With over almost 30 years’ experience in the domestic violence and child welfare fields, David and his Safe & Together Institute focus on improving systems’ responses to domestic violence when children are involved. David has developed the Safe & TogetherTM Model to improve case
practice and cross system collaboration in domestic violence cases involving children. He has identified how a perpetrator pattern-based approach can improve our ability to help families and promote the development of domestic violence-informed child welfare systems. David and the Safe & Together Institute have worked with governments and NGOs in Canada, the US, Australia, Asia and United Kingdom. Through their live training, organizational consulting, elearning, and Trainer Certification and Partner Agency Program, the Safe & Together Institute provides organisations and systems with a wide range of tools to partner with adult and child survivors, and intervene with perpetrators.

Currently the Institute supports almost 300 Certified Trainers and 80 Partner Agencies worldwide. David hopes that his work ends the use of “failure to protect” mentality in domestic violence cases, and helps systems better work with complex cases involving mental health issues, substance misuse and domestic violence. Recent work with the national Family Court of Australia has brought the same child centered domestic violence lens to custody and access matters. Using an intersectional analysis, the Model is designed to be flexible and relevant across diverse situations.

David has written or co-written numerous journal articles, book chapters and white papers including his most recent ones on how perpetrator intervention program completion certificates can be dangerous for survivors, and on worker safety in the context of domestic violence. He is regularly part of research studies including Professor Cathy Humphreys’ recent series of Australian national research projects on intervening with perpetrators, and complex case practice.

Dr Allison Cox is the Director of the Berry Street Take Two program which provides therapeutic services to children impacted by child abuse, neglect, family violence and other adverse experiences.   It includes the Victorian-wide therapeutic service for children in the child protection system, providing clinical assessments and evidence-based interventions, specialist therapeutic support for parents, carers and other agencies as well as research and training activities.

Allison has more than 30 years’ experience in child and adolescent mental health and is a keen advocate for improving the service responses for the more vulnerable children, young people and families in our community.

Nikki is a Practice Quality Consultant with qualifications in Social Work (hons), Philosophy and Professional Supervision. Nikki has an extensive 30-year career providing leadership, consulting and training to numerous services across Australia and New Zealand, with a dedicated focus on child and family wellbeing. Her expertise lies in equipping professionals in trauma informed care, child and family protection, and working alongside services to increase quality outcomes for children, young people and their families. One of her highlights includes implementing a comprehensive family violence and child protection program across multiple health, community and statutory services, to being a leader in the country.

Sarah is a proud Torres Strait Islander woman living and working on Kaurna country. Being able to grow up strong in culture, Sarah is able to see the benefits of connecting back to culture for healing families from the adverse effects of colonisation and racism. As Practice Manager -Family Led Decision Making across the whole of Relationships Australia SA (RASA), she provides cultural information and guidance to the mainstream, culturally diverse and Aboriginal staff. Sarah’s work for the last 5years as a therapeutic practitioner focused on attachment has led to Sarah creating early intervention service working with families with an infant aged under two years, who are involved with the child protection system. With the changes in SA laws on child protection, Sarah is influencing the way statutory services and community based, mainstream services include family led decision making practices into their work to reduce the number of Aboriginal infants and children entering out of home care.

Sarah has designed and developed a professional training program called ‘Working Better with Nunga Kids’ and a Family Group conferencing restorative relationships training that is delivered to community service organisations across the state, and she is the NAPCAN State Award winner for her work. Sarah’s heartfelt and powerful presentations at national and international conferences inspire pride in culture and describe how Aboriginal ‘old ways’ can be reclaimed, for the benefit of the whole of Australia.

Fran Jacka is the Director of MARAM and Information Sharing, with Family Safety Victoria. Fran is a qualified legal practitioner with 12 years’ experience in the Victorian government, with a focus on leading risk assessment and management reforms arising from the Royal Commission into Family Violence. Fran is the lead author of the Family Violence Multi Agency Risk Assessment and Management Framework and Practice Guides, and contributing designer to the Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme. The MARAM reform program has facilitated contribution from thousands of practitioners, academics and community members, leading to changes to how we respond to adult and child victim survivors and adults using family violence.

Fran also leads and advises on policy design for system-wide reforms related to coercive control practice responses, misidentification and predominant aggressor system responses, common recognition of suicide and family violence risk, recognition of child victim survivors of family violence, adolescent family violence and ongoing practice reforms related to coordinated and collaborative practice responses.

Dr Anita Morris is the Statewide Family Violence Principal Practitioner in the Office of Professional Practice at Department of Families, Fairness and Housing. She has held the position for six years following implementation of the role in response to a Royal Commission into Family Violence recommendation. Dr Morris guides implementation of family violence practice reform for Child Protection in Victoria, consults and advises on state and national family violence reform, consults on high risk family violence cases, undertakes research and leads practice framework development. Most recently Dr Morris led the development of the Department’s Framework for trauma-informed practice, and co-authored a book chapter, ‘What About the Child?’ in the recently released book ‘Violence in Families’, published by Springer. As a social work practitioner, manager, researcher, supervisor and trainer, Dr Morris has worked across multiple sectors, published in refereed journals, and continues to research with children and young people about their experiences of family violence, their agency and the supports they require.

Cherie is a Senior Practitioner at 54 Reasons, responsible for supporting and mentoring staff to build capacity in using child-centred, trauma-informed practice with children and young people.

Cherie has worked for SCA/54 Reasons since 2012 within a range of early childhood and domestic and family violence services. Prior to this Cherie was a performing arts teacher and is passionate about using storytelling and the arts in therapeutic ways, to provide children and young people with unique ways to have a voice and share their story.

