Upcoming professional development opportunities
Tough Conversations™ in Child Protection
Practical tools for complex conversations
Professionals working in child protection are often required to lead conversations that are complex, emotionally charged, and difficult to navigate. Tough Conversations™ in Child Protection is a one-day professional learning course designed to help you approach these moments with greater clarity, calm and confidence.
This workshop is specifically tailored for child protection and family support workers. It offers practical tools and techniques to help you engage parents in constructive dialogue, even when the subject matter is sensitive or the stakes are high.
During this course, you will learn how to:
Prepare effectively for challenging conversations
Communicate messages with clarity and purpose
Build trust while maintaining professional boundaries
Support families to stay engaged and take meaningful steps forward
The content is grounded in real-world practice and reflects the day-to-day demands of working with vulnerable families. Whether you are addressing resistance, setting expectations, or discussing next steps, this training will help you hold conversations that lead to positive outcomes.
Live webinar | 16 September | Full day training
Organisations can also arrange for this training to be delivered in-house, building your team’s capacity to guide clients through change and improve outcomes across family support and child protection services.
To enquire about in-house training options, email service@parentshop.com.au
Tough Conversations™ for Frontline Staff
Equip your staff to smooth tough talks
Frontline staff are often the first to face the pressure. They answer the phones, greet visitors, and manage the moments when frustration spills over. They are the steady presence when tensions run high — yet they are rarely given the tools to handle those situations with confidence.
Tough Conversations™ for Frontline Staff is a one-day, practical workshop designed to change that. This training gives frontline professionals a clear structure, practical language, and techniques they can use in real time when conversations become challenging.
Whether someone is upset, uncooperative, or demanding more than you can offer, this course equips you with calm, effective ways to manage the situation professionally.
Participants will learn:
A simple framework for preparing and navigating difficult interactions
How to stay composed under pressure
Language that defuses tension and sets clear boundaries
Tools to protect professional relationships without being drawn into conflict
What sets this training apart is its foundation in real-world frontline experience, combined with evidence from psychology, neuroscience and communication research. It’s practical, relevant, and immediately applicable.
If your frontline staff are the ones holding it all together, give them the support they need to do their work with clarity, confidence and care — no matter what the day brings.
Face to face | 18 September | Hobart | Full day training | Morning tea, lunch and training materials provided
Cost: $460 inc. GST
Anxiety Coach™ for Child & Family Specialists
Support parents to build resilience in anxious children
Anxiety Coach™ for Child & Family Specialists is a one-day professional learning course designed for people working with parents and children aged 4 to 12. It gives you the practical tools and knowledge to help families recognise the early signs of anxiety, respond with confidence, and build emotional resilience in children.
The course is built on three key principles:
Anxiety follows a pattern. When adults understand how it develops, they can help prevent it from taking hold.
Prevention starts early. Parents can play a key role in reducing worry and emotional avoidance before problems escalate.
Resilience can be taught. Everyday strategies can help children become more flexible in their thinking and more confident in facing challenges.
This training is practical, evidence-informed, and tailored for professionals who support families in early intervention, education, health or community settings.
Want to teach the program to parents?
You can choose to become a certified parent educator. Certification gives you access to a full suite of resources to present the program directly to parents in one-on-one or group settings.
Certification includes:
Presentation and facilitator materials
Access to high-quality program content
Ongoing support through a structured refresher system
Certification fees:
First year: $69
Annual renewal: $49
A refresher is required every five years and includes certification for that year
This is a practical and flexible pathway for professionals who want to offer structured anxiety support to the families they work with.
Live webinar | 30 October | Full day training
Cost: $410 inc. GST
Refresher course cost: $189 inc. GST
1-2-3 Magic® & Emotion Coaching
Teach parents simple strategies that work
1-2-3 Magic® & Emotion Coaching is a practical, evidence-informed approach that helps parents respond calmly and effectively when behaviour gets challenging. It’s built on two core ideas:
Children can learn to handle frustration and big emotions with greater flexibility
Parents and carers can be taught clear, easy-to-use strategies to guide behaviour in the moments that matter most
This professional learning course is designed for educators, counsellors and community workers who support families. Through a mix of role-play, video examples, group discussions and worksheets, you’ll gain the skills and confidence to deliver the program in your own setting.
Those who want to deliver the program to parents must complete certification. Becoming a certified parent educator gives you access to all the resources you need — including presentation slides, facilitator notes, and parent-facing materials — to ensure the program is delivered consistently and effectively.
Whether you're supporting families one-on-one or running group sessions, this training gives you a proven framework for helping parents build stronger, calmer relationships with their children.
Live webinar | 17 October | Full day training
Live webinar | 6 November | Full day training
Live webinar | 8 December | Full day training
Cost: $410 inc. GST
Refresher course cost: $189 inc. GST
1-2-3 Magic® & Emotion Coaching for Special Needs
Supporting special needs children with tailored emotional and behavioural strategies
Supporting children with special needs in their emotional and behavioural development calls for clarity, patience, and a flexible approach. The 1-2-3 Magic® & Emotion Coaching for Special Needs program provides a structured framework that can be adapted to each child’s unique needs while maintaining consistency and allowing processing time. This program equips parents with practical tools to manage behaviour calmly and compassionately.
Children with diagnoses such as autism, ADHD, intellectual disability, or communication delays often process information differently and may respond to behavioural cues in ways influenced by sensory sensitivities, regulation difficulties, or cognitive differences. Effective behaviour support must respect each child’s developmental profile and their right to feel safe and understood.
Live webinar | 16 October | Half day training
Attendees must be a certified 1-2-3 Magic® & Emotion Coaching parent educator.
Cost: $189 inc. GST
Engaging Adolescents™ for Child and Family Specialists
A practical workshop for professionals working with adolescents and families
This one-day workshop offers professionals practical, easy-to-use techniques to help adolescents take responsibility for their behaviour and emotional responses. It is designed for those supporting teenagers and their families in education, counselling, family support, or allied health settings.
Participants will learn how to:
Build strong, respectful relationships with teenagers
Support parents in connecting with their teen and holding boundaries effectively
Respond to unacceptable behaviour without escalating conflict
Guide parents through conversations that avoid arguments and shutdowns
The training includes role-play, group discussions, videos, and practical worksheets to ensure participants leave with skills they can apply immediately in their professional work.
For those interested in further professional development, this course also provides the foundation for certification as an Engaging Adolescents™ for Child and Family Specialists parent educator. Certification enables professionals to deliver the program to parent groups or use its key strategies in one-on-one clinical settings.
Live webinar | 5 December | Full day training
Cost: $410 inc. GST
Refresher course cost: $189 inc. GST