Autistic Nick’s Steps To Take Before, During and After Your NDIS Planning Meeting

Before The Meeting

So, last week I received a letter from the NDIS informing me that my NDIS access request had been successful.

The next step that I had to take was to begin to work out what my goals and achievements would look like once I began receiving my NDIS funding.

I sat down with my sister (who is already on an NDIS plan and utilising her skills and experience in navigating the NDIS we began to write down under a set of headings my goals and the different areas of my life that needed support in.

What support do I receive now?

A good starting point for me was to write down all the current services and supports that I currently receive.

What does my typical day look like?

I then began to map out what a typical day for me looks like. I used a weekly planning sheet that lists the days of the week and the times that I did different activities. You can also use a calendar to write down important dates when you may need support throughout the year such as holiday times or special occasions.

What aids, equipment and consumables do you need?

I wrote down a list of all the aids, equipment and consumables that I use because of my disability these items my include mobility devices, communication aids, continence products, hearing aids, vision aids or other things you use. In my case it would be items like noise cancelling headphones or weighted blankets.

To help you think about what things you may need, The NDIS have 8 Outcome Domains or life areas that can help you think about your needs:

At home: Think about if you need any modifications to your house or vehicle to make it easier for you to access or use.
In you day- to- day life: Think about what type of support you may need around the home such as support with personal care, meals, housekeeping or other day-to-day activities.
In the community: Think about what transport support you may need, also do you need help to attend activities, appointments or daily tasks such as banking, chemist or grocery shopping.
In terms of your relationships, do you need help? Speak with your planner about how they can help you.
At work: Do you need help finding a job, assistance with training, or support with personal care or transport while at work?
When learning: What types of skills or interests do you have, and is there anything you would like to learn more about? Also, do you need support to access the Education system?
In terms of your health and wellbeing, do you need support to access the Health System, Doctors appointments or do you need specialised assessments because of your disability?

And finally, in choice and control, think about what decisions you make, do you need any help with this, what services and supports do you want to choose and what skills can you learn to increase your independence?

Where to write down all of this information?

Write this information down somewhere you will be able to find it. There are also a large number of NDIS Planning Workbooks available to help you capture this information, or you can also just discuss these things with your planner.

Booklet 1 – Understanding the NDIS

Booklet 1 covers:

Learning about the NDIS
Deciding whether to apply for the NDIS
Accessing the NDIS

Downloads:

Booklet 1 – Understanding the NDIS (PDF 371KB)

Booklet 1 – Understanding the NDIS (DOCX 73KB)

Booklet 1 – Understanding the NDIS Easy English (PDF 1.2MB)

Booklet 2 – Planning

Booklet 2 covers:

Understanding your current supports
Creating an NDIS plan to achieve your goals
Receiving an approved NDIS plan

Downloads:

Booklet 2 – Planning (PDF 467KB)

Booklet 2 – Planning (DOCX 86KB)

Booklet 2 – How to make an NDIS plan Easy English (PDF 3.3MB)

Booklet 3 – Using Your NDIS Plan

Booklet 3 covers:

Understanding what’s in your plan
Learning how to use your plan
Choosing and managing supports and services
Reviewing your plan and progress

Downloads:

Booklet 3 – Using your NDIS Plan (PDF 534KB)

Booklet 3 – Using your NDIS Plan (DOCX 95KB)

Booklet 3 – Using your NDIS Plan Easy English (PDF 1.1MB)

Fact Sheet: Support Budgets Easy English (PDF 564KB)

Fact Sheet: How to make a service agreement Easy English (PDF 484KB)

AT THE MEETING

The participant is welcome to bring anyone they like to their planning meeting, including someone from a service provider.

At the meeting, the NDIA Planner or Local Area Coordinator (LAC) will ask a series of questions about the participants functional capacity. This gives the NDIA guidance for how much support the participant may need over the next year.

NDIS use either a WHODAS or PEDI-CAT assessment of need. It can be difficult to answer these questions, as not all questions will be applicable to the person.

In addition to the questionnaire, here are the topics participants should be ready to discuss with the Planner:

Goals for this Plan
Usually the NDIS like for participants to have two goals per year but there can also be longer term goals built into the plan.

The important people in the participant’s life
The participant should be clear about who the important people in their life are and how much support they provide.

Services currently in the participant’s life
Participants should advise Planners what services they currently receive and if possible, provide quotes from each provider.

What supports are needed?
Participants should identify their areas of unmet need to Planners. If necessary, they can ask NDIS for assistance from an Allied Health Specialist to work out what they need, for example, a Speech Therapist, Occupational Therapist, Behavioural Specialist or other Allied Health Professionals.

The Allied Health Professional will then submit their recommendation to the NDIS.

To find your local Allied Health Professional (Australia Only) by clicking on the link https://ahpa.com.au/allied-health-professions/

Support needed to implement the NDIS Plan
Participants have three choices for assistance with helping get the plan set up.

The participant can set up their own NDIS plan and supports
The participant can get assistance from a Local Area Coordinator
The participant can get assistance from a Support Coordinator

If participants want support beyond what a LAC may be able to provide, it is critical that they request Support Coordination hours during the planning meeting.

To Find your local office and contacts including:

Early Childhood, Early Intervention (ECEI) for children aged 0-6 years
Local Area Coordinator (LAC)
Local NDIS offices

https://www.ndis.gov.au/contact/locations

Choice of funds management
There are also three choices for assistance in managing plan finances:

The participant can self-manage your plan finances

The participant can use a Plan Manager

The participant can have the NDIA manage their plan finances

AFTER THE PLANNING MEETING

After the meeting, the Planner will take the information supplied and forward to an NDIS “Delegate”.

The Delegate is someone from the NDIA who writes up the plan based on what was discussed in the meeting. That’s why it important to make sure you provide as much written evidence as possible that is easy to understand and clearly shows what supports are needed.

Participants will first need to check that the plan has the things discussed in the meeting. If they are unhappy with the plan, they can request a review within 3 months.

Factsheets and Checklists For Participants

About the NDIS

Developing your plan

Starting your plan

For more information you can email: NAT@ndis.gov.au

Post to: GPO Box 700, Canberra ACT 2601, or

Drop it in to your nearest NDIS office. To find where your local NDIS office is click here https://www.ndis.gov.au/contact/locations

If you need help with English, call our TIS service on 131 450.

If you have hearing or speech loss, call our TTY service on 1800 555 677. For Speak and Listen, call 1800 555 727, or for Internet relay services, visit the Relay Service webpage(External website).

For more information visit https://www.ndis.gov.au

FIND A REGISTERED PROVIDER IN YOUR STATE (AUSTRALIA ONLY)

https://www.ndis.gov.au/participants/working-providers/find-registered-provider

Carry on the Conversation

As always, I can also be found on Twitter: @AutisticNick9 and at my email autisticnick9@gmail.com

If you like what you have seen on the site today, then show your support by liking the Autistic Nick https://www.facebook.com/autisticnick9/ Facebook page.

Thank you for reading and I will see you next time for more thoughts from across the spectrum.

1 thought on “Autistic Nick’s Steps To Take Before, During and After Your NDIS Planning Meeting”

Q AND A WITH AUTISTIC NICK – PART TWO – Autistic Nick November 25, 20194:01 am Reply

[…] https://autisticnick.com/2019/10/07/autistic-nicks-steps-to-take-before-during-and-after-your-ndis-p… […]

LikeLike