09/04/2024
Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
Having the right place to live affects your wellbeing. With a disability, you may face special considerations. Within certain limitations, the NDIS can support participants with housing options.
The NDIS supports include:
Most NDIS participants will live in housing in the private market, either through renting or their own home, or in public and community housing. The level of support you can get through the NDIS varies. If you have very high support needs, you’ll get more support.
This helps people with disability get the support they need within their own home, such as personal care and cleaning.
Sometimes all you need to improve their living situation is home modifications to make their home more accessible.
ILO supports people with disability to live in either community housing or a home of their choosing.
SIL is like ILO, but for people with higher support needs.
This is one-off purchases that enable a participant to build their independence.
SDA is housing designed for people with very high needs or extreme medical condition or functional impairment.
The first step to get housing included in your plan is to consider things like:
Discuss these things with your NDIS planner and care team.
Once you have appropriate funding included in your NDIS plan, you want to find the right provider. Few providers can provide all of the services you may need. For example, at the SALT Foundation, we provide assistance with daily living, but we are not an SDA.
If you’re looking at moving into specialist housing, go and check out the place before you move in. Tour the spaces. Meet the residents and staff. Get a sense of what life will be like.
You want to leave the inspection having had this question asked: does the accommodation give me the access personal care and supports I need to improve my quality of life?
Weigh up the different providers and consider the pros and cons of each. You can use the following table as an example of how to do this.
PROVIDER | PROS | CONS | COMMENTS FROM SELF, FAMILY & CARE TEAM |
Remember, the purpose of the NDIS is to assist and empower participants to live independently. Ultimately, the choice about where you live is up to you.
Consider all the factors and make your choice. Then sign the paperwork and confirm the timeline. When will you move into your new accommodation?
For most people on the NDIS, you’ll live in homes owned by you or your family, rental properties, or public and community housing. But for some people, these options are not enough.
If your disability means you have particular needs from your accommodation or the supports you need to live in your home, the NDIS may be able to contact you to help.
Discuss your needs with your care team and friends and bring your conclusions to your NDIS planning meeting.
Daniel G. Taylor has been writing about the NDIS for three years. His focus has been on mental health and psychosocial disabilities as he lives with bipolar disorder I. He’s been a freelance writer for 30 years and lives across the road from the beach in Adelaide. He’s the author of How to Master Bipolar Disorder for Life and a contributor to Mastering Bipolar Disorder (Allen & Unwin) and he’s a mental health speaker.
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