The Reference Group connected with the community to find out about issues that affect them.

The Reference Group members shared these issues with the NDIA.

Funding is the money from your plan that pays for the supports and services you need.

Some participants are getting less funding.

But they don’t have information about why it happened.

Participants are people with disability who take part in the NDIS.

Participants can ask the NDIA to review a decision about their plan.

When the NDIA review a plan, they check that the right decision has been made.

But Reference Group members explained some planners tell participants they will get less funding if they do.

This is more common when the decisions are about home and living supports.

Members think the NDIA should help participants decide to use the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).

The AAT is a government organisation that is separate from the NDIS.

They review decisions about:

• who can join the NDIS
• NDIS plans.

The community worry that some planners don’t know enough about home and living supports.

When they know more they can plan for what participants need.

The NDIA should share examples with the community to show how home and living funding can help people with disability.

This will help other participants:

• have more choice and control

• make better goals for themselves.

The Reference Group explained that parents worry about getting too old to care for their adult children with disability.

Aged care is where older Australians live when they can’t stay in their home anymore.

It’s usually for people 65 years or older.

But some younger people with disability also live in aged care.

This includes NDIS participants.

Reference Group members explained that aged care might not offer the supports that NDIS participants need.

The Reference Group explained that participants need support to:

• learn about their supports
• review their supports.

This will help them have more choice and control.

Supported accommodation is a type of housing for people with disability who need support.

It can help them live in their own home.

The Reference Group think the NDIA should show governments how supported accommodation works.

And how it can be cheaper than other supports.

The Reference Group shared that participants don’t have many choices about where to live.

There are even less for participants with psychosocial disability.

A psychosocial disability affects your mental health.

Improved liveability is housing with good accessibility.

Reference Group members shared people think the NDIA will stop using improved liveability.

But this is not true.

Some participants might have funding to change parts of their house because of their disability.

But they think they can only get one ramp.

And they think they can’t move to another home later.

Reference Group members think the NDIA should review the rules about how participants can change their home.

The community worry that people who need a lot of support might not be ready to talk to the NDIA about home and living supports.

Sometimes these people have never had choice and control before.

Reference Group members think the NDIA should tell participants:

• how they make decisions
• what information they use to make decisions.

The Reference Group told us that some people with disability are not treated fairly by the justice system.

The justice system includes:

• police
• the courts
• the law
• prisons.

This includes people with:

• psychosocial disability

• acquired brain injury – brain injuries from accidents.

The community gets information about COVID-19 from the governments.

But the community worry that people at high risk do not get information.

This includes:

• people with disability

• older people.

Some participants have guardians.

A guardian is a person who can act and make decisions for you.

Sometimes the government chooses who a guardian is.

Reference Group members explained that sometimes guardians make decisions for people without:

• asking if it’s what they want
• telling them.