Info & Questions from NDIS Law Changes Webinar Today
NDIS Meeting, 1:00-2:00pm, 7 October, 2026, via Microsoft Teams.
Sign up for additional meetings here: https://www.ndis.gov.au/news/events
They went through the slides quite quickly and they were dense with information, some of it I already was aware of, and other things were new. I believe that they will be uploading the webinar to their site at some point, it seems that there are other presentations available there. (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTwZ-K9vkmo4hiYd9JJ31HfJ5hkKYP7Mn) The provided information was helpful in some ways, but also just left me with even more questions than before. Some of the answers to questions were simply that they weren’t sure yet, and more information would become available as it was determined by the agency or other organisations that are responsible for the implementation.
Links that were shared on slides during the NDIS Participant Webinar today:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZpeOQtF2gA
https://ndis.gov.au/news/11695-changes-support-budgets-1-october
https://www.ndis.gov.au/changes-ndis/new-way-planning
https://engage.ndis.gov.au/projects/tell-us-what-you-want-to-know-about-ndis-reforms
https://engage.ndis.gov.au/projects/test-the-new-way-of-planning
https://engage.ndis.gov.au/page/participant-first
These are the questions that I was able to capture from the Q&A window. Very few were addressed despite the many votes which were entered on questions from others. The questions submitted during the registration process did not seem to be addressed. I was pleased to see how many people were able to join the call and that everyone was active in addressing the many questions, concerns, clarifications, and issues that have arisen as this information is released to the public. Also some of the q's are incomplete and instead say “see more” as the text was condensed. Apologies! I’ve removed the names in case people are concerned for privacy.
Previously we have been advised to use SECP for employment support as its flexible. Now it will be cut, and yet we using it for employment training, skills, vol...see more
What does progressively reset mean?
If you have an established multi year plan (eg 5 year plan) that you are only 2 years through, will you be impacted by the SCCP cuts before the next scheduled plan review (in this example in 3 years time)?
Will funding be cut if we have a plan continuation before Feb 27?
In relation to the support determinations-Why is informal support not recognised when looking at 24/7 support for a plan variation for a participant who cannot be left alone for any amount of time?
Plan Suspensions - Will this only happen if the Participant has been contacted by their nominated preferred method of contact or will calls still come from "private numbers" at odd hours with no direct return number to call back, and with hit and miss leaving of messages. Will the Participant's preferred method of contact be strictly adhered to?
Will Participant plan reassessment consider functional capacity impacts that are not necessarily directly related to disabilities "recognised" by NDIS. e.g. how would a participant with ASD2 who also has other chronic health conditions which severely impact their day to day life (but which are not treatable) be considered at NDIS reassessment?
Some participants have 24/7 support, but not all of which is ndis support
If you have had a plan approval recently but are now going via the ART disputing only one section e.g. one support within Improved Daily Living budget. Will the entire plan be reviewed at the same time. i.e. could you lose in another area whilst seeking a review in a specific area. And then end up worse off.
How do we know if supports will be 'cut' PRIOR to this occurring?
Information gathering powers and civil penalties - Participants & providers may need to give requested info etc - will Privacy Laws be adhered to eg. will participants and providers be required to hand over their phones or laptops or have all particular communications "subpoenaed"?
Does parental responsibility extend to disabled individuals over 18 years old?
Some participants are non verbal, have no plan nominee or guardian, they are not able to respond when ndis check in, will they be cut off after 5 attempts?
So under mandatory rego, will only registered support workers be able to do ADL's, no independent 1-person unregistered support workers helping at home?
can you still be self managed after October 2027?
Will Participants be still able to use cleaners, home maintenance, gardeners, hairdressers, meal preppers etc provided by specified businesses? Will they need to have an NDIS Workers Screening Check? Will they need to be registered with the NDIS?
Plan Manager panel - how will it be determined which plan manager meet NDIA panel requisite?
What is the new criteria that will be used to decide what supports are reasonable and necessary?
Will people be able to continue to use independent unregistered providers if they are coordinating and scheduling supports as per the SIL registration?
Support coordination & connection service - what happens to a participant who has funds for this - do they then transition to the new service? OR does this get 'assessed' again?
If I use a registered SIL provider for half of my weekly support, can I still use my independent support workers (unregistered) if I am scheduling that part of ...see more
Can I continue to use my unregistered support worker (who charges less per hour than registered ones) for assistance within the home given that I have an establ...see more
If a plan has been 'rolled over' - when is this 'reassessed'?
No documentation I have seen addresses that community participation budget is often used to attend medical appointments. A 50% cut would have an awful impact on my ability to attend necessary medical appointments…
Is the 50% reduction based on what is funded in your plan now? So for example, if a participant is funded to attend 4 days at a day program, their funding wil...see more
Do the changes also apply for children who are needing support to learn daily living skills?
In terms of SIL we have had a different answer for Q&S and another from the NDIA directly. It is very confusing when this is all done via email and noone will s...see more
Are we able to check with NDIS if a participant is 'High Support'?
How will u know if its employment supports when its in SCEP?
Do we need to have another functional capacity assessment done before the plan renewal date?
will evidence from treating medical professionals/support teams be considered during plan reviews under the new way of planning?
Are you going to be doing easy read info about who can request plan assessment as some people are not eligible is that correct
(I am going to email these unanswered questions to the NDIS and hope that someone from their Comms team will take ownership and attempt to answer as many as they are able to, I will report back if I am able to receive a response!)
Impression:
I remain quite concerned that between the number of staff that they are meant to let go, plus the apparent annual plan “variation” or “reassessment” (please god someone help me understand what the difference is between these, and why they would create this confusing delineation, which they themselves have noted is confusing?!) schedule is going to create a tsunami of work that they are unprepared and ill equipped for. I can only imagine that this creates budget challenges for their staffing, as well as longer wait times and more mistakes as far as participants are concerned. I’ve also just realised that my lovely support coordinator will soon be out of a job, and they have been invaluable to me in learning how to navigate this system. It seems as though plan management will become required, and as a self-managed participant I am very against this, though it was inferred and not explicitly stated. I hope that I am mistaken! I have an unregistered AMAZING SW who is less expensive than the NDIS rate, which is what I would call “value for money” as they say, and I am going to attempt to cover the costs of their registration as it seems that it will be required. Does anyone have any visibility into what the registration requirements and/or fees are?
I’m glad that I found out about this session, from signing up for all of the email newsletters that I could find within the NDIS site. I will be attending as many as I can to try and document the information that is being shared, and I will do my best to share it here as well as I am able. I am petrified about the changes, and the announcement that they had been brought forward was alarming. Hopefully we can all support each other through this transition and work together to make sure that no one falls through the cracks during all of this. I am concerned that there will be awful consequences of all of this, these are people’s lives that are being rearranged and redefined, I hope that fact is always front of mind for anyone who is employed within the NIDA. I would imagine it’s quite difficult for everyone working there, as well, but I am choosing to focus on the vulnerable disabled community that will need even more support through all of these changes, for better or worse. <3
My written notes are too shoddy to share publicly, sadly, due to how fast they went through everything! Was anyone else in attendance, and did you leave with any different impressions? Would love to hear thoughts from others who were present, I may have been yelling at my computer during moments of it!