The ACOSS National Conference has been a key event for civil society in Australia for over six decades. Each year hundreds of thought leaders, policy makers, political leaders, social innovators, practitioners, academics, campaigners, community leaders and social justice advocates come together to engage in collective public policy analysis, discussion and debate; identifying challenges and strategising solutions with the view to address poverty and inequality and enhance social cohesion in Australia. At this year's conference dinner ACOSS and HESTA will be co-presenting the Community Sector Awards. Early bird tickets are now available - don't miss out!
Understanding domestic and sexual violence across migrant and refugee communities
Brisbane - Wednesday, 31st October
This half-day workshop presented by The Oasis Centre will assist practitioners to understand the intersection between domestic and family violence and its impact on the lives of migrant and refugee women. This workshop will help practitioners acknowledge how culture, ethnicity and religion impact on communities understanding of domestic and family violence, the context of Intimate Partner Violence and the challenges for women in reporting and dealing with this type of abuse, the Influence of gender roles and traditions within migrant and refugee communities, and barriers to accessing support. Find out more and register.
Bystander Action Practitioner Training
Brisbane - Wednesday, 31st October
A free one-day course for new and emerging prevention of violence against women practitioners. This highly interactive one-day course will provide new and emerging preventing violence against women practitioners from a range of sectors with: the role of bystander action in preventing violence against women; the range of best-practice bystander actions, and what actions are appropriate and recommended in different scenarios, depending on the context and the severity of the behaviour; multiple opportunities for participants to build their skills, practice, and confidence in taking bystander action through interactive activities; and an understanding of how participants can support workplaces/organisations to undertake a ‘whole of organisation’ approach to primary prevention. Find out more and register.
Youth Advocacy Centre 2018 AGM
Brisbane - Wednesday, 31st October
YAC's 2018 AGM will feature special guest speaker His Honor Judge Robertson who will be reflecting on his time as the President of the Childrens Court of Qld and also about his current role as the Chair of the Qld Sentencing Council and impacts on young people in the youth justice system. View the agenda and apply to become a YAC member to attend.
Volunteer Leadership Forum
Logan - Thursday, 1st November
Volunteers and Volunteer Coordinators/Managers are invited to a free day of professional development opportunities and develop your skills and network with others. There will be a variety of presentations and workshops including: panel discussions, a grants masterclass, (please type ‘Grants Masterclass’ in the ‘Special Requirements’ field when you register to advise if you wish to attend as places are limited), introduction to public speaking/the roles of leaders, social marketing – how organisations and volunteers can develop a digital marketing strategy and be effective at promotion in a changing online world, and volunteer rights and responsibilities – minimum legal rights and obligations and what volunteers can expect from organisations that are committed to implementing good practice. Free lunch, morning tea and parking is available for registered attendees. Find out more and register.
2018 Youth Health Conference
Gold Coast - Wednesday, 7th to Friday, 9th November
The Australian Association for Adolescent Health and the Australian and New Zealand Mental Health Association have partnered to host the 2018 Youth Health Conference. This year’s conference theme, “Owning Future Change”, invites young people, clinicians, researchers, educators and policy makers to act now to identify challenges and implement solutions to create real change in the lives and health of young Australians. The 2018 Youth Health Conference is the platform where the latest research findings will be presented with policy and practice recommendations, and where innovative models of care will be showcased. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Youth Health and Sexuality Education and Sexual Health are major themes in this year’s conference. Find out more and register.
Adopt Change National Permanency Conference 2018
Brisbane - Thursday, 8th to Friday, 9th November
The two-day Conference program will address the importance of permanency for children and to support better outcomes during their childhood and into their adulthood. Includes international and local speakers and we will again hear from federal and state governments on the permanency priorities, plans and progress. Carer/parent sessions will also be held for tailored talks on supporting children who have had more challenging starts to life, and updates on the permanency changes to foster care. Find out more and register.
My Health Record information session
Brisbane - Friday, 9th November
A free briefing for the disability sector is being held to discuss the My Health Record at The Glen Hotel, Eight Mile Plains from 10.30am to 12noon. Every Australian will get a My Health Record unless they choose to opt out before 15th November. This is an opportunity for questions to be answered about My Health Record – the briefing will cover the benefits, how it works, as well as the privacy and security of the system and records. Tea and coffee will be provided. Find out more and register.
Domestic violence intervention facilitator training
Brisbane - Monday, 12th November to Thursday, 15th November
Working effectively with men who have used domestic and family violence requires specialist knowledge and skills. In this four-day intensive workshop hosted by Services and Practitioners for the Elimination of Abuse Queensland (SPEAQ), you will work through a range of ideas and perspectives in domestic and family violence practice, and develop intervention skills to enhance family safety and wellbeing. This workshop is specifically designed to support workers who are developing their skills as men’s DFV behaviour change group facilitators. The workshop will cover topics including: how to have an engaged working culture when working with family violence; engaging with mandated clients; understanding the righting reflex; understanding the various pathways into family violence; mapping and identifying disruption points in patterns of behaviour; therapeutic group work skills; and co-gender facilitation. Find out more and register.
Sexuality and people with an intellectual disability: a sex positive approach
Brisbane - Tuesday, 13th November
This workshop to be delivered by Lud Allen Counselling will explore the meanings that you give to sexuality and specifically the meaning you give to sexual education for people with an intellectual disability. You will identify barriers that exist to supporting clients in meeting their sexual health and relationship education needs. You will use and critique resources specifically made for sexual health education of people with an intellectual disability and explore the benefits of 1:1 education vs small group education and hear how this has been applied successfully in real life scenarios. Find out more and register.
