Navigating the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) can be a complex journey, and Support Coordination is designed to be a crucial guide, empowering participants to implement their plans and achieve their goals. Not all support needs are the same, which is why the NDIS offers three distinct levels of Support Coordination, each tailored to different complexities and stages of a participant’s journey:
Level 1: Support Connection This is the most foundational level, aimed at providing participants with initial, basic assistance to understand and implement their NDIS plan. A Support Connector helps individuals make basic connections, typically focusing on a few specific goals or services. They might assist in identifying potential providers, making initial contact, and scheduling first appointments. The emphasis here is on building rudimentary skills and confidence for participants with relatively straightforward plans, allowing them to take the first steps towards accessing supports and better understanding their plan’s objectives.
Level 2: Coordination of Supports The most common level, Coordination of Supports, offers a more comprehensive and ongoing approach. A Coordinator works closely with participants to understand their plan thoroughly, identify their preferences, and translate their goals into actionable steps. This involves a holistic approach, connecting participants not only to NDIS-funded services but also to mainstream and community supports. A key focus is on strengthening the participant’s capacity to exercise choice and control, manage their funding, and navigate the service system independently over time. Coordinators help resolve points of crisis, develop service agreements, and ensure supports work together seamlessly to achieve the participant’s long-term outcomes.
Level 3: Specialist Support Coordination (SSC) SSC is designed for participants facing highly complex circumstances that require a specialist’s expertise to resolve. This level is typically funded when a participant has significant barriers to accessing and maintaining supports, often involving multiple service systems (e.g., justice, health, housing, child protection) or when a participant is experiencing a crisis. Specialist Support Coordinators have professional qualifications and a deep understanding of multi-disciplinary approaches. They engage in intensive, time-limited support, often advocating on the participant’s behalf, developing a comprehensive service proposal, and building capacity to address the specific, severe barriers preventing plan implementation. The goal is to reduce complexity, mitigate risks, and establish stability so the participant can transition to less intensive coordination or manage their plan more independently.
Understanding these distinctions is vital for participants and their families to ensure they receive the right level of support, maximizing their NDIS plan’s potential and fostering greater independence and wellbeing.