La Trobe University > Research > Research centres and institutes > Healthy people, families & communities > The Bouverie Centre > Professional and postgraduate development > Community of Practice

Community of Practice

A community for practitioners to connect, collaborate and share their learning and passion for working with families and family therapy.

Our vision is a network of family practitioners from diverse work contexts and communities, who are enriched personally and professionally through collective learning and knowledge exchange, for the benefit of all families.

Family Therapy Community of Practice

Benefits of joining the Family Therapy Community of Practice

  • Collaborate and connect with others via online forums

  • Participate in setting topics/themes for sessions

  • Access and share resources (e.g articles, useful websites etc.)

Who can join?

Practitioners who have completed family therapy training through the Bouverie Centre, including:

Format of the community

Key information

  • Bi-monthly meetings March – Dec 
    See below for session dates
  • Wednesdays 4:30 pm – 6:00 pm (AEST)
  • Online via Microsoft Teams

Moderator

The Family Therapy COP is moderated by Nella Charles, Family Therapist and Systemic Practice Consultant. She will be joined in live sessions by Alison Elliott, Family Therapist and First Nations Systemic Practice Consultant.

Online forum

Between the live sessions, we encourage community members to connect via the MS Teams platform to share resources, suggest topics and themes for upcoming sessions, participate in online discussion forums, and share highlights and challenges in their work.

2026 Live Session Dates

  • 11 March

  • 27 May

  • 22 July

  • 30 September

  • 2 December

How the live session will run

Each session will feature a particular theme or topic of interest suggested by COP members. A short presentation or sharing of experiences will form the starting point for discussion and reflection in large or small groups. There will be opportunities for networking, sharing of resources and for questions on the topic of focus or on family therapy ideas in general.

Register to join the community

Submit your registration

Please note that registrations for the COP are valid only until the end of the 2026 calendar year.

For further information

Please email us at Bouverie.Training@latrobe.edu.au for more information.

We look forward to the rich conversations and learning that comes from cross-collaboration with people working in varied work contexts and at different points in their family therapy journey.

Terms and conditions

Please ensure you have read our terms and conditions before completing your registration for the Community of Practice.

  1. Definitions
    1. Moderators / Administrators – Bouverie Centre Staff facilitating the COP session.
    2. Members – Eligible participants who have successfully completed Family Therapy studies with the Bouverie Centre.
    3. Content – Articles, publications, website links
  2. Purpose of the COP

    To facilitate connection, knowledge sharing and continued learning among practitioners with a shared interest in working with families and family therapy.

  3. Code of conduct
    1. Expectations of members

      The Family Therapy Community of Practice is built on values of mutual respect, collaboration, inclusivity, and generosity in sharing experiences, information, and contributions in service of continued learning in family therapy for the benefit of all families.  Members are expected to conduct themselves in alignment with these values and ensure their engagement with the community is respectful at all times.

    2. Role of the moderator
      1. Facilitate and guide discussions during live COP sessions.
      2. Monitor and review online forums to ensure content, posts and discussion topics are aligned the purpose, scope and values of the COP.
      3. Investigate any reported violations of the COP code of conduct.
    3. Consequences for code of conduct violation

      The Bouverie Centre holds the right to remove members from the Community of Practice at their own discretion.

  4. Content management – shared resourcing
    1. Content Ownership– Members must not share content they do not own or authored.
    2. Copyright – Content under a copyright licence must not be shared without public domain authorisation.
    3. Prohibited Content
      • Harassment
      • Hate speech
      • Spam content
      • Off-topic content (eg. Personal or political discussion)
      • Identifiable client or family information
  5. Members registration
    1. Members are required to create their own account following their registration
    2. Members must not share the details of the Microsoft Teams link with anyone, as this is a violation of the code of conduct.
    3. It's the member's responsibility to maintain the confidentiality of their account details and not to share their personal information with any person, e.g. Username and password.
  6. Data collection and privacy
    Upon registration, basic personal information will be collected and used to complete the registration and to communicate with you during your membership in the Community of Practice about matters relating to the Community of Practice only.
  7. Dispute resolution
    We welcome your feedback; please feel free to approach the moderator if you feel uncomfortable addressing the issue with them. We invite you to send written correspondence to bouverie.training@latrobe.edu.au and we will respond accordingly.
  8. Change in terms
    1. The Bouverie Centre reserves the right to change or update our terms and conditions at any time and will notify active members of this change.
    2. Members must accept the terms and conditions upon registration and review the terms and conditions regularly.