Workshop
A one-day workshop for CEOs and senior executives of disability service providers is being run as part of the ASID 2026 Conference program. The workshop will explore how to lead for quality and safety in supporting adults with intellectual disabilities.
Leading for quality and safety in supporting people with intellectual disability: a workshop for CEOs and Senior Executives
Wednesday, 21 October 2026
9.00 am – 4.00 pm
Novotel Christchurch Cathedral | 52 Cathedral Square, Christchurch
$495 per ticket NZD (includes catered breaks and workshop materials)
This workshop explores how CEOs and senior executives of disability service providers can lead for quality and safe practice. Focusing on those providers with a substantial clientele of adults with intellectual disabilities, it is especially tailored to those organisations providing supported accommodation services.
Good quality services, and safe services, are – of course – two sides of the same coin.
The first part of the workshop, led by Professor Christine Bigby, will focus on leadership and capacity for quality support:
- Understanding evidence-based practice about promoting quality of life for the people you support
- How to lead for quality and safety
- Understanding culture in group homes
- Organisational practices to embed quality support, and
- Risks inherent in poor quality practice and leadership.
The second part of the workshop, led by Dr Alan Hough, will focus on learning from legal cases about risks turning into actual harm to people supported and workers. Using case studies, we will identify lessons for leaders about practice and build a framework of risk and risk mitigation strategies.
In keeping with the audience, this workshop will be highly interactive, using small group work to explore the issues.
Who should attend this workshop
- CEOs and senior executives of disability service providers which,
- have a substantial clientele of adults with intellectual disability.
Please note that the workshop does not cover employment services.
Registration
Registration for this workshop is currently open to those attending the ASID 2026 conference.
Places are limited to ensure an interactive, small-group experience.
If you would like to attend the workshop only and are not registered for the conference, please email conference@asid.asn.au to enquire about availability.
About the workshop facilitators
Emeritus Professor Christine Bigby AO was the Director of the Living with Disability Research Centre, La Trobe University, Melbourne until December 2014. The focus of Chris’s research is policy issues, programme effectiveness and frontline practice that support quality of life for people with intellectual disabilities. With Alan, Christine is co-editor of Disability practice: Safeguarding quality service delivery. Christine is the author or editor of nine other books and 200 journal articles on disability-related issues. She currently serves as President of the Australasian Society for Intellectual Disability, and as a director of a disability service provider.
Dr Alan Hough is a consultant with and director of Purpose at Work, Canberra and an adjunct professor at the Living with Disability Research Centre at La Trobe University. Alan has published on disability service provider governance, quality and safeguarding, and regulation. Alan currently serves as a director of the Australasian Society for Intellectual Disability.