How Do NDIS Supports Help to Build Independence?8 min read

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) funding has one purpose: to help people with disabilities become more independent.

How Do You Get an NDIS Plan?

Step 1: Work out if you’re eligible for an NDIS plan.

Step 2: Apply for the NDIS.

Step 3: Attend a planning meeting with an NDIA planner, who will chat to you about your how you’re currently living, the difficulties you’re experiencing because of your disability, and what goals you hope to achieve through your NDIS plan.

Step 4: Get support coordination and find NDIS providers to deliver the supports outlined in your plan. A good support coordinator is someone who makes themselves available to you and explains the NDIS in a way that’s easy for you to understand.

Once you have an NDIS plan, you’re known as an NDIS participant.

What are the 3 Main Support Budgets in the NDIS?

The NDIS provides funding from three support budgets.

Remember, the primary goal of all the support budgets is to build independence. If you’re already living independently, the supports available through an NDIS plan can help you grow in confidence. And if you’re not yet enjoying independent living, you’ll move toward that goal.

Read more: What is Supported Independent Living NDIS?

Here are the three support budgets:

SUPPORT BUDGET	HOW IT HELPS BUILD INDEPENDENCE
Core Supports	Get help with everyday living.
Capacity Building Supports	Grow in confidence and independence as you pursue your goals.
Capital Supports	Become more independent with expensive or one-off purchases

Underneath each support budget is a support category, and there are at least two of those in each budget. Likewise, within each support category, you’ll find several support items. These are the specific things, or NDIS services, you’ve received funding for.

If that last paragraph was a little confusing, the tables below will make the information clearer.

Let’s now look at each of these support budgets in a little more detail.

Core Supports Budgets

The Core Supports budget helps in three ways:

1. Meeting any current disability-related needs you have.
2. Managing everyday activities.
3. Working toward your goals.

Here are the four support categories:

SUPPORT CATEGORY	TYPES OF SUPPORT ITEMS FUNDED
Assistance with Daily Life	Help with everyday needs, ranging from help to clean your house to grocery shopping, from help with gardening to washing your laundry.
Consumables	If you need things like continence products or low-cost assistive technology, this is the support category.
Assistance with Social & Community Participation	Get out and about with a support worker who can take you to cafes or the library or to community events such as those we run at the SALT Foundation Community House in Heidelberg West or Asha House in Frankston.
Transport	This category is for people who need to travel to work or anywhere to achieve the goals you’ve set out in your NDIS plan.

Your funding within Core Supports is fairly flexible and you can shift your funding from one category to another as needed, except for Transport.

Capacity Building Supports Budget

Out of the three supports budgets, the categories under Capacity Building target most directly the help you need to build your independence and reach your goals. Unlike Core Supports, however, you can’t move these funds from one support category to another. Instead, you must use your funding for support items that fall within the support category named in your plan.

Here are the nine support categories in this budget:

SUPPORT CATEGORY	TYPES OF SUPPORT ITEMS FUNDED
Support Coordination	A fixed amount for each plan to hire a support coordinator, who helps you connect to the NDIS provider, who is the right fit to achieve the aims of your plan.
Improved Living Arrangements	If you’re struggling to find somewhere to live, this category aims to help you. (On a related side note, the SALT Foundation is a charity and we provide food relief to our NDIS participants if they need it.)
Increased Social & Community Participation	Help to gain the skills you need to take part in recreational activities in the community.
Finding & Keeping a Job	A range of employment-related support, such as training and support to help you find and keep a job.
Improved Relationships	While anyone with a disability may need to learn how to have stronger relationships, healthy relationships and a sense of connection are crucial for people with a psychosocial disability. In this category, you’ll typically work with a psychologist to build these skills.
Improved Health & Wellbeing	Get advice to keep your physical health in optimal shape so you have the energy you need to handle the challenges of your disability.
Improved Learning	This category offers encouragement and information on how to move from school to further education at a university or a TAFE, or if you’re returning to study after an absence.
Improved Life Choices	If you need NDIS plan management, this category is the part of your funding that pays for it.
Improved Daily Living	Aimed at helping you learn new skills, become more independent, and involve yourself in the community more. You may get these services in a group or one-on-one.

Capital Supports Budget

The last supports budget is the Capital Supports Budget. While within the other two categories, you have some flexibility in how you spend your funds, supports funded through Capital Supports can only be used for the purpose described in your plan. They’re aimed at covering high-cost assistive technology, or one-off purchases (such as Specialist Disability Accommodation).

Here are the two support categories:

SUPPORT CATEGORY	TYPES OF SUPPORT ITEMS FUNDED
Assistive Technology	Covers items for mobility, personal care, to enable you to communicate, or be involved in recreation.
Home Modifications	You may need Specialist Disability Accommodation because a regular home, even with modifications, won’t allow you to live independently. Or you may stay where you are as long as you can get some modifications, such as installing ramps or handrails.

Before we finish, there are a couple of things to note about specific terms you may see used in your plan.

In-kind Support – Pre-Paid

When you see this, it means that you’ve received funding in this area from outside the NDIA, either through your state, territory, or federal government.

Stated Support – Not Flexible

When you see this, it means you MUST use the funds for the purpose described in your plan, even if you’d normally have flexibility within the budget the funding comes from.

Quote Required

When you see this, it means that before the NDIA will allocate funding, you’ll need to get a quote or gather specialist reports before you the amount gets specified and then you can spend it on the supports you need.

Conclusion: Your NDIS Plan Will Support You in Becoming Independent

In summary, the reason the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) exists is to allow people with disabilities to become more and more independent.

To achieve this, the NDIA funds NDIS plans in three types of support budgets:

• Core Supports Budget: Mainly aimed at helping you with your everyday living needs.
• Capacity Building Supports Budget: Most directly aimed at helping you become independent.
• Capital Supports Budget: Allows you to pay for a big-ticket item or one-off item that will allow to you to enjoy greater independence.

Your NDIS plan will differ from everyone else’s as it’s built around your individual needs. Even when someone has the same disability as you, they’ll have different amounts and types of funding, as their goals are different.

The SALT Foundation is Here to Help

As a non-profit NDIS provider, we have a team of Support Workers ready to meet your needs across Victoria.

And you get your first week of services FREE, so request a support worker or contact 1300 777 258 NOW!