Q and A - 19 January 2018

A Yoga instructor in my area is trained in trauma informed therapies. NDIS sees the benefits of yoga for people with disabilities, so will the Scheme fund it?

Yoga instructors are not included as NDIS registered professionals who may provide NDIS therapeutic supports.

A participant’s NDIS plan supports could be used to help with getting you to and from a yoga class (such as public transport training and assistance to access the community).

Where there are disability related barriers to taking part in daily life activities and achieving your goals due to the functional impairment related to your disability, then the NDIA may consider supports to help you to reach your goals and enjoy participating in a range of activities like others do.

Meaning if the yoga classes assist you to reach your goals of social participation or independence, your NDIS plan may be used to access the additional assistance you may need so you can take part in yoga classes.

The NDIS is unable to fund the cost charged for yoga classes as a therapy support or costs of standard items generally used during yoga activities because they are not disability specific and are considered an everyday living cost anyone with or without disability, choosing that social activity, would have to pay.

The types of supports will vary in each participant’s plan, depending on the plan goals, the individual disability related needs and the supports you need to reach your goals.

During your planning conversation, identify your goals and the supports you need to achieve them. Sometimes it can include looking into mainstream and community supports too.

Where can I find who my LAC is?

Local Area Coordinators (LACs) are organisations who have partnered with the NDIA to deliver the NDIS. You can find LACs in your area. Don’t worry if you can’t find a LAC near you yet. As the NDIS continues to roll out, more LACs will become available in communities across Australia.

LACs have three key roles:

  • They will link you to the NDIS. For a majority of participants, LACs will work with you to develop your plan, help you implement and monitor how your plan is going, and review your progress regularly.
  • Link you to information and support in the community and mainstream services such as health and education, and
  • Work with their local community to make sure it is more welcoming and inclusive for people with disability.

How long will it take for my access request to be processed?

As the NDIS rolls out to even more new locations we are receiving a very high number of requests from people to access the scheme. To meet this need, the NDIA is working hard to make sure our responses are timely and efficient.

After you have submitted a valid access request, the NDIA must respond within 21 days of receiving the valid access request form. You can find more information about this in the NDIA Operational Guidelines. This timeframe applies to a person who resides in an NDIS area, and who has made a valid request with all relevant information and evidence about their disability or impairment.

In some cases, the NDIA may need more documents, assessments or evidence, which means it might take longer for your request to be assessed.
Here are some things you can do to assist us to process your request as soon as possible:

  • Go to our website to find out when the NDIS is available in your area and how you can prepare to access the NDIS.
  • If you are submitting an Access Request Form, make sure it is complete and signed, with all your information attached
  • If you have already submitted an access request and received a letter from the NDIS saying we will be contacting you, make sure you have information on hand about the impact of your impairment or disability with you
  • If you have a Centrelink Reference Number, providing this will mean we can confirm your age and residence without requesting additional documents

Your LAC or Early Childhood partner can provide support and review your access request form prior to submitting it to the NDIA.

What kind of things come under ‘other government supports?

While the NDIS is expected to provide disability supports for over 460,000 Australians with a significant and permanent disability, it is not intended to replace other services that are available to all Australians, such as health, education, employment, transport, aged care, justice and housing.

NDIS funded plans are additional to any other supports that people may be eligible to receive from other government services such as the Disability Support Pension, Carers Allowance or Health Care Card.

NDIS plans are goal orientated, and will provide support to access and connect with other services that can also help you to achieve better outcomes in life.
For example, your goal could be to independently catch the bus to school, work or a community event, so the NDIS may fund public transport training to enable you to use the local bus service.

Or, your goal could be to move out of your family home, so the NDIS may support you to build your capacity to help you to live independently. Because the NDIS is not intended to replace other available services, you will still need to independently access support through different government funded sectors.

For example:

  • You may access the health system to visit your doctor, dentist, or local hospital,
  • You may access the transport system to catch the bus to work, school or community events,
  • Or you may access the education system to go to School, TAFE or University.

The NDIS is a supporting system that enables people living disability to access, use and benefit from other services that are available to all Australians. For more information, watch the NDIS and other available supports video on YouTube (external).

How can I get information from the NDIS in Braille?

The NDIA has an agreement with Vision Australia to provide copies of your plan and other correspondence in a variety of accessible formats, at no cost to the participant:

  • Braille
  • Electronic text (on CD)
  • Large print
  • Audio (on CD)

You can request a copy of our publications or a copy of your plan by speaking with your LAC who will be able to organise printing in Braille. You will generally receive the requested documents within 7 days.

There’s more information on accessible printed formats here.

I’ve heard my provider can see what’s in my plan. Is it true?

At the beginning of December 2017, the NDIS made some changes to the myplace participant portal. The changes mean you or your nominee will now have the option to share parts of your plan with providers who have an active service booking with you.

You can provide consent through the myplace portal or by visiting an NDIA or LAC partner office.

If you agree to share your plan with providers they will be able to see basic plan details which include;

  • Your name
  • NDIS number
  • Date of birth
  • Gender
  • Your goals
  • If you have a nominee
  • If you need an interpreter

It's important to remember that it is your decision to allow providers to access parts of your plan and providers cannot require you to give access.

You may choose to share your information with some providers and not others.