.

Home and Away originally focused on the Fletcher family living in Summer Bay, a fictional seaside town in NSW.

Tom (Roger Oakley) and Pippa Fletcher (Vanessa Downing) have been fostering children since 1978. At the end of the first episode, they take in their 6th foster child.

While the central stories continue to revolve around fostering children, family and school problems, the series has covered a range of topics including eating disorders, domestic violence and terminal illness.