Who is a parent?
Brisbane - Wednesday, 14th November
Brisbane Family Law Pathways Network presents this conversation with drinks and canapes around the legal and social issues arising from the question of "who is a parent?" led by family law specialist, partner at Harrington Family Lawyers, Fellow of the International Academy of Family Lawyers and founder of the LGBT Family Law Institute Australia, Stephen Page. Find out more and register.
FRSA 2018 National Conference
Cairns - Tuesday, 20th to Friday, 23rd November
The Family and Relationship Services Australia (FRSA) National Conference is one of the largest annual gatherings of practitioners, academics and policy makers working to support children, families and communities. This year’s theme Be the change: Leaving no one behind is a call to all family and relationship service providers to continue creating better futures for all Australian children, families and communities we serve in the delivery of evidence-informed, collaborative and innovative services. The theme lends itself to a range of areas of exploration and discussion—from outcome measurement and reporting to FRSA’s current investment into seeking how our sector can take a more coordinated prevention and early intervention approach in its service delivery. Pre-conference workshops have now been announced. Find out more and register.
Advancing social work and human services research - Engagement and impact (panel discussion and seminar)
Brisbane - Thursday, 22nd to Friday, 23rd November
As part of an Australian Research Council Discovery Project that is aiming to advance the production, utilisation, and impact of social work research in Australia, two events are taking place. A panel discussion will be held on researcher and industry perspectives about social work and human services research engagement and impact. The panel will feature Michael Hogan, Director General of Queensland Department of Child Safety, Youth and Women who will speak about using research to inform innovation in human services and Michele Robinson, Director Evidence to Action, Australian National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety who will speak about how ANROWS promotes evidence to action. A seminar will also take place that will explore how social work researchers and industry can work together to increase research influence and real-world impact; and how to maximise the benefits that research brings to the community, social policy, human services delivery, and service users. Speakers will include Professor Grahame Simpson, industry representatives on what they look for in research partners and how they want to engage, Professor Christine Bigby on building and sustaining research partnerships, and Professor Mike Fisher on developing infrastructure to increase research impact. Find out more and register.
Come have a cuppa...Morning Tea for parents
Brisbane - Monday, 26th November
The Family Inclusion Network's Morning Tea for Parents is an opportunity for parents who have/had children in care, have/had intervention with parental agreement, or have been reunified with their children, to share their experiences with others, discuss how they navigated the child protection and out-of-home care systems, and offer support to other parents. The Morning Tea is held once a month on Monday from 9.30am to 11am at Wellspring Coorparoo, 143 Cavendish Road. For enquiries, contact Rebecca by email or phone 3013 6030.
Healing Our Spirit Worldwide: The Eighth Gathering
Sydney - Monday, 26th to Thursday, 29th November
The International Indigenous Council for Healing Our Spirit Worldwide has invited The Healing Foundation and The University of Sydney to join together to celebrate the strengths of Indigenous peoples across the world. Healing Our Spirit Worldwide – The Eighth Gathering will share the experiences, resilience and challenges confronting Indigenous peoples across the world.
CPPAQ Practice Paper, Post Inquiry: getting the voices of children and young people heard in decision making and litigation
Brisbane - Wednesday, 28th November
This Practice Paper will discuss issues around getting the voices of children and young people heard - why is hearing from children and young people important? What has changed since the Inquiry, what has stayed the same? What are the challenges, what are the opportunities? Where to from here? Attendance is free for CPPAQ Members. Find out more and register.
STOP Domestic Violence Conference
Gold Coast - Monday, 3rd December to Wednesday, 5th December
Domestic violence can affect anyone in the community, regardless of gender, sexual identity, race, age, culture, ethnicity, religion, disability, economic status or location. Over the course of three days, the 2018 STOP Domestic Violence Conference will highlight, acknowledge and reflect on the efforts of those who have contributed and set the bar for change. The Conference aims to facilitate policy change, raise awareness and work together to eliminate violence within Australia. Find out more and register.
NFP Financial Leaders Summit
Sydney - Tuesday, 4th December to Thursday, 6th December
In an increasingly complex and constantly evolving environment, NFPs face ongoing challenges in their pursuit to achieve long-term social outcome success whilst remaining financial sustainability. The NFP Financial Leaders Summit is being held on 4- 6 December at the Mercure Sydney. This summit will shed light on key strategies of how to successfully diversify revenue streams and rely less on single source of funding in order to build financial strength. The practical programme will offer insights into: effective strategies for sustainability; proven measures to manage cash flow; balancing commerciality, purpose and sustainability; and developing a strong business model. View the full agenda or see the speakers list for more.
Child Aware Approaches Conference 2019
Brisbane - Thursday, 16th to Friday, 17th May 2019
The 6th Child Aware Approaches Conference will advance the National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children 2009–2020, the National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children 2010–2022, and the wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The Conference will focus on five key themes: improving outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, improving access to prevention and early intervention, improving placement stability, keeping children and young people safe from abuse, and strengthening focus on wellbeing Beyond 2020. Abstract submissions are now open until 30th November. Presentations can be in any of four formats: plenary (symposium, hypothetical or debate), XPRESS podium (maximum 3 minutes), workshop (interactive), or Policy Think Space (discussion).
Visit the Events page on our website for other opportunities in the sector. You can also email your professional development opportunities so that we may promote them through future editions of eNews.