Our 2026 Asia Pacific Coercive Control & Children Conference is officially scheduled for 17–19 March 2026 at Roundhouse at the heart of the University of New South Wales' (UNSW) campus in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney!
This three-day gathering will unite hundreds of practitioners, researchers, policymakers, and advocates from across the Asia Pacific region—creating unparalleled opportunities to forge connections that will advance your work long after the conference ends.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Safe & Together Model—a framework that has transformed systems worldwide to better keep children safe and together with the protective parent and to more effectively intervene with perpetrators as parents.
Since its founding in April 2006, the Institute has grown from a small, locally focused initiative into a global leader in systems change. While much work remains, this event will be a moment to both reflect on the Model's impact over the past two decades and look ahead to its future goals.
Whether in-person or virtually, join us in advancing child safety and family well-being at this groundbreaking gathering that will bring together leading practitioners, researchers, policymakers, and advocates to address one of the most pressing child protection issues of our time. This premier event will focus on innovative approaches to identifying, understanding, and responding to coercive control in families, with particular emphasis on protecting children and supporting protective parents.
Our presentations and workshops will highlight work in the following categories:
Domestic Abuse–Informed Practice: This track will help you learn about practice that impacts child safety and well-being in the context of domestic violence, frameworks, or practice models that are parallel or complementary to the Safe & Together value system, and/or practices or programs that grew out of implementation of the Safe & Together Model. Connect with innovative practitioners from across sectors who are pioneering new approaches and forming cross-system partnerships.
Indigenous-Led Approaches to Safety, Healing & Accountability with Safe & Together: Building on the findings of Whole of family approaches for addressing family violence: An Aboriginal lens on the Safe & Together Framework, this track will advance the conversation about how the Safe & Together Model can be respectfully adapted to align with Aboriginal worldviews, healing frameworks, and community priorities. Whether Torres Strait Islander, Aboriginal, Pasifika, or Māori, this track centers the leadership, voices, and knowledge systems of First Nations peoples and communities who have long led efforts to keep families safe in the face of colonisation, systemic racism, and gendered violence. Join a powerful network of First Nations leaders, allies, and communities of practice working to decolonise child protection responses.
Family Law: Building on the launch of the Safe & Together Model course for independent children's lawyers and the Institute's ongoing collaboration with the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (FCFCOA), this track will focus on transforming how family law understands and responds to domestic abuse—especially coercive control—as a parenting choice and a patterned behavior with serious implications for child and adult safety. Establish relationships with legal professionals, child protection workers, and advocates who are transforming how the justice system responds to coercive control.
Health Responses to Domestic Abuse: Building on our collaboration with the University of Melbourne and NSW Ministry of Health, this track will explore how the Safe & Together Model is reshaping the health response to domestic abuse and where we go next. Health professionals and system leaders are invited to rethink the role of health services in responding to coercive control. This includes moving from fragmented, deficit-focused approaches to integrated, trauma- and violence-informed responses grounded in clear behavioral analyses of harm. Network with health system leaders, clinicians, and researchers who are breaking down silos between health and social services.
The convergence of the Safe & Together Model’s 20th anniversary with the urgent need for innovative responses to coercive control makes this a pivotal moment in family safety and well-being. Whether you’re a seasoned practitioner, emerging leader, or system changemaker, this conference will equip you with cutting-edge knowledge, practical tools, and a powerful professional network to amplify your impact.
Early bird pricing ends 1 January 2026! Secure your place in this transformational gathering and join colleagues from across the Asia Pacific region who are committed to keeping children safe and families together.