Friday 17 April 2026
9.45am – 4.00pm (Registration from 9.00am)
ANMF House, 535 Elizabeth St, Melbourne
The Collaborative Centre invites you to Reform in Practice, a sector engagement day designed to bring people together from across Victoria’s mental health and wellbeing system to share learning and explore reform in action.
The day has been structured to support different ways of engaging. Plenary sessions in the lecture theatre will bring the whole room together for shared conversations, presentations and reflections. Alongside this, our Connections Corner and exhibition spaces will offer opportunities to explore tools, initiatives and programs from across the sector, and to connect directly with the people behind them. Interactive sessions throughout the day will create space for discussion, reflection and exchange across clinical, community, research and Lived and Living Experience perspectives.
Together, these spaces aim to support both collective learning and practical application, helping people to connect ideas, evidence and practice in ways that are meaningful for their work.
We are committed to making the day as accessible and inclusive as possible. Auslan interpreters will be present in the lecture theatre, and a sensory room will be available for anyone who may need a quieter space during the day. Accessibility needs, including dietary requirements, can be shared during registration. If there are other ways we can support your participation, we encourage you to let us know.
Program
| Time | Moderator | Lecture Theatre | Connections Corner 1 | Connections Corner 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9.00am — Registration Opens & Coffee | ||||
| 9.50am | Sarah Wilson - CEO, Collaborative Centre | Welcome |
1 NEXUS
2 VMIAC
3 Discovery College
4 Orygen
5 Harm Reduction Vic (HRVic)
6 Eating Disorders Vic
7 Barwon Health
8 Consumer Academic Program
9 Hamilton Centre/Turning Point/Spectrum
10 The Collective/SHARC/HRVic
11 inside out & associates australia
|
1 Department of Health - Workforce Team
2 University of Melbourne - Modelling Exercise
3 Royal Melbourne Hospital MHS - Wellness on Wheels
4 Royal Melbourne Hospital MHS - Open Dialogue
5 Collaborative Centre (CC) - Shout-Out Wall
6 CC Knowledge Sharing Platform
7 CC Lived & Living Experience Workforce
8 CC Workforce - Spotlights Series
9 CC Workforce - Entry Level Training Series
10 CC Workforce - World Social Work Day Installation
|
| 10.00am | Bridget Hamilton - Board Member, Collaborative Centre & Director, Centre for Mental Health Nursing | Open Dialogue | ||
| 11.00am | Paul Barclay - Broadcaster/journalist | Working it out Together — Toolkit Launch | ||
| 12.00pm | Lunch | |||
| 1.00 pm | Emma Cadogan - Director Workforce Development, Collaborative Centre |
Spotlight Presentations
1. From Promises to Pastries: How a Co-designed After Hours Pilot Comes to Life
Jan Holt & Tharindu Jayadeva, Bayside Alfred Care
2. The Mindful Model — Building Mental Health Workforce Capacity & Capability
Dr Claire Burton & A/Prof Frances Saunders, Mindful
3. Policies and Research to Improve Outcomes and Equity for People with Psychosocial Disability
Prof Kirsten Deane & Dr Yi Yang, Melbourne Disability Institute
4. Learning through Reform: Guest (Consumer), Workforce, and System Impacts from the Early Implementation of Medicare Mental Health Centres Dr Priscilla Ennals, Neami National
|
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| 2.00pm | Jason Thompson - Professor of Mental Health System Reform, University of Melbourne |
Best Practice Deep Dive
Eliminating Seclusion - from Dream to Reality
Rebecca Thompson & Carol Grady, Bayside Peninsula Care
|
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| 3.00pm | Jacqui Sundbery - Senior Lived Experience Sector Partnerships Officer, Collaborative Centre |
Spotlight Presentations
1. Beyond Silos: Strengthening the Lived & Living Experience Workforce through Collaboration
Tali Brash, Shay Elliot, Kylie Brown & Fiona Anderson, The Collective
2. Australia's National Suicide Prevention Strategy: A public health approach to suicide prevention
Jane Pirkis, Centre for Mental Health & Community Wellbeing, UoM
3. Family Inclusive Practice for Families where a Parent Experiences Mental Illness
Hanna Jewell, The Bouverie Centre
4. Mental Health Improvement Program
Shaina Serelson, Safer Care Vic
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| 4.00pm | Sarah Wilson - CEO, Collaborative Centre | Close — Thank you by Sarah | ||
This event is open to people working across policy, services, research, education, community organisations and Lived and Living Experience roles.
Location
Australian Nursing and Midwifery Foundation building
535 Elizabeth St, Melbourne VIC 3000
Register today!
