Lead the Way Conference 2026

2 & 3rd September, 2026 | Melbourne & Online

Building Safer, Healthier and More Resilient Communities, Schools and Sectors

Mark your calendars! The highly anticipated Lead the Way Conference is returning in 2026. This year join over 1000+ professionals from schools, education settings, community services, child and family services and government to collectively explore how we create environments that strengthen child, youth and staff safety and wellbeing.

Building on the success of previous years, the 2026 conference will feature inspiring keynote speakers, cutting-edge research, practical case studies, and interactive workshops. It's an essential event for anyone committed to creating lasting positive change in schools, community services, and care-focused organisations.

This year we will deliver the conference as hybrid with 500 joining in-person at The Rydges Hotel, Melbourne, and over 500+ joining online.

This unique conference provides an unparalleled opportunity to connect with peers, share best practices, and develop actionable strategies that will enhance the wellbeing of students, professionals, and communities across all sectors.

Key Dates:

🔹 Conference Dates: Wednesday 2nd – Thursday 3rd September 2026

🔹 Location: Melbourne, VIC (The Rydges Hotel, Exhibition St) and Online

🔹 Registrations Open

Why Attend Lead the Way 2026?

The Lead the Way Conference continues to be a premier event, offering unparalleled opportunities to learn, engage, and connect with 1000+ professionals dedicated to making a difference. Whether you're in schools, education, community services, or government, you’ll gain valuable insights to transform workplace culture, leadership, and wellbeing.

This conference provides a platform for:

🔹 Inspiring Keynotes: Hear from leading voices on trauma-informed practice, cultural change, and collaborative approaches to wellbeing, tailored for the 2026 landscape.

🔹 Evidence-Based Strategies: Gain practical, research-backed tools to create safe and supportive environments for the future.

🔹 Real-World Case Studies: Learn from innovative approaches and successful cultural transformations implemented across various sectors.

🔹 Cross-Sector Collaboration: Network with professionals from diverse fields to exchange ideas and foster partnerships that drive collective impact.

🔹 Interactive Learning: Participate in engaging workshops designed to equip you with actionable strategies and frameworks for immediate application.

Who Should Attend?

Lead the Way Conference 2026 is designed for a broad audience committed to safety, wellbeing, and collaboration, including:

🔹 School principals, leaders, wellbeing coordinators, and educators from primary and secondary settings

🔹 CEOs, leaders, and managers in community services and mental health organisations

🔹 Child protection specialists and policymakers

🔹 Government and sector leaders focused on safety and inclusion initiatives

🔹 Researchers and academics contributing to evidence-based practice and innovation

Conference Theme: 'Enduring Wisdom, Emerging Futures: Strength in What We Know, Co‑Creating What Comes Next'

This year's theme prompts presenters and attendees to reflect on our wold becoming increasingly complex while our work remains fundamentally accountable for child and young person safety, workforce wellbeing, and meaningful outcomes.

In an ever-evolving, uncertain and complex world, sustainable progress towards improved child and staff safety and wellbeing depends on being precise about what we know works, deliberate in how we lead, and disciplined in how we translate knowledge into action.

Speakers will explore the theme Enduring Wisdom, Emerging Futures and the critical question How can we draw on evidence, research, best practice and lived experience to continue strengthening child and staff safety and wellbeing in a rapidly evolving and uncertain context?

Enduring wisdom, in this context, is about drawing on research, evidence, evaluation, accumulated practice knowledge, and the lived experience of our children, young people, families, and communities to guide the futures we are co-creating.

Call for Abstracts

We invite submissions that showcase innovative approaches to strengthening safety, wellbeing, relationships, and emotional intelligence for children, young people, adults, and communities.

We welcome research, practice, leadership, policy, and lived experience presentations aligned to our theme and one of three presentation streams:

1. Understand (why this matters) - presentations which deepen insights and knowledge

2. Lead (how we create the environment which will help others realise their potential) - our organisational practice, cultures and governance

3. Act (how we respond) - what actually changes outcomes in the day-to-day

Abstract submissions close 5pm 28th March 2026.

Stay Up-to-date

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Interested in Sponsoring 2026?

Sponsor or Exhibit: If you're interested in partnering with us or showcasing your organisation at the 2026 conference, please email: institute@mackillop.org.au to discuss sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities.

Join us at Lead the Way Conference 2026 as we continue to work together to shape the future of safe, trauma-informed, and inclusive communities.