Theme 4: Robust disability services Having services that provide high quality and appropriate supports for young people with intellectual disability is fundamental to improving health and wellbeing outcomes. Service provision for these young people can look very different to that provided for other groups. It requires integration with health and other mainstream services, highly specialised and well-trained support staff, and deep understandings of needs. The NDIS has been one of the most important policy reforms in the new millennium, driving the creation of a national disability service system to deliver greater choice and access to services. While the NDIS is successful in improving quality of life for many, some cohorts still face issues in accessing the services they need. This includes people with complex needs such as young people with intellectual disability.
Acquiring supports Underpinning the NDIS is an individualised planning system designed to assess the level of funding provided to a participant. Funding for supports is included in the plan based on conversations between a participant and the NDIA. This process is integral to driving a personcentred approach to acquiring supports and providing greater choice and control over services. Through our conversations with carers, we heard about significant improvements in the level of choice they had as a result of this approach. We also heard about challenges faced in acquiring appropriate supports. Many young people had delayed or no access to essential supports, largely due to the development of inappropriate plans. For young people and carers, acquiring services is not always straightforward. The NDIS is a large and complex system with an unwieldy planning process, so young people can end up with support plans that do not meet their needs. Carers reported challenging experiences with confusing planning processes that led to erroneous or inconsistent decisions on supports. They also noted feeling misunderstood by planners who appeared to have a limited understanding of the unique needs of young people with intellectual disability. Peak bodies, disability service providers and academic researchers interviewed in the study noted how the current
system lacks the flexibility or capability to support people with more complex needs. The 2019 Review of the NDIS Act 201348 highlighted challenges in the planning process for acquiring critical supports. It found the process was confusing and difficult to navigate. Key issues including miscommunication between planners and participants; disjointed planning processes; and unclear definitions of what constitutes reasonable and necessary supports (especially regarding complex support needs). The review also found planners were not provided with the training they needed to construct plans for young people with intellectual disability. We also heard about the challenges with navigating local services to acquire and utilise funding allocated in plans. The NDIS service system is large and complex, and with multiple and complex support needs, the best way to use funding in plans is not always clear. The NDIA has tried to assist by funding Local Area Coordinators (LACs) and high needs coordinators, who provide navigation and coordination assistance to acquire supports. The Review of the NDIS Act 201349 also found that LACs are often under resourced, trying to play dual planning and coordination roles. And support coordination is not always funded, leaving individuals and carers without enough assistance to realise funding in their plans.
Future directions Adequate plans There is an urgent need to make sure planning processes adequately support the needs of young people with intellectual disability. This means ensuring there are clear definitions on what constitutes reasonable and necessary supports in the context of complex needs. It also means providing planners and service providers with operational tools and training to identify support requirements for people with more complex needs, including young people with intellectual disability.
Utilising plans There is a need and opportunity to increase the capacity of navigation and coordination supports to help young people with intellectual disability engage services and fully utilise their plans.
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Tune, D. 2019. Review of the National Disability Insurance Scheme ACT 2013. Removing red tape and implementing the NDIS participant service guarantee. Commonwealth of Australia.
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ibid.
32 | Reaching Potential
