This pre-recorded webinar was held on February 18th 2026.

Trauma-informed practice has shaped our sector for many years but understanding trauma is only the beginning. Children and young people need adults, organisations, and systems that can respond in ways that strengthen safety, connection, and long-term healing.

This webinar introduces trauma-transformative practice, a way of working that moves beyond awareness to reshape how we show up, how we build relationships, and how services hold the experiences of children and young people. It offers a clearer, more grounded way to understand distress, respond with intention, and shift the environments that surround children.

Janise Mitchell, CEO of Australian Childhood Foundation, discusses what trauma-transformative practice is, why it matters, and how it is already influencing practice across the sector. Janise draws on decades of leadership and practice knowledge to share key insights, emerging thinking, and examples that help this approach come alive.

Speaker

Janise Mitchell is the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Childhood Foundation, a qualified social worker and thought leader in trauma-informed and trauma-transformative practice. With extensive experience spanning child protection, high-risk adolescents, therapeutic out-of-home care, program development and public policy, she has led the design and implementation of national and state-wide therapeutic programs, child abuse prevention initiatives and workforce education. Janise holds a Master’s degree that examined the policy and practice of therapeutic care in Australia and serves as an Adjunct Associate Professor at Southern Cross University.