10384 – Individual submission

There is inconsistency for NDIS participants who are self-managed and plan-managed a lot of NDIS participants who pay for something and then send the invoice to the NDIA are not reimbursed for costs paid. For an NDIS participant who is fully self-managed and sends their invoices/receipts to the NDIA some NDIS participants are reimbursed the costs for what they have paid for and others who are fully self-managed or partially self-managed are not reimbursed for costs paid. Some NDIS participants have said they have used their NDIS funding for camping, IPad’s etc. Yet NDIS participants who are plan-managed do not have the same flexibility and are not reimbursed for costs paid if an NDIS participant who is plan-managed pays for an IPad, Camping etc. How can some NDIS participants have more flexibility than others when both Self-Managed and Plan Managed are meant to be the most flexible? Plan Managers are not flexible giving NDIS Participants limited options to choose from on what they want to use their NDIS funding for. When an NDIS participant advises their plan manager on what they would like to do the plan manager does not write a service agreement that reflects what each participant wants and participants are then to sign a service agreement that does not reflect what they want to do. Statement of Participant Supports in A Participants Supports Plan is not being complied with and participants are having to apply for review, after review, after review, appeal, after appeal, after appeal as the NDIS will not fund what is important to NDIS participants. The staff working at the NDIA think that their goals are more important instead of putting NDIS participants at the centre of everything, participants are not asked who they would like to have develop their NDIS plans, participants are not asked what they would like in their NDIS plans, The NDIA are funding things that participants haven’t asked for instead of funding what participants ask for to be funded without any question. Instead of the NDIA planners saying “yes that is no problem we will fund your education, conferences, short term accommodation assistance, improved daily living, independent living skills and level 3 transport allowance not a problem”. Instead the NDIA planners say “the NDIS will not fund education and cannot help you with your education that is the responsibility of TAFE to provide education support”. NDIS participants continue to fight for their rights to get things funded that the NDIS won’t fund this takes up NDIS participants time and energy. The NDIS was not designed and meant to be about people with disabilities who access the NDIS having to fight for their rights and go to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal to get approval for activities/items to be funded. The NDIS was designed and meant to give people with disabilities voice, choice, control and flexibility to choose what they want to do with their NDIS funding. NDIA Planners and Local Area Coordinators do not ask NDIS participants if they are happy with their NDIS plan? Is there anything you would like to add or change in your NDIS plan? Do you give approval for your NDIS plan to be approved? Participants are not involved in the decision making process from the beginning NDIA planners and Local Area Coordinators need to involve participants in all decision making processes at all times from the beginning including when participants apply for a review of their NDIS plan. NDIA planners and Local Area Coordinators need to ask participants for their opinion before making a decision any decision to be made participants must be liaised and consulted at all times during the decision making process, NDIA planners and Local Area Coordinators should not be making any decisions without involving NDIS participants at all times any decisions to be made must be supported by NDIS participants with both NDIA planners, Local Area Coordinators and NDIS participants agreeing with the outcome and ask participants for their opinion and if that is ok with them. If Decisions are going to be made without NDIS participants being involved in the decision making process at all times from the beginning this will not make NDIS participants very happy and they will wonder why a decision has been made without including NDIS participants in the decision. Before NDIA planners and Local Area Coordinators make any decision NDIS participants need to be consulted and liaised this will allow participants to have their say, input and opinion without NDIS participants having their say and input NDIS participants will have no option other than to continue to appeal at the Administrative Appeals Tribunal to have decisions overturned. NDIA Planners and Local Area Coordinators to provide clarification to participants at planning meetings to make sure that everything that participants have said is clear, the participant is heard, listened to and that there are no miss interpretations or miss communication. When writing the plan to send out to participants somewhere in the plan or in the document it needs to say “As you know the NDIS is about people with disabilities having their say I have listened to all the conversations you have had, have included everything in your plan that you have said and asked for”. This will show participants that their voice has been heard, valued and accepted. It is important that NDIA planners and Local Area Coordinators listen to NDIS participants, ask questions to NDIS participants if they do not understand something and clarify the information NDIS participants say to make sure that both NDIA planners, Local Area Coordinators and NDIS participants are on the same page as everyone has different interpretations of everything and this makes it very hard for NDIS participants when NDIS participants have one way to interpret information and what they think is flexible when NDIA planners and Local Area Coordinators have a different interpretation of what a flexible package is. People with Disabilities are the experts and know what they want.