Education
Your plan may look different. The way planning works is changing. Supports you relied on may be cut. Here is an honest account of what is happening, what your rights are, and what you can do about it.
The NDIS was built on a promise: that people with disability would have choice and control over the supports they need to live the lives they want. The changes currently being implemented represent the most significant revision to that promise since the scheme launched. Some of the changes address real problems with how the scheme has operated. Some of them are genuinely worrying for people who depend on it.
This guide is written for participants, people currently on the NDIS, who want an honest account of what is changing, what it means for them, and what options they have. It is not a legal document and it is not NDIA advice. For decisions with significant impact on your supports, always get help from a support coordinator or disability advocate who knows your specific circumstances.
The social participation cuts: what you need to know now
The most immediate and concrete change for many participants is the cut to social, civic and community participation budgets. From 1 October 2026, these budgets are being reset to 2023 spending levels. The government describes this as a 50 per cent reduction in allocation, but in practice, the impact depends entirely on what you are currently spending.
If you are not using your full social participation allocation, the reduction in the allocation may not affect what you can actually do. If you are spending at or near capacity, this is a genuine cut to supports that matter. The people most affected are likely to be those with the highest support needs, those in supported living arrangements, and people with intellectual disability, psychosocial disability, or lower functional capacity.
- Review your current plan and identify exactly what is in your social and community participation budget and how much of it you are using
- Identify which specific supports and activities depend on this funding, this list is your evidence if you need to request a review
- Note that the government is establishing a $200 million Inclusive Communities Fund for community participation activities, watch for what becomes available in your area as a supplement
- If the new budget genuinely does not meet your reasonable and necessary support needs, you can request an unscheduled plan review
- Talk to your support coordinator or plan manager about how these changes will affect your service agreements before October
“A cut to social participation is not a minor administrative change. For many participants, these are the supports that make community membership possible. If they matter to you, say so, in writing, with specifics.”
New framework planning: what it means for you
The way NDIS plans are created is changing. The new framework introduces a Support Needs Assessment using a tool called the I-CAN (Instrument for the Classification and Assessment of Support Needs). This is a structured conversation, lasting approximately three hours, with a trained assessor about your daily life and support needs. It replaces the current planning conversation, which has been widely criticised for producing inconsistent outcomes.
New framework planning begins for adults over 18 with less complex needs from 1 July 2026, with broader rollout from 1 April 2027. If you are 16 or older, you will transition to new framework planning by 2 October 2029. Your current plan remains in force until your scheduled review, you are not being forced to transition immediately.
- You have the right to bring a support person, family member, carer, or advocate to your assessment, use this right
- The assessment can be conducted over multiple sessions if you need it to be
- Under new framework plans, funding will be split into 'stated supports' (specific purposes only) and a 'flexible budget' (usable across a range of NDIS supports), this may give you more or less flexibility depending on what your plan currently contains
- Plans will generally cover longer periods, reducing the annual review cycle that many participants find stressful and exhausting
- Prepare for your assessment: gather recent reports from your treating practitioners, think through what your average day looks like, and be specific about what you cannot do without support
What can and cannot be funded: the support lists
The NDIS Amendment Act (passed October 2024) introduced a clearer definition of what the NDIS funds, including published lists of in-scope and out-of-scope supports. The principle remains the same, supports must be reasonable and necessary and related to your disability, but the framework for making those decisions is more defined.
What this means in practice: supports that were previously funded on a case-by-case basis may now be more explicitly in or out of scope. If you have previously been funded for something and it is now questioned, this change may be the reason. Checking the current NDIS support catalogue and raising any disputes through your support coordinator or the AAT remains your right.
Plan management and provider changes
Changes are also being made to how plan management works and to provider registration requirements. Agency-managed participants have more restrictions on using unregistered providers in some categories. If you currently use unregistered providers, it is worth checking whether this affects any of your service agreements.
- If you are plan-managed, your plan manager can help you understand how provider registration changes affect your current services
- If you are agency-managed, review whether your providers are registered, unregistered provider use may be restricted in your plan type
- Self-managed participants generally have the most flexibility around provider choice and are least affected by registration changes
If things go wrong: your rights
The reforms do not remove your existing rights. You can still request an unscheduled plan review if your needs are not being met. You can still appeal NDIA decisions through the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. You can still make a complaint to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission about provider conduct or NDIA process. These pathways exist. Use them.
- Request an internal review first if you disagree with a decision, this is required before going to the AAT
- Contact a disability advocate if you need support navigating the review process, advocacy services are free and independent; find one through Disability Advocacy Finder
- Document everything in writing: every conversation, every decision, every refusal, your paper trail is your evidence
- Connect with your state's peak disability organisation for peer support and up-to-date information specific to your state
Take-homes
- Check your social participation and capacity building budget right now, understand what you have, what you're using, and what will be affected from October 2026
- If the cuts create a genuine gap in your reasonable and necessary supports, request a plan review, 'my support needs have not changed, my budget has' is grounds
- Prepare for new framework planning: gather reports, document daily life impacts, and plan to bring a support person to your assessment
- Your current plan remains in force until your review, you are not being immediately transitioned
- Know your rights: review, appeal, and complaint pathways all still exist, use them if you need to
- Get a support coordinator if you don't have one, navigating this alone during a period of significant reform is harder than it needs to be
Education
A note on accuracy:While every effort has been made to ensure the information in this article is accurate at the time of writing, facts, policies and research can change. We're human, and sometimes we get things wrong. If you spot something that needs updating, we'd genuinely love to hear from you.
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Dave Harrison
ESW · Neurodiversity Advocate · Podcast Host
Dave Harrison is currently working in Australian schools as an Education Support Worker. He's the founder of THRVHUB, host of the Different Is Normal podcast, and a parent of a neurodivergent teenager, writing from both sides of the classroom.
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