Kristin Micallef graduated from Victoria University of Technology some decades ago, in Human Services. With over 20 years of experience in the social services sector Kristin has worked in various locations throughout Australia, Nauru, and India.
Kristin is the Regional Manager for DFV Refuge and Victim Services at 54 Reasons in Queensland. Kristin holds a holistic knowledge of practice around families experiencing DFV and is a passionate advocate for gender equality and the rights of the child.

Liana Buchanan has been Victoria’s Principal Commissioner for Children and Young People since 2016 and is also a part-time Commissioner of the Victorian Law Reform Commission.

Liana has a background in oversight and system reform for people experiencing disadvantage and those affected by family and sexual violence. As Principal Commissioner she is responsible for promoting children’s rights, regulating organisations that work with children to prevent child abuse, and monitoring services for children and young people, including those in the out-of-home care, child protection and youth justice systems.

Allan Wade Ph.D. lives on the unceded land of the Quw’utsun and Malahat First Nations, on southern Vancouver Island, Canada.  He works as a family therapist, independent scholar, and consultant with a primary interest in promoting socially just and effective responses in cases of violence, broadly defined.  Allan is pre-occupied with the question of how humans preserve dignity in response to violence and humiliation.  In this respect, Allan is the grateful student of Kaska Dena elders living on Kaska homeland on north-western Turtle Island.

Allan and his partner Cathy are the parents of five adults, the grand-parents of six truly grand children, and spiritual kin to two golden Labrador retrievers.  Allan and his colleagues (Nick Todd, Shelly Dean, Cathy Richardson, Linda Coates) are best known for developing Response-Based Practice; a method of individual and family therapy, a framework for research and analysis, and a guide for practice across the institutions that respond in cases of violence.

Allan provides training and consultation in Canada and abroad.  He has published numerous articles and book chapters on research and practice, including the far too expensive book, Response-Based Approaches to Interpersonal Violence (2016), co-edited with Margareta Hyden and David Gadd (Palgrave MacMillan).

Tanya Whitehouse OAM has worked at the Macarthur Women’s Domestic Violence Court Advocacy Service for 30 years, supporting and walking alongside victim survivors of Domestic and Family Violence. She was the Deputy Chair of Blue Wren House – Camden Women’s Shelter until recently and was an integral part of the setting up for this Shelter. Blue Wren House is a new Shelter is in the Camden LGA and works under the Women’s Community Shelter umbrella. Tanya is the Convenor of Camden/Wollondilly DV Committee and member of Campbelltown DV Committee. She participates in community consultations and committees in the sector. In 2015 Tanya was awarded the Justice Medal with the Law and Justice Foundation. In 2018 she was named Camden Woman of the Year and in 2020 received an OAM for her service to the community through welfare initiatives.

Tanya’s focus and passion is to be the voice for those women who haven’t yet found theirs. Her goal is to empower women so that they feel safe with their children and challenge the inequities that come with the complexities of Domestic Violence. Her mantra is “underestimate me, that will be fun”!

Superintendent Moore joined the New South Wales Police Force in 1987 and was initially posted to the Inner Western Suburbs of Sydney. From 1990 – 2004 Superintendent Moore performed criminal investigation duties at various locations including Petersham, Hurstville, the NSW Crime Commission and Bourke.

From 2008 – 2013 performed Inspector Duties at Bourke and duties as the Crime Manager for the Richmond Local Area Command based in Lismore. In 2013 Superintendent Moore returned to Bourke as the Commander, Darling River Local Area Command.

During Greg’s 6 years in Bourke, the region saw significant reductions in domestic violence rates and violent crimes and through the Maranguka Justice Reinvestment Community Partnership Project saw increases in year 12 student retention rates and large reductions in charges across the top five juvenile justice offence categories.

From 2019 – 2022, Superintendent Greg Moore assumed the position of Commander of the South Coast Police District for the NSW Police Force until taking over his current duties as the Commander for the NSW Incident and Emergency Management Command.

Greg acknowledges his police and community partnership experiences as pivotal influences for his healthy respect for the value of bottom-up, community-driven problem-solving. He has observed first-hand how community unity and creative social policy design has influenced positive outcomes in communities such as Lismore, Bourke, Walgett and Nowra.

Greg recognises the importance of continual learning and has achieved multidisciplinary qualifications in social sciences an executive master’s in public administration and is a qualified solicitor.

For his 32 years of service, Superintendent Moore was awarded an Australian Police Medal as part of the Queen’s Birthday 2019 honours.

Zoe works for the Department of Communities and Justice, where she has held a variety of roles – she is currently the Manager Practice and Permanency for New England District.  She holds a Masters Degree in Psychotherapy and Counselling, and Post-Graduate qualifications in Developmental Trauma. Zoe has worked in human services for over twenty five years, and in that time, has held roles in Child Protection, Out of Home Care and Women’s Health services.

Cathy Humphreys is Professor of Social Work at University of Melbourne. She was a founding member of the Melbourne Research Alliance to End Violence Against Women and their Children (MAEVE) and a chief investigator on the Safer Families NHMRC Centre for Research Excellence. Her research focuses on domestic and family violence (DFV) and child abuse. She has a long term interest in ensuring that the voices and experiences of children are visible and they are acknowledged as primary victims of child abuse and domestic and family violence. She has held 20 Category 1 grants funded from ARC, NHMRC and ANROWS including the ARC DICE linkage project, Disrupting Child Sexual Exploitation. She has recent projects working in partnership with David Mandel at the Safe & Together Institute. She lived and worked in England at the University of Warwick from 1994-2006. In 2006, she returned to Australia to take up a research professor at University of Melbourne. In her early career, she worked for 15 years as a social worker in Qld and NSW.