Welcome to the first edition of our Participant First newsletter for Spring. We have a new opportunity for dog guide users to provide feedback about their experience with NDIS funding for a dog guide.
Sometimes we will contact you directly about feedback opportunities that are not advertised in the newsletter. We use the details from your completed information form to help us select people who have the right experience for these opportunities.
Expressions of interest close Sunday, 17 September 2023
Focus group purpose:
We are working with a group of providers, government staff and NDIS participants to create dog guide provider service standards. We say dog guides because Guide Dogs is a trademark for a group of providers, for people who are blind or have low vision.
The dog guide provider service standards we develop will describe what good service looks like. Dog guide providers who meet these service standards can apply to join a new preferred provider list which will be listed on our website. This will help NDIS participants identify and choose quality dog guide providers who agree to meet the standards. Participants won’t be required to use a provider from this list, but this will be one way for participants to find a provider.
We want to speak with NDIS participants who have had funding for a dog guide from the NDIS in the last 5 years. We also want to speak to nominees or representatives who have supported an NDIS participant to get an NDIS funded dog guide.
We want to hear about your experience with dog guide providers. We also want to know what support and service levels you think should be included in the dog guide provider service standards.
Information for Participants on improvements being made to NDIA processes
The National Disability Insurance Agency invites current NDIS participants and new applicants to the NDIS, their families and carers to join our online information sessions.
The sessions will help you learn more about NDIA’s new ways of working and the improved participant experience. It is an opportunity to hear about what is changing. These changes will start later this year.
This is just the start of our information sharing with you. Future sessions will go into more detail including how to use the new portal and app.
There are multiple sessions offered in English and information sessions are also offered in Urdu, Spanish and Dari.
For any enquiries regarding this session, please contact [email protected] and include the session name in the subject line.
On July 1st 2023, we celebrated the 10-year anniversary of the NDIS. We are viewing this as an opportunity to reflect and look forward to what we want to achieve and how we see the Agency and Scheme in the years to come. We engaged participants, families and carers to understand what we could improve on to create a better future experience for people with disabilities.
The input provided will help us develop the Agency’s Strategy. The Strategy will be focused on the Agency rather than the Scheme. Therefore, it will not consider any changes that require amendments to the NDIS Act 2013 or the intent of the Scheme.
We spoke to the Participant Reference Group and conducted eleven focus groups with Participant First members, engaging 97 people. Attendees were asked about what a good experience with the Agency looks like to them and how the Agency can make the NDIA for them and about them.
Attendees have highlighted the following themes:
Agency communications to be respectful, clear and consistent
NDIA staff to practice empathetic listening.
Understand the whole person rather than just their disability.
Not needing to retell their story multiple times.
The ability to speak to one person about their plan.
Be able to access a fair and honest market.
The Agency needs to rebuild trust with participants, families, and carers.
A desire to be part of decision-making around building plans.
The Agency needs to trust that participants are the expert in their own lives.
We will take your responses and use them to draft the Strategy. We will also keep engaging with people with a disability, participants, their families and carers to help draft the Strategy.
Reform for Outcomes Co-design Working Groups
We are committed to making sure that the NDIS delivers better outcomes for people with disability.
In May 2023, the Australian Government announced an investment into the NDIA to lift our capability, capacity, and systems to better support participants.
We are working closely with people with disability and representatives from the disability community to co-design 6 key initiatives which will ensure that the NDIS delivers better outcomes for participants.
These initiatives are focused on:
Addressing workforce capability to improve the consistency of access and planning decisions. This includes increasing the number of specialised planners.
Processes to support participants around better planning to manage their funding.
Implement a lifetime planning approach so plans are more transparent and enable flexibility for life events.
Improve the consistency of supported independent living decisions.
Help participants understand and access evidenced-based supports.
Support staff to detect, respond to, and reduce provider fraud and non-compliance.
We have worked with the Independent Advisory Council (IAC), Disability Representative and Carer Organisations (DRCO) and Participant First to establish co-design working groups.
These co-design working groups include Participant Reference Group and Participant First members.
Making sure we co-design reforms with people with disability and the disability community is critical to the success of the NDIS.
New resources to strengthen inclusion in early childhood education and care
Media release from the Minister about two men accused of NDIS fraud
Services Australia mobile service centres - NDIA visiting rural and regional NSW, QLD, TAS and WA
Other News
Supports available for people with disability now on the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) website
Referendum voting day is on 14th October 2023. The AEC have now published a number of resources to support people with a disability to vote. Please visit Referendum 2023 – Accessibility of AEC services.
We only need you to send your information form once, and nothing else.
If you need help with the form, or you have any questions, please email us or call or text us on 0436 649 469 or 0439 406 141.
Friendly reminder:
When completing the Participant First information form please make sure you press the Submit Button once only to end the session.
A box will appear at the top of the screen with Submission Completed. If you press the Submit Form a second time it will create an error message, however your form has been completed and you can now close your browser.
Invite a family member, carer or friend
If you know anyone you think might be interested in taking part in any of the opportunities or joining the Participant First Engagement Initiative, please let them know they can do so by completing the Participant First Information form (opens in new window).
General feedback and enquiries
We know sometimes you may have important general feedback or enquiries about the NDIS which does not relate to the Participant First Engagement Initiative. We'd like to remind you that you are able to submit your queries to the email addresses below: