NDIS plan ending with funding left over?

Managing your National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) funding can feel a bit tricky sometimes – especially when you’re trying to make sure you use it wisely. And although unspent funds don’t automatically translate into funding cuts in your next plan, it’s generally a good idea to spend what you have in pursuit of your goals, so you can show the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) your hard-fought-for budget has been put to good use.

There are a few more things to think about these days, and after changes were made to the NDIS Act in late 2024, how you spend your funding is one of them.

New rules about what you can and can’t use your budget for have tightened things up for everyone, and the categories of funding aren’t as flexible as they used to be. On top of that, we’re hearing more about stated supports, rejected claims, and budgets being slashed, and NDIS participants and providers are grappling with the latest round of pricing changes too.

One of the biggest NDIS upheavals in recent times has been the introduction of funding periods. When you receive a funding period plan, instead of getting your full budget up front, it will be split into smaller chunks that will made available over time.

That means you’ll need to plan carefully – how and when you spend really matters – so thinking ahead will be vital.

And while all of this means it’s less likely you’ll reach to the end of your plan period with a big chunk of funding left over, if that sounds like a possibility for you, there are a few useful things to know.

#1 Unspent funding won’t roll over to your next plan – so use it while you can

If you have funding remaining in the flexible part of your Core Supports budget, there are a few handy ways you might be able to use it (if the spending aligns with your NDIS plan).

Low cost, low risk assistive technology can sometimes be purchased (if it costs less than $1500), and consumables related to your disability (like continence aids) are also worth considering.

Capital Supports funding is a bit different. Designed to cover higher-cost items like specialised assistive technology, home modifications, and – in some instances – costs associated with Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA), Capital Supports funding is fixed and prescriptive, meaning its allocated for specific supports and can only be utilised for that purpose. For instance, if funding has been set aside for something like a wheelchair, a bathroom modification, or SDA, it can only be used for those things.

If a capital support you want to claim isn’t written into your NDIS plan, you need to get in touch with your NDIA contact to find out if it’s aligned with your budget – and having a letter of recommendation from your provider about why the support is needed may help.

If you haven’t spent your Capital Supports funding and you’re nearing the end of your plan, it might be worth checking with your support coordinator or NDIA contact to decide the best way forward.

Capacity Building Supports are all about helping you to develop skills and build your independence – with funding allocated to things like therapy, social and community participation, support coordination, and more.

Although some categories of funding within Capacity Building Supports are set aside for specific purposes (like plan management or behaviour support), if you do find you have broader funding available, it might be a great time to book a few extra sessions with your providers. If there are waitlists to see providers in your area, telehealth could be a good option to keep things moving until you can see your provider of choice in person.

And here’s another idea: if your therapist has given you recommendations, you might be able to use a therapy assistant to help put those into action, especially if there’s a shorter wait time to access that kind of support.

It’s all about finding smart ways to use your funding, so you can keep working toward your goals.

#2 There are common reasons why funds go unspent

Everyone’s circumstances are unique to them, but there are some common reasons why NDIS funding goes unspent. Do any of these apply to you?

If you’ve got funding left and you’re worried the Agency might reduce your budget in your next plan, it’s a good to talk with your NDIA contact to explain why. Provider reports and letters of recommendation can help too.

For higher cost items that take time to purchase – like specialised assistive technology and home modifications – it’s a good idea to get started early, so you can get quotes, place orders, book installations, attend fittings (e.g. for a wheelchair), or await deliveries. It’s also worth factoring in unexpected delays that may be caused by illness, staff shortages, product delays and more.

#3 There are ways to avoid underspending next time

Having a support coordinator and a plan manager (like us) on your team can make a big difference! We help you understand your plan, stay on top of your funding, and make sure you’re spending it in ways that help you to get the best value from your NDIS plan.

With us, you stay in control while getting expert support to navigate the NDIS smoothly.

We also recommend using our client portal (web and app) to keep track of the funding you have, what you’ve spent it on, and how much you’ve got left.

The price of support

New legislation, new look plans, funding periods, and more. Whether you're a participant or a provider, you’d have to be working overtime to stay on top of the shifting sands of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

And now, to add to the challenge, there’s a whole new raft of pricing rules to stuff into the mental rolodex of everything you need to know, with the latest iteration of the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits in play.

As the sea of change continues to wash over the sector, our NDIS experts have netted all the need-to-know information about pricing cuts, increases and tweaks, and we’ve laid it out to help you stay afloat.

Here goes!

What’s the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits?

The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) regulates prices to ensure sustainability of the Scheme and help NDIS participants get value from the supports they receive.

According to the Agency, it uses a mix of market data, research, and public and industry engagement in its Annual Pricing Review to inform changes to the Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits – which is a document the Agency releases annually on 1 July and updates throughout the year.

The Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits help both participants and providers understand what can and can’t be claimed and the maximum amount registered providers can charge.

This article tells you everything you need to know about the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits and how to use it.

What’s happening this year?

Under the 2025-26 Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits, lots of things have changed, including:

In previous years, the NDIA has boosted the value of participant plans to account for some price hikes. However, with an increased focus on Scheme sustainability and a greater effort being made to curb and manage spending in the NDIS, it remains to be seen if that will happen this year.

We know many participants and providers are concerned about NDIS pricing, and we encourage open communication between everyone involved.

We recommend our clients use the My Plan Manager client portal (web and app) to stay across how much funding they have, how much they’ve spent, and what they’ve spent it on, and suggest they get in touch with their support coordinator or NDIA contact for further information.

Providers may want to review and update their service agreements to make sure their pricing is compliant, so their claims can be swiftly processed and submitted to the NDIA for payment.

Want to stay in control of your NDIS funding? Get a plan manager

No fuss, lots of security, and the burden of paperwork lifted from your shoulders – all while you remain in the driver’s seat for your National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) journey.

Sound good? Well, that’s what plan management is all about – and if you’re an NDIS participant and you want to stay in control of your funding, it might be the option for you.

What’s plan management?

Plan managers are registered providers who support people with disability to get the most out of their NDIS plans.

What does that mean? Put simply, we help you manage your funding, budget for your supports, and submit claims for out-of-pocket expenses (if they’re in line with your NDIS plan) – and we’re on hand for guidance about the things you can and can’t spend your funding on too.

Our NDIS experts process provider invoices, maintain contact with the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), provide accurate and compliant financial reporting, and help protect you and your funding against fraud.

And all of that adds up to you being front and centre.

Not all plan managers are created equal, we know that, but with us, you’ll always know exactly where you’re at with your budget. After all, My Plan Manager has been around for more than a decade – we came up with the idea of plan management when the NDIS was launched – and we’ve learned a thing or two along the way.

We were the first in the country to do what we do, so we’re the most experienced plan manager in Australia. Oh… and we’re the largest too!

Want to know more about what a plan manager does? Click here.

How much does plan management cost?

NDIS plan management won’t cost you anything.

That’s right – you won’t need to put your hand in your pocket at all.

And before you ask, using a plan manager won’t eat into the funding for your other NDIS supports either.

One of the benefits of the NDIS is that participants can be supported by a plan manager without having to use any of the funding that’s been set aside for their other supports.

Our fees are paid from a budget category within your NDIS plan that exists for only one purpose – plan management.

How do I get a plan manager?

If you want a plan manager in your NDIS toolkit, all you need to do is ask. Most participants are eligible, so have a chat with your NDIA contact to find out whether it’s an option for you.

You can ask for plan management funding at any time – whether that’s during a planning meeting, a plan reassessment, or a check-in, or by making a call to the NDIA (1800 800 110). You can also email the NDIA (enquiries@ndis.gov.au) or use the Agency’s webchat function.

Remember – you don’t have to wait for a new plan, you can ask the NDIA to add plan management funding to your existing plan whenever you feel ready.

If you’re not sure whether you already have plan management funding included in your plan (you wouldn’t be the first person to be confused!), you can ask your NDIA contact to check, or you can look at your plan to see for yourself.

Here’s how to get an up-to-date copy of your NDIS plan.

If you already have the funding you need, you can become a My Plan Manager client straight away. Joining us is quick and simple – you can sign up here today.

Already got a plan manager, but not sure they’re the right fit for you? Not a problem! You can also switch plan managers at any time. Give us a call on 1800 934 170 and we’ll help you out.

Is there anything else I need to do?

Once you make the decision about which plan manager is right for you, you need to let the NDIA know, so your choice can be recorded as ‘my provider’. This is sometimes called ‘endorsement’.

To endorse My Plan Manager, you can:

If you sign up as a My Plan Manager client over the phone (1800 934 170) and your ‘my NDIS’ participant portal is linked to your myGov account, we can help you record us as your plan manager while you’re talking to us.

Find out more about recording your providers here.

NDIS provider registration – the current state of play

There’s a heck of a lot going on in the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) at the moment and we’d be willing to bet that most providers are feeling a touch overwhelmed by it all.

But no matter how frenetic the hustle and bustle of the Scheme and the sector becomes, there are some business-critical actions that can’t be put to one side – and getting your head around the current state of play with NDIS provider registration is one of them.

Right now, the decision to register with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission (the NDIS Commission) is voluntary. There are a few exceptions – like plan managers, Specialist Disability Accommodation providers, specialist behaviour support providers, and anyone implementing restrictive practices – but other than that, providers get to choose if they want to register.

But that’s about to change.

A potted history of NDIS provider registration

In December 2023, the NDIS Review handed down its final report – Working together to deliver the NDIS. The report made 26 recommendations with 139 actions to change the system that supports people with disability.

One of the key recommendations made by the Independent Review Panel (Recommendation 17) was to: ‘Develop and deliver a risk-proportionate model for the visibility and regulation of all providers and workers, and strengthen the regulatory response to long-standing and emerging quality and safeguards issues.”.

In February 2024, the Australian Government established the NDIS Provider and Worker Registration Taskforce, with a remit to provide advice on the design and implementation of the regulatory model recommended by the NDIS Review.

In August of that year, following consultation with 2270 people – including participants and providers, and organisations supporting people with disability – the Taskforce released its advice.

Among its 11 recommendations and 10 implementations actions were:

  1. Not all providers should be registered – e.g. providers who support self-directed participants
  2. Registration should be based on risk – with four types of registration recommended, based on the types of support being offered:
    • Advanced Registration – providers offering high-risk supports and services in high risk settings (e.g. daily living supports in closed settings, like group homes)
    • General Registration – providers offering medium-risk supports like high intensity daily personal activities, supports that need extra skills and training (e.g. complex bowel care or injections), and supports where there’s a lot of one-on-one contact with people with disability
    • Self-Directed Support Registration – participants, their guardians or legal representatives who contract all their supports directly, including through direct employment, Services for One and independent contractors
    • Basic Registration – providers offering lower-risk supports (e.g. sole traders or supports where social and community participation involves limited one-on-one contact with people with disability)
  3. Platform providers should be registered
  4. All providers of Supported Independent Living (SIL) and Home and Living supports should have Advanced Registration

The Taskforce was clear in its position on protecting choice and control for participant, recommending ways to support participants to register themselves for self-directed supports, including:

The Taskforce’s advice, its final consultation report, FAQs, and fact sheets for participants, providers and workers can be found here.

In September 2024, the Australian Government announced that registration of all platform providers, support coordinators and SIL providers would become mandatory ‘as a priority, to strengthen the quality and safety of supports’.

Although there are initially three categories of providers earmarked for mandatory registration, it’s expected more will be added once the initial changes are introduced.

What's next?

In October 2024, the NDIS Commission commenced consultation with platform providers, support coordinators and SIL providers. Further information about the consultation process can be found on the NDIS Commission website.

Summary reports arising out of the consultation are expected to be published this month, and current advice is that the transition to mandatory registration will start no earlier than 1 July 2025.

There’s not a lot of detail available at this stage, and our best suggestion is that providers closely watch this space.

NDIS funding periods explained

Life in and around the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) has been more than a little unsettling of late, with participants and providers caught in a lightning-fast whirlwind of change that looks set to continue for a while yet.

Recently, the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) pulled one of its strongest financial management levers, announcing the introduction of funding periods to all NDIS plans created on or after 19 May this year.

While the concept of funding periods isn’t entirely new – they landed in some plans after changes were made to the NDIS Act in late 2024 – many people were caught off guard when the broader roll-out was announced with only a few weeks’ notice.

To help you catch up, we’ve pulled together all the must-know information and laid it out in this NDIS funding period explainer.

What are funding periods?

In simple terms, funding periods are blocks of time the NDIA puts into an NDIS plan to break a participant’s overall funding package (or specific components of it) into bite-sized chunks.

Some people think of funding periods as being a bit like mini plans within a plan.

Designed to help reduce the risk of overspending, maintain consistency of supports, and minimise a participant’s exposure to harm, fraud or financial exploitation, funding periods mean only part of a person’s total funding amount will be made available to them at any given time.

As an example, someone with a three-year plan might receive a block of funding every three months across the lifetime of their plan – so they’d have 12 blocks of funding allocated in total.

The NDIA has confirmed that unused funds will roll over from one funding period to the next – so those hard-fought-for dollars won’t be lost if they aren’t spent in time.

However, if a participant doesn’t use all their funding by the end of their plan, it won’t be added to the budget in their new plan.

Will everyone have funding periods included in their NDIS plan?

Funding periods will take a bit of getting used to for everyone, and that’s why the NDIA is introducing them gradually by adding them to new and reassessed plans.

The Agency says it will be guided by legislation and the needs and circumstances of each participant when it decides on the periods to be applied.

When a participant gets a new plan, it will include:

This NDIS guideline explains how the NDIA includes funding in a participant's plan.

Why have funding periods been introduced?

NDIA Chief Executive Officer, Rebecca Falkingham, says ‘receiving all your funding at the start of your plan can make budgeting hard’, so a new approach has been designed to reduce the risk of participants running out of funds early.

“This change will be rolled out gradually,” says Ms Falkingham. “Participants will not be impacted until they receive a new or reassessed plan following discussion with them to understand their circumstances.”

The Agency says funding periods will usually be set at three months to provide flexibility for participants while also making sure their budgets last the full duration of their plan.

“Funding periods won’t change your total funding amount, they only change when you can access your funds,” says Ms Falkingham.

When it comes to payments for things like home and living supports, Supported Independent Living (SIL) and other high-cost, regular supports, the NDIA is implementing monthly funding periods, which it says ‘better align with service delivery’.

Some participants may also see more of their total funding made available at the start of their plan if upfront costs need to be met – e.g. to purchase assistive technology, like a custom wheelchair.

How do funding periods work

Participants can find information about their funding periods in the NDIA’s participant portal, as well as in the my NDIS app and their plan document.

They can see how much funding is available, how much they’ve used, how much has been released overall, and when the next amount will become available – and with their consent, their plan managers and support coordinators can see the same information in the NDIA’s provider portal.

We all know that circumstances can change quickly for people with disability, and that means participants may require more or less funding at different points in their lives. It appears the Agency recognises this too, with recent communications indicating flexibility will be adopted for participants who, in exceptional circumstances, need to access funding from a future funding period.

Examples may include where:

Future funding may also be released if the participant needs to pay for reasonable and necessary supports that have been included in their plan.

However, when it comes to ongoing supports – such as therapies – participants and their providers need to make sure they stay within budget. Providers can only deliver supports that are within the available funding for each period, and claims should be submitted as soon as services have been delivered.

Providers can claim for services delivered during previous funding periods, as long as the dates on their invoice fall within the period of the plan. The current funding period must have sufficient remaining or unspent funds rolled over from the previous period to cover the claim.

Open communication between participants and their providers, careful scoping of requirements, service agreements aligned to each funding period, timely invoicing, and accurate budget tracking are key.

If a participant isn’t happy with the funding periods and total budget amounts in their plan, they can request an internal review, but they can’t overspend.

This page on the NDIA website provides further information about funding periods.

Next steps

While it will certainly take some time for everyone to get to grips with the new world of funding periods, the NDIA says the change will ultimately benefit participants by helping them to ‘manage their NDIS funding by providing access to regular, manageable amounts over time, rather than all at once’.

Support coordinators should work with their clients to establish a schedule of supports that can be delivered within the funding allocated to each period, and it’s recommended that participants who don’t have access to a support coordinator get in touch with their NDIA contact to find out more.

We're here to help

If you have any questions, you can email us at enquiries@myplanmanager.com.au or call us on 1800 861 272 from 8am-5.30pm (SA time), Monday to Friday.

How NDIS funding pays for therapies

For some time now, National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) participants have been able to claim for disability-related health supports using their Core Supports budget, and sometimes this has included supports from providers like psychologists, dieticians, and occupational therapists.

Although the claiming arrangements were put in place in 2019, they were always meant to be temporary – and pending updates to the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits will soon mean that people can’t use Core Supports funding for general therapies.

Instead, from 1 July onwards, participants will not only have to make sure the therapies they access are related to their disability and in line with their NDIS plan, but they’ll also need to have funding available to pay for them in the Improved Daily Living category of Capacity Building Supports.

What are disability-related health supports?

According to the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), disability-related health supports are ‘health supports that relate to the things you can and can’t do because of your disability’.

The Agency won’t fund supports to treat a health condition – it says that’s the job of the health system – but if a participant’s disability causes a health condition, or if they need help to manage a health condition because of their disability, NDIS funding can sometimes be used.

For example, the Agency may fund things like training for participants and their providers, someone (like a support worker) to provide disability-related health supports to a participant, or specific types of equipment to aid management of a relevant condition.

What’s changing?

In the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits there are lots of Core Supports line item codes, and from what we know, it’s only intended that those related to therapeutic supports will be removed.

That’s because there’s been a double-up for a while now, with therapies sometimes claimed from both Capacity Building Supports and Core Supports, and amendments made to the NDIS Act in late 2024 are tightening things up.

The changes to disability-related health supports will affect participants who are currently claiming – or who’ve previously claimed – for services provided by:

Providers known as ‘other professionals’ have also been able to invoice using Core Supports codes (sometimes) – but if they’re providing therapeutic supports, then they’ll need to use Capacity Building Supports codes instead.

Nursing care and some assistive technology for disability-related health matters (such as pressure care cushions and cough assist machines) will still be able to be claimed from Core Supports, if the supports align with a participant’s plan.

What does this mean?

Put simply – to access general therapy supports, participants will need to have the right type of funding available in the Improved Daily Living category of their Capacity Building Supports budget. Claims for services delivered on or after 1 July 2025 will only be paid by the NDIA if that funding is available.

Everyone’s situation is different, which is why it’s important participants speak with their support networks, providers, and the NDIA sooner rather than later, so they can decide what they want to do next.

What should you do next?

If participants have service agreements in place with their health or allied health providers – or if they plan to use their services – we recommend they get in touch with their support coordinator or NDIA contact as soon as possible to discuss next steps.

We suggest providers take a close look at the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits to determine whether the supports they provide are disability-related health supports or general therapy supports – and they may also benefit from discussing their situation with the Agency.

Service agreements are an effective tool for ensuring both participants and providers have a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities, and we encourage people to establish service agreements before supports are delivered and/or received.

With the NDIS in a state of flux following the 2024 changes to the NDIS Act, it’s important to keep checking this web page to find out more as the NDIA updates its guideline on disability-related health supports.

NDIS support needs assessments explored

Ever heard the saying ‘the only constant in life is change’? Well, when it comes to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), it seems ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus might’ve been onto something!

From the roll-out of PACE and the renewed focus on eligibility reassessments, to the implementation of funding periods, the new definition of NDIS supports, and the introduction of the Notice of Impairments, it’s certainly been a tumultuous couple of years for Australia’s disability community.

And now it seems there’s another change on the horizon – one that could significantly alter the NDIS landscape – and it’s coming in the shape of what’s known as a support needs assessment.

What’s a support needs assessment?

Put simply, a support needs assessment is a tool the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) is developing to help it understand the supports a person with disability needs.

The Agency will use the information it has on file – like details about the impairment or impairments that make you eligible for the Scheme – and information it gathers during a support needs assessment to decide how much funding you need and what your NDIS budget will look like.

Support needs assessments don’t exist yet, but it’s thought they could be introduced by the NDIA as soon as late 2025.

Why are support needs assessments being introduced?

At the end of 2023, the final report of the NDIS Review was published. The report – ‘Working together to deliver the NDIS’ – included 26 recommendations and 139 actions designed to ‘provide a blueprint to renew the promise of the NDIS and deliver a more accessible and inclusive Australia’.

The Independent Review Panel said that while people with disability may need to complete a functional capacity assessment as part of their application to join the Scheme, once they’d been accepted, a support needs assessment was the recommended tool for understanding the supports needed for daily life and achieving goals.

The panel recommended skilled needs assessors (allied health professionals, people with lived experience, and people with substantial disability sector experience) be engaged to:

“NDIS processes should be fair and clear and easier for people with disability and their families to understand,” said the panel. “You should know and understand how decisions about access and budgets are made.”

“NDIS budgets should be set in a fair and transparent way. You should be given a flexible budget and trusted to use it in a way that helps you achieve your goals and live an inclusive life.”

You can find out more about the NDIS Review and its recommendations here.

What does the NDIA have planned?

In early 2025, in response to the NDIS Review recommendation, the NDIA announced it was ‘working to design and test a new way of gathering information about the support people with disability need and to set their NDIS budgets’.

At the same time, it released a Request for Tender for support needs assessment tools for adults (people aged 16 years and older) and Requests for Information (an industry consultation process) to work out how the Agency can best understand support needs for children and specific kinds of support funded by the NDIS.

You can read more about the tender and requests for information in this article by the NDIS experts at DSC.

Further information about the outcome of the tender and consultation processes, as well as the next steps in the NDIA’s plans, is yet to be released.

How will support needs assessments change the NDIS game?

At the moment, when the NDIA makes a decision about your funding it relies on information already in its system, as well as any new information you provide.

In practice, that usually means you spend a lot of time gathering everything from functional capacity assessments and provider reports, through to medical reports and lived experience and carer impact statements – all of which only tell part of your story.

Not only is the endless collection of reports and assessments incredibly time-consuming and costly, but all that documentation mostly speaks to the things you can’t do or are limited in doing because of your disability, rather than the supports you need to help you achieve the things you want to achieve.

Another issue with the current system is that not all participants have the capacity or means to provide robust documentation, and that means they run the risk of receiving inadequate funding or having funding allocated to the wrong budget categories.

That’s why the NDIS Review recommended a new, consistent approach – one that will hopefully mean better and fairer allocation of funding for every participant – and it looks like support needs assessments will come into play to inform the ‘new framework plans’ the NDIA is going to introduce.

The Agency has said it will start using support needs assessments from September 2025, and it will take up to five years to transition all NDIS participants onto new-look plans, which will include stated supports (like assistive technology) and flexible budgets.

However, Every Australian Counts – a grassroots campaign for the disability community – has called for more time for co-design of support needs assessments.

“The new support needs assessments are a critical part of the NDIS and must be well-designed and must work for participants,” the Every Australian Counts campaign statement says.

“If the support needs assessments are designed collaboratively, tested so we can be sure they work, and delivered by trusted health professionals, they have the potential to bring fairness and equity to NDIS decision-making.

“They have the potential to restore trust in the system and improve the lives of people with disabilities across Australia.”

It seems the NDIS shapeshifting is set to continue for a while yet.

Finding the NDIS a little confusing? Got a plan, but not sure where to turn for support? Help is just one click away!

By now you’re probably aware that the NDIS can be complex and time-consuming to navigate – and sometimes, no matter how long you’ve been around it, it’s difficult to understand as well.

While this can be true for even the most experienced amongst us, at My Plan Manager – your NDIS un-complicator – we focus on making your journey through the Scheme easier, so you can focus on achieving the outcomes you’re after.

Time and again we hear from participants who are struggling to understand how to get bang for their NDIS buck and feeling unsure about where to find providers who can