Information about the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)
Factsheet 1 for young people in care
Version 1 January 2018
What is the NDIS?
The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is a new way of providing support for people with disability. The NDIS is managed by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).
The NDIS is rolling out across Queensland until 30 June 2019. 
Visit www.qld.gov.au/ndis to see when the NDIS will be available in your area.
If you are eligible and accessing disability supports from the NDIS, you are known as an NDIS Participant and your supports are documented in an NDIS plan.
Queensland’s NDIS transition
As the NDIS comes in, new processes and relationships are being created between the NDIA and Queensland Government services like health, child safety, education, transport, justice and housing.
If you are already receiving disability support, your existing arrangements will continue until you have an NDIS plan. 
Even if you haven’t received disability support in the past, you may still be able to receive support from the NDIS.
If you are not eligible for the NDIS, Child Safety will continue to meet your disability support needs through your case plan.
Benefits of the NDIS
The NDIS has a flexible, individual approach that provides support to you early in your life so you can have better outcomes later on.
When you are an NDIS participant, you have certainty that you will be able to access supports to meet your changing needs and goals over your lifetime.
The NDIS also gives you choice and control over how, when and where your disability supports and services are delivered.
Accessing the NDIS
The first step involves gathering eligibility evidence and making an access request to the NDIA.
Your Child Safety Officer (CSO) will work with you and your family, carer, residential care worker or a support person you nominate to gather the eligibility evidence you need and lodge your access request.
The role of the ‘child’s representative’
NDIS participants under 18 need to be represented by their parent or guardian*.
When Child Safety is your guardian under a child protection order, we will be your representative.
When there is a child protection order granting custody to Child Safety, but we are not your guardian, we will still work with you and your parent or guardian and support you through all stages of the NDIS process.
When another person is your guardian, that person will be your representative. 
Being your representative involves:
•	requesting access to the NDIS for you and providing relevant information to support your request.
•	acting as a contact person on your behalf for the NDIS;
•	involving you, and representing you, in decisions about the planning process, including who takes part.
*Can I represent myself?
The National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 allows for a young person under 18 to represent yourself with the NDIS in certain circumstances.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the NDIA must decide that you are capable of making your own decisions and that certain requirements of the Act should not apply to you.
If you want to represent yourself with the NDIS, discuss this with your CSO. For example, you may wish to become your own NDIS representative as part of your Transition from Care plan. 
Developing your NDIS plan
The next step once your access to the NDIS is confirmed is to develop your NDIS plan. This usually happens at a face-to-face meeting with an NDIA planner or Local Area Coordinator, your representative and other support people.
Your involvement in your NDIS plan
You are the most important person when it comes to your NDIS plan.
You can be part of the NDIS planning process to whatever extent you want to be. You can be involved a little or a lot in:
•	communicating your needs and goals and wishes in preparation for NDIS planning;
•	attending your planning meeting alongside your representative and other support people;
•	choosing your support providers; 
•	reviewing your plan to make sure it continues to work for you.
Implementing your NDIS plan
Once your plan is developed it’s time to put it into action.
Implementing your plan involves:
•	understanding the plan and the support budgets within it;
•	choosing service providers and setting up service agreements with them 
•	sourcing quotes for any aids and equipment approved in the plan.
Practical support is available to help you and your representative and support people to implement your NDIS plan. 
During development of your plan, your representative can request funding for Support Coordination. A Support Coordinator can help by researching suitable providers and managing the agreements with them.
If you are Aboriginal or a Torres Strait Islander, the Recognised Entity will be consulted about your NDIS access, and may also be involved in NDIS planning and sourcing NDIS providers that will best support you.
Once implemented, your NDIS plan is then discussed and monitored through case plan reviews and placement meetings.
What supports will the NDIS fund?
The NDIS will fund reasonable and necessary supports that are specific to your disability and additional to the needs of young people of similar ages in similar care arrangements.
Some examples of reasonable and necessary support may include:
•	skill development—for example learning how to cook or to be safe on public transport;
•	support provided by someone other than your usual carers (e.g. vacation care);
•	therapies, like physio or speech therapy
•	aids and equipment;
•	training programs specific to your disability to help the people in your life understand you and care for you;
•	support coordination.
When Child Safety is your representative, disability services for you must be delivered by NDIS-registered providers. 
More information
Web
•	www.qld.gov.au/ndis
•	www.ndis.gov.au
Newsletters
•	Subscribe to the NDIS e-newsletter at https://www.ndis.gov.au/news/subscribe.html 
•	Subscribe to the Queensland NDIS e-blast at www.communities.qld.gov.au/ndis 
Social media
•	Twitter: @disabilityqld and @NDIS
•	Facebook.com/NDISAUS
CREATE Foundation
•	www.create.org.au
•	qld@create.org.au
•	1800 655 105