Centre for Disability Employment Research and Practice

Centre for Disability Employment Research and Practice CDERP develops applied, system-level solutions to complex employment challenges. These programs are available for NDIS self and plan-managed clients.

Our work equips practitioners, informs policymakers, supports employers, and strengthens the capacity of individuals and families to navigate work in real-world conditions. Our research, consulting and disability / Customised Employment training programs underpin the Work First Disability Employment and Mental Health Services.

22/02/2026

Conceptual Foundations of the Customised Employment Quality Assurance Framework
The Customised Employment Quality Assurance Framework is grounded in a simple but consequential proposition: quality in disability employment systems cannot be reduced to isolated practices, individual competence, or compliance artefacts. While each of these element’s matters, none is sufficient on its own. Quality emerges from the interaction between workforce capability, organisational infrastructure, and the lived experience of participants and employers over time. CEQAF is therefore conceived not as a tool for verifying performance at a single point, but as a framework for shaping the conditions under which effective practice can be sustained.
At the core of CEQAF is an understanding of Customised Employment as an intentional practice model. Customised Employment is not defined by a menu of techniques that can be selected or omitted without consequence. Practices such as Discovery, individualised job design, negotiated roles, and systematic fading of supports function as interdependent mechanisms. When enacted with fidelity, they reshape the relationship between job seeker, employer, and support system, producing employment that is both personally meaningful and economically viable. The integrity of the model depends not on the presence of individual components, but on how they are sequenced, integrated, and sustained in real-world contexts.

More certified CE professionals.
16/02/2026

More certified CE professionals.

Today we welcome Lyndsey, Leonie and Jade to the ranks of Australian ACRE certified Customised Employment professionals. You'll find Jade in Brisbane, Lyndsey in Perth and Leonie in Devonport. Congrats to all.

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/peter-smith-54a50844_customisedemployment-familydiscovery-cderp-activity-7428552394512257...
14/02/2026

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/peter-smith-54a50844_customisedemployment-familydiscovery-cderp-activity-7428552394512257024-ZIPo?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAlUdQoBgHkotdFDTt5Oa7WVDgOqbhKXB3s

A visual representation of Family Discovery from the Family Discovery paper published last week in JHRS. As more of our Customised Employment and disability research is published, this feeds into our ACRE accredited Customised Employment training, making it the most advanced CE training available. P...

Family Discovery paper, out online now.
11/02/2026

Family Discovery paper, out online now.

My Family Discovery paper is now out online. One more part of our research agenda developing Customised Employment and Discovery within our systems model.

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Suite 403, 198 Harbour Esplanade
Melbourne, VIC
3008

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+61423035863

Website

https://linktr.ee/CDERP

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