Phase Two of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is the roll out across Regional NSW from July 1, 2017. Already available across South Western Sydney, Western Sydney, Northern Sydney and Nepean Blue Mountains the new access areas will include the Sydney, Sydney Eastern and Illawarra Shoalhaven districts – check this interactive map to see if and when it will be available in your area.
So what exactly is the NDIS and how do you go about accessing it?
The NDIS is a person-centric approach to funding for disabilities, devised by the Australian Government to give people more control and choice.
The NDIS enables eligible participants to develop a plan in collaboration with a Local Area Coordinator of what they would like to achieve without the limits formerly imposed by funding, this gives participants and families more control, allowing them to choose who they work with. That may be Government or community organisations, or it may be registered external providers such as Zest Care.
According to the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), which administers the scheme, once it is fully instituted “people with disabilities will have the reasonable and necessary supports that enable a fuller participation in our society and economy.”
There are key criteria for accessing the NDIS. You must:
- Have a disability which is permanent or likely to be permanent
- Have Australian Residency
- Be under 65 years of age.
- Live in an area where the NDIS is available.
To be eligible your disability may be a physical disability – for example, you may need assistance with activities of daily living, accessing the community, participating in social or civic activities. It may also be another form of disability such as psychiatric, neurological, cognitive, intellectual or sensory.
- It may also be that you need some Supports now to reduce your Support needs in the future (Early Intervention).
To access the NDIS early intervention Supports, you/your child needs to have an impairment that is likely to be lifelong, or be a child under 6 with a developmental delay which means you/your child needs more assistance than another child of a similar age.
NDIS Early Intervention Supports are additional to those provided by Health and Education services and are designed to reduce or stop the impact of a condition.
Click here for the full NDIS access checklist.
A diverse range of disabilities are covered by the NDIS, including any condition that restricts a person’s mental, sensory or mobility functions.
Zest Care is a registered NDIS provider working across Sydney and Regional NSW – our professional and experienced disability workers are already helping many clients fulfill their NDIS plan.
We can assist you in meeting your goals. If you haven’t yet applied for the NDIS, please contact us today and we will guide you through the process, as well as the ways in which we can assist you.
Resources:
https://www.ndis.gov.au/about-us.html
https://www.ndis.gov.au/html/sites/default/files/NDIA_Corporate_Plan_2016_2021_(accessible).pdf
Https://www.everyaustraliancounts.com.au/about-ndis/