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Support Coordination – everything you need to know

Support Coordination – everything you need to know

Want to see this information quickly? Download our easy-read ‘What is Support Coordination?’ factsheet here.

Once you get your new NDIS plan, the first thing you want to do is check if you’ve been funded for support coordination. If you have, it will look a little something like this:

Support coordinators are funded by the NDIS to help participants understand their NDIS plan, and to help them to get supports set up. They’ll help you make sense of your NDIS plan, and get the ball rolling for the things that you need. If your preparing for your first NDIS plan, we recommend asking your LAC to fund a few hours of support coordination, just to help you get things sorted.

There are three levels of support coordination:

Level 1 – Support Connection

Support connection is where you may have a support coordinator or service provider help you to build you ability to connect with informal, community and funded supports. It’s not quite as intense as Level 2 Support Coordination, and you’ll still need to do some of the ground work yourself. The person providing support connection to you may provide you with some advice or guidance in relation to your plan, but more often than not it will be up to you to set things up. Support connection isn’t common to see in plans, and there is talk NDIS may stop funding this, however, watch this space for some more updates.

Level 2 – Support Coordination

Level 2 is the most commonly funded level of support coordination, and this is the level most support coordinators work at. This support will assist you to build the skills you need to understand, implement and use your plan. A support coordinator (SC, also called CoS – coordinator of support) will work with you to ensure a mix of supports are used to increase your capacity to maintain relationships, manage service delivery tasks, live more independently and be included in your community. They will often help you to:

  • identify where you might need support, and help you to find organisations that will be suitable to provide that support (e.g. helping you to find support workers, or a speech therapist)
  • understand service agreements with providers, and assisting you to negotiate if necessary
  • understand your NDIS plan – what you’ve been funded for, how you can use it, and where you can spend it
  • keep an eye on your funding, and make sure you’re not overspending or underspending throughout your plan
  • link in with community services e.g. support groups, sporting or recreational groups, school holiday activities etc.
  • liaise between you and your service providers (if you want them to)
  • solve any problems that arise with your service providers, and help you switch providers if you need to
  • explore housing options, employment options and funds management options (e.g. helping you decide whether you should choose self-management, plan-management or agency-management)
  • review your NDIS plan if you need to, and attend planning meetings with you

Level 3 – Specialist Support Coordination

Specialist support coordinators (SSC’s) usually have an allied health background (e.g. psychology, occupational therapy, social work), and lots of experience across different fields including mental health, palliative care, justice, homelessness and community services. Specialist support coordination is usually only funded when a participant has complex needs requiring specialised support, or the client is in a crisis situation. Specialist support coordination is often funded for a time sensitive issue, or when there are significant barriers to accessing services. Specialist support coordinators do the same role as a Level 2 support coordinator, but will also support the client in the specialised areas they require. Some of these specialised areas might be:

  • complex health needs, requiring a lot of liaison with the health system and hospitals
  • mental health needs, requiring a lot of liaison with community mental health services and hospitals
  • complex family situations – children in care, or unstable family life
  • involvement with the justice system
  • homelessness, or complex housing needs.

Some other things to think about:

How much your support coordinator is able to help you with will be dependent on how many hours you receive for support coordination in your plan, so it is important that you discuss what your priorities are with your support coordinator at the very start of your relationship with them. Often it will say on your plan how many hours you have, but if not just divide the amount you have funded by the hourly rate, which is:

  • $63.21 (for Level 1)
  • $100.14 (for Level 2), and
  • $190.54 (for Level 3).

*prices current as of 15 Jan 2024.

It’s important to note that not everyone will be eligible for support coordination, and you may not get support coordination in every NDIS plan that you get. Support coordinators are a vital part of the NDIS framework, but it’s important that they help you to build your capacity to understand the NDIS and the disability sector, so that you feel confident to navigate on your own one day.

I need a support coordinator, but I don’t have it funded in my NDIS plan… help!

Under the current price guide, if you don’t have support coordination funded under Capacity Building Supports, then you can use your Core Supports funding to purchase it. This gives you a bit more freedom, as you can decide how many hours you want to allocate to a support coordinator. The hourly rates are the same as above.

You should note, though, that this means you’ll potentially take funding away from other areas where you need support (e.g. if you choose to use 30 hours of support coordination from your core budget, you may have to cut back on another support as you’ll now have two (or more) providers sharing the same bucket of money). You’ll need to approach a support coordination organisation (or an independent support coordinator) to confirm they are happy to use your core supports funding to help you, as not everyone will be willing or able to.

If you don’t have a core budget in your plan, and no support coordination funded under your Capacity Building supports, you should go to your LAC or planner and ask for a plan review to include support coordination. Depending on your circumstances and the support system that you have, NDIS may not choose to approve support coordination for you. It’s very important that you’re clear about what you need help with, and the things that you need to put into place to help you to use your NDIS funds. Having a letter or report from existing service providers backing you up on this request will definitely help.

What do I want in a support coordinator?

That’s up to you, but a few things we would consider asking before agreeing to use a support coordination provider are:

  • “What costs will be incurred for travel?” – Support coordinators can charge for travel both ways (i.e. to and from your house), plus can invoice for kilometres too – so it’s a good idea to ask where the support coordinator will be travelling from and what they charge before agreeing to use their service. You don’t want to chew up too many of your hours on travel – you may even prefer to just communicate via phone and email with your support coordinator instead.
  • “What is your hourly rate?” – The NDIS rates are set at the above prices, but some support coordinators will charge less than this – meaning you’ll be able to squeeze a bit more out of your support coordination budget.
  • “What time increments do you charge in?” – Support coordinators usually charge in 6 minute increments as this is best practice, but it’s a good idea to check with them before signing your service agreement.
  • “Have you got much experience with XYZ?” – This could be experience around helping you move into your own home, or finding a job. Whatever your NDIS goals are, it’s important you feel reassured that your support coordinator can help you.
  • “What is your notice period?” – If you start with a support coordinator and things just aren’t working out, it’s important that you know how much notice you need to give before you can switch to another support coordinator. For many organisations, this is usually between 2-4 weeks.

Where do I find a support coordinator?

You can see a list of NDIS registered support coordination providers in WA here (start on page 39). If you’re in another state, have a look here. You can generally find unregistered support coordinators (who are often independent sole traders) through a quick Google search.

You don’t have to use a registered support coordinator, but if you don’t you’ll need to make sure that your support coordination budget is self-managed or plan-managed. If your support coordination budget is agency-managed, and you want to use an unregistered support coordinator you will need to ask for a review.

Got more questions about support coordination? Give us a ring or send us an email – our team has experience working in support coordination, and we can help with any questions you might have.

You can also download our easy-read ‘What is Support Coordination?’ factsheet here.