How do I access the NDIS?

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is in place to support Australians with a permanent disability – and the wider community.

The NDIS defines this as :

” People with a permanent disability, their family and carers, by funding reasonable and necessary support for each person’s unique needs other community, health and social services, by ensuring people are connected to the right services, and all Australians, by providing a safety net for anyone who acquires a disability in the future. ”

The NDIS is expected to provide funding to around 460,000 Australians once it is rolled out across the nation.

Who is eligible for the NDIS?

Eligibility for the NDIS depends on where you live and the nature of your disability.

To access the NDIS, you must:

• Live in an NDIS trial site or transition area
• Have a permanent disability that:

• reduces your ability to participate effectively in activities, or perform tasks or actions, unless you have support, and
• affects your capacity for social and economic participation, and
• means that you are likely to require support under the NDIS for a lifetime.

You must also be

• an Australian citizen, or
• the holder of a permanent visa, or
• hold a Protected Special Category Visa, and
• be aged under 65.

Early childhood intervention

Children under 6 years old will be assessed against the NDIS criteria for early intervention. As with other early intervention programs, this assumes that there is some capacity to develop skills with the right services and supports delivered at the right time. If children require ongoing support across their lifetime they can transition into the disability stream of the NDIS.

A child may meet the early childhood intervention criteria if they are aged under 6 years of age with developmental delay which results in:

• substantially reduced functional capacity in one or more of the areas of self-care, receptive and expressive language, cognitive development or motor development, and
• results in the need for a combination and sequence of special interdisciplinary or generic care, treatment or other services which are of extended duration, and are individually planned and coordinated, and
• those supports are most appropriately funded through the NDIS, and not through another service system.

How does someone find out if they are eligible?

To find out if you are eligible for the NDIS funding, you can use an online tool called the NDIS Access Checklist.

This tool asks questions that can help you to work out if you are eligible for NDIS support.

For more information on eligibility, please visit the NDIS website or contact the National Disability Insurance Agency.

Easy English

You can ask for an Easy English guide to accessing the NDIS.

Click on Easy English Summary.

Contact

For NDIS enquiries or to purchase services using NDIS funding, please contact us:

Email: intake@wecaresupportservices.com.au

To find out more about the NDIS, please contact our Community Engagement team:

Email: ndis.infohub@wecaresupportservices.com.au