The beauty of your NDIS plan is that it is made especially for you. Depending on your unique situation and the supports you’re already receiving, as an NDIS participant, you can get funded supports ranging from transport to therapies to employment assistance to home modifications.

Before we dive into the different types of supports the NDIS recognises, let’s first discuss how the NDIS decides on the supports to fund in your plan.

Essentially, the NDIS shoulders those supports and services that will help you achieve your goals, achieve more independence, take part in your community, engage in work and other activities, and live your best life. During your NDIS planning meeting, your NDIS professional will ask you about your goals, the supports you’re currently getting, and the supports you need to get in order to determine those supports that are ‘reasonable and necessary’ for you.

What are reasonable and necessary supports?

The NDIS considers as ‘reasonable and necessary’ supports that fall under the following:

• Supports that are related to a participant’s disability
• Supports outside of day-to-day expenses that are related to the participant’s disability
• Supports that provide value for money
• Supports that are likely to be effective and not cause harm to the participant
• Supports outside of those already provided by family, friends, community and other government services

These reasonable and necessary supports fall under three main support purposes and budgets: Core Supports, Capital Supports and Capacity Building Supports. Each of these are further divided into different categories, making for a total of 15 different types.

Core Supports

Core supports are those that allow you to meet your daily needs and carry out your day-to-day activities.

1. Assistance with Daily Life – This category includes assistance you need to perform regular self-care activities and household tasks.
2. Transport – This type of support assists participants who may have difficulty getting around with their disability.
3. Consumables – This category covers items you need to purchase for everyday use, such as medical products and continence aids. Participants who have Assistive Technology needs may have funding included in their consumable budget to enable them to purchase low risk, low-cost AT.
4. Assistance with Social and Community Participation – This includes supports that allow you to take part in social and recreational activities.

Capital Supports

Capital Supports refer to higher-cost items, such as equipment and structural modifications, that improve your day-to-day life and allow you to live as independently as possible.

1. Assistive Technology – These supports include wheelchairs, communication aids, vehicle modifications and other assistive equipment.
2. Home Modifications – This category covers the design and construction of home modifications such as ramps or rails which aid in safety and independence.

Capacity Building Supports

Capacity Building refers to those training, skill-building, learning and employment supports that bring you closer to the goals outlined in your plan.

1. Support Coordination - This refers to expert assistance that strengthens your ability to coordinate your supports and to navigate the NDIS. A fixed amount for a Support Coordinator is allotted when this support is required. While often confused with plan management, they are not the same.
2. Improved Living Arrangements – These supports are intended to help a participant find and keep a home, such as assistance with applying for rental tenancy.
3. Increased Social and Community Participation – This type of support includes classes and coaching that develop the life skills necessary for greater social participation.
4. Finding and Keeping a Job – The supports in this category include assessments and guidance that aim to help you land and maintain employment.
5. Improved Relationships – This category refers to therapies and other support strategies that address behaviours of concern to promote better relationships.
6. Improved Health and Wellbeing – These supports are concerned with your health and wellbeing, such as exercise, physiology and nutrition services.
7. Improved Learning – These supports include assistance preparing your pathway to further education, including student budgeting, managing and planning your study workload, support through orientation.
8. Improved Life Choices – Supports of this type increase your ability to manage your life by providing assistance with financial tasks to assist you track your budget. NDIS plan management such as that provided by Blitzit falls under this category.
9. Improved Daily Living Skills – This category refers to allied health supports that enhance skills for daily living and independence, such as occupational therapy and speech therapy.

Got more questions about NDIS-funded supports?

With the sheer number of supports to familiarise yourself with, we understand if you have further questions. We’d love to discuss these in more detail with you. Call us at 1300 966 119, email hello@blitzit.com.au, or sign up now.  For regular updates on the NDIS and what Blitzit can do for you, sign up for our newsletter here.