In 1930, following the abolition of the Doncaster Poor Law Union, the Doncaster Borough Council took over responsibility for the administration of poor relief in the city. This included the workhouse and other premises previously used by the union, which now came under the management of the council's new Public Assistance Committee.

The homes initially operated by the council are listed below. It is not clear if any of these had previously been run by the Doncaster Union.

The homes at 1 and 3 Ashfield Road adopted the names Ashfield House and Datchelor House, respectively. Likewise, 17 and 19 Furnival Road were named Bardon House and Howden House.

Following the passing of the 1948 Children Act, councils were required to provide care services for all needy children in their area, especially those who lacked a normal family home. In common with other local authorities, the council established a new Children's Committee, whose responsibilities had previously been spread across separate Health, Education and Social Welfare Committees. Under the new regime, residential care was seen as the least desirable option for children in care, but when it was employed, the recommended size of home was eight children, or twelve at most.

By 1956, Windermere House had closed and the Rosemead residential nursery opened at May Avenue, Doncaster.

By 1968, the Ashfield Road and Furnival Road homes had been replaced by new establishments at 88 Ascot Avenue, Cantley, and at 34 and 56 Goddison Boulevard, Doncaster, each of which provided eight places.

In 1971, local authority children's departments were absorbed into their new social services departments. Following the local government reorganisation that took place in 1974, the new Wakefield Metropolitan District Council took over several homes that had previously been run by the West Yorkshire County Council.

The council's children's establishments in operation in 1975 are listed below. Those taken over from West Yorkshire are indicated by an asterisk.

By 1984, a number of closures had taken place, including Ascot Avenue, Cromwell Drive, Goodison Boulevard, Shaftesbury Avenue, Rosemead, Stanley House, and Wyndthorpe Hall. The one new home was at Don View, at Thellusson Avenue, Scawsby.