The Centre · Events · Retreat 2026
By invitation · 10–11 November 2026 · Warburton
The CE Practitioners' Retreat 2026
Advancing practice, closing the gaps, sharing what works. Year eight of the annual CE Associates Retreat, held at Oscar's on the Yarra, Warburton.
A small room, and two days to use it well.
The Retreat brings together a small group of CE associates, ACRE-accredited practitioners, academics and service providers for two days of discussion, reflection and collaborative problem-solving around Customised Employment practice.
This is not a conference and it is not a two-day training program. It is a trusted space where experienced people can share what they are seeing, discuss difficult practice, examine emerging ideas and tools, identify gaps, and work together on how CE practice can continue to improve.
The 2026 Retreat takes place at an important point for Australian employment practice. Inclusive Employment Australia is now operating, the NDIS employment environment has changed, CE tools and practice resources have continued to develop, and practitioners are increasingly supporting people in workplaces where AI and other technologies are becoming part of ordinary work.
Where are we now, and where do we go next?
Day one compares what people are actually experiencing under IEA and NDIS, puts the updated CE tools to work, and takes on difficult practice. Day two turns to the problems the field has not yet solved and asks what we can do about them.
Two days. Eight good conversations.
The program deliberately includes substantial breaks. Morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea are part of the Retreat design, providing time for quiet conversations, informal exchange and some space away from what can be mentally demanding discussions.
How we will work
The Retreat is built around eight good conversations rather than a crowded program. Short inputs may be used to introduce an updated tool, provide evidence or provoke discussion, but they stay short enough that the majority of every session remains available to the room.
Participants are encouraged to bring:
- a difficult or unresolved CE case
- something they have changed in their practice
- something that is working particularly well
- something they think CE still gets wrong
- an idea they would like others to challenge
- examples of how work, technology or service-system change is affecting the people they support
There is no expectation that every question will be answered. A successful Retreat should leave us with some answers, some better practices, some things worth trying and some better questions than we arrived with. That has been the value of the Retreat for eight years, and it remains the purpose of Year Eight.
Attendance
The Retreat is by invitation.
Session materials, venue detail and the full program are provided to invitees. If you work in CE practice and would like to be considered for a future Retreat, or you are an invitee with a question, get in touch.