How to get behaviour support in your NDIS plan
To get behaviour support in your National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) plan, tell the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) you need it and give evidence of why. Your my NDIS contact or support coordinator can help. If your needs have changed, ask for a plan change or reassessment. The NDIA may fund an assessment first. Only a registered specialist behaviour support provider can deliver it.
How does the NDIA find out I need behaviour support?
Anyone close to the situation can raise it. The NDIA may hear about it from you, your family, a school or a provider.
The NDIA's behaviour support guideline lists the ways it may learn about your needs:
- from you, at a plan meeting or check-in
- from your family, nominee, guardian, school or employer
- from your providers, support workers or support coordinator, who might send a report with concerns or a recommendation for behaviour support
The NDIA will then talk with you, and your family, guardian or nominee, about what you need. You have the right to make decisions about the behaviour support you want, and the NDIA will support you to make them.
Not every behaviour that seems concerning needs a behaviour support plan. The NDIA gives the example of a child who sometimes gets very angry when asked to do something. Behaviours of concern are ones that happen often enough, strongly enough or for long enough to put the person or others at risk of harm.
What evidence should I gather?
Evidence that shows what's happening, how it relates to your disability and what support would help. The NDIA may also fund a behaviour support assessment to get that evidence.
- incident reports
- court reports, if there are any
- assessment reports and support plans from allied health professionals, like a speech pathologist or occupational therapist
- your own short record of what's been happening, so you can explain it clearly
If the NDIA funds an assessment first, the behaviour support practitioner's report should explain:
- the type and amount of behaviour support you need
- how the support relates to your disability
- how the support will be effective and beneficial for you
- who is the best person to provide it
- where it will be provided
Like any NDIS support, behaviour support must meet all the NDIS funding criteria before it can go in your plan.
Need a practitioner?
We'll connect you with a registered provider near you who has space.
Who can help me ask for it?
Start with your my NDIS contact. Your support coordinator or recovery coach can also help, if you have one.
Your my NDIS contact might be an NDIS partner, such as a local area coordinator (LAC), an early childhood partner, or someone at the NDIA. Their details are in your NDIS plan. They can help you ask for changes to your plan and explain what evidence you need. You can also call the NDIA on 1800 800 110.
A support coordinator can help you gather reports, tell the NDIA what's changed and ask for a change to your plan.
The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission (NDIS Commission) regulates providers. It doesn't ask for funding on anyone's behalf.
Do I need a plan variation or a plan reassessment?
It depends on how big the change is. Smaller changes can be made with a plan variation. Significant and ongoing changes to your support needs can lead to a plan reassessment.
| Your situation | What to ask for | How |
|---|---|---|
| You need a smaller change to your current plan | Plan variation | Plan variation request form |
| Your support needs have changed in a significant and ongoing way | Plan reassessment | Plan reassessment request form. Only you, your plan nominee or child representative can send it |
| Your plan is due for reassessment soon | Raise it at your check-in | Your my NDIS contact will get in touch about 2 to 3 months before the reassessment date |
Send the form with your evidence through the NDIA's service hub, by mail or in person at a local office. The NDIA will then vary your plan, make a new plan, or leave your plan as it is.
If restrictive practices are already being used
If a registered provider uses a restrictive practice when there's no behaviour support plan, it must be reported to the NDIS Commission as a reportable incident. An interim behaviour support plan must then be written as soon as possible. Tell the NDIA too, so your plan can include the support you need.
What is behaviour support called in my plan?
It's part of your capacity building supports. The name depends on which NDIA computer system made your plan.
| Plan type | Where to look |
|---|---|
| Plans made in the NDIA's newer computer system | Behaviour Support, a stated capacity building category |
| Older plans | Improved Relationships, which can also cover social skills development |
Capacity building funding is stated, so you can't move money into behaviour support from another capacity building category. If there isn't enough, ask the NDIA to change your plan. Our page on NDIS behaviour support funding explains how it works with each type of plan management.
Who can deliver behaviour support once it's funded?
Only a specialist behaviour support provider registered with the NDIS Commission, using a practitioner the Commission has found suitable. This is the same for self-managed and plan-managed plans.
You can search the NDIS Provider Finder by choosing behaviour support as the registration group. Your my NDIS contact, support coordinator or recovery coach can also help you find a provider and organise your other supports around the plan.
When the practitioner writes a behaviour support plan, give the NDIA a copy. The NDIA says you must do this for any new plan.
What if the NDIA doesn't fund behaviour support?
The NDIA will give you written reasons for its decision. If you disagree, you can ask for a review within 3 months of getting your plan.
- Read the reasons, and ask the NDIA for more detail if they're unclear.
- Check what evidence might be missing, such as a report on how the behaviour relates to your disability.
- Ask for a review of the decision within 3 months of getting your plan.
- If your situation changes later, ask for a change to your plan with new evidence.
If someone's life is at risk or there's an immediate risk of harm, call 000. Once funding is in place, we can connect you with a registered practitioner.
Questions people ask
Can my child's school tell the NDIA about behaviour support needs?
Yes. The NDIA lists schools, along with family, guardians, employers and providers, as people who may let it know a participant needs behaviour support.
Will the NDIA fund an assessment before a full plan?
It may. The NDIA can fund a behaviour support assessment with an NDIS behaviour support practitioner to get evidence for its decision.
Is behaviour support core or capacity building funding?
Capacity building. It's under Improved Relationships in older plans and has its own Behaviour Support category in plans made in the NDIA's newer computer system.
Can I use behaviour support funding with any practitioner?
No. It can only be used with a specialist behaviour support provider registered with the NDIS Commission, even if you self-manage.
How long do I have to ask for a review?
The NDIA says you need to ask within 3 months of getting your plan.
Keep reading
- Plan reviewsHow NDIS behaviour support plans are monitored and reviewed: the 12 month rule, triggers for an early review, what to expect and what to do if it isn't working.
- How behaviour support is fundedHow positive behaviour support is funded by the NDIS: which budget it comes from, getting it into your plan, and what changes if you self, plan or NDIA manage.
- Functional behaviour assessmentWhat happens in a functional behaviour assessment (FBA) under the NDIS, who's involved, how information is gathered, and how it shapes a behaviour support plan.
- Behaviour support practitionersWhat an NDIS behaviour support practitioner does, how the NDIS Commission approves them, how to check one and find one near you, and how to become one.
- Interim behaviour support plansWhat an interim behaviour support plan is, when one is needed, the 1 month rule when restrictive practices are used, and what happens next under the NDIS.
- Questions to ask a practitionerWhat to ask a behaviour support practitioner before you sign: registration, experience, family and school, telehealth, progress, restrictive practices and fees.
- Changing providerChanging your NDIS behaviour support provider or practitioner: notice periods, what happens to your plan and restrictive practices, who to tell and complaints.
- How it worksHow we connect you with a practitioner, and what happens to your details.
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