Foundational Supports

Closed

Have your say on Foundational Supports

This phase of consultation is now closed.

Why we are developing Foundational Supports

Governments are working together to design and deliver additional supports in the community. These additional supports are called Foundational Supports.

These are specific supports that would be available outside the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) to help people with disability, and their families and carers.

The NDIS has transformed the lives of many people with disability, and it is here to stay. The NDIS provides supports to eligible people with disability.

Many people with disability are not in the NDIS. Some people, who are not in the NDIS, may need more help than what is offered through mainstream or community services, like early childhood education, schools and community mental health programs.

This is where additional Foundational Supports can assist.

There are different types of Foundational Supports – these are general and targeted supports.

Commonwealth and state and territory governments are working on designing and implementing Foundational Supports together. Importantly, people with disability their families and carers, and the wider community will be at the centre of this work, both to design Foundational Supports and then as we implement any new arrangements.

Consultation

We want supports that work and meet the needs of people with disability. Community consultations focused on:

  • general supports such as information and guidance, peer supports, and capacity building
  • supports for children under 9 with developmental concern, delay and/or disability and their families, carers and kin.

In consultations, we have heard from:

  • people with disability, whether they are in the NDIS or not
  • people who might need extra support but don’t identify as having a disability
  • families, carers, kin and advocates for people with disability
  • parents of children with developmental delay and disability
  • other stakeholders, like sector peak bodies and service providers. This includes across disability, health, mental health, early childhood, schools and other areas.

‘What we have heard’ webinar

On 29 November 2024, the department and The Social Deck hosted a ‘what we have heard’ webinar to share high level themes and insights. You can view a recording of the webinar below.

The below video is an interpretation of a live event with captions and a transcript. We acknowledge there may be differences in how people interpret during events. If you attended the webinar you may recall that Auslan interpreters were not present for a portion of the event due to technical difficulties.

Transcript [Word 37 kB]

Next steps

We will notify our newsletter subscribers when we publish a summary report from the consultations in early 2025. Governments will use the feedback we received from the community to inform the design of Foundational Supports. We expect some Foundational Supports will commence later in 2025, and implementation will be phased. We will look to share details on further engagement to those on the mailing list.

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