What support workers are
A support worker is someone who works with people with disability. Support workers can work for a company or for themselves.
They can be registered or unregistered.
What support workers are for
Support workers help you develop your skills and work towards your goals. This means you can use your funding to pay for support workers.
The care you receive from your support worker will depend on what your goals are and what your funding covers.
Household support
They can help you at home.
They can also help build your skills and independence to do things for yourself like preparing and cooking meals, cleaning the house or running errands, depending on your goals.
Personal care support
They can provide personal care when it's needed. This may include general hygiene, dressing or helping you take your medication.
The level of help depends on your needs.
Daily activities support
They can help with daily chores, including shopping or transport.
This might include going for an outing or attending a medical appointment, helping you build your confidence to access the community.
Community support
They can help you attend social events or join in activities to boost your community participation.
This might include attending farmer’s markets or social craft groups.
What working with a support worker is like
Support work looks different depending on your needs
Who you work with, what you do together and how often you engage them depends on:
- your goals
- what you need
- the NDIS supports in your plan.
You’re in control of who you work with and when
You can choose who you work with when you want to work with a support worker.
It’s a good idea to make sure your support workers have completed an NDIS worker screening check. This is a national assessment which makes sure the person is suitable to work with people with disability.
You can choose what kind of support you receive and when that support is delivered.
We suggest you make a service agreement with your support worker. Service agreements make it clear what you and your provider have agreed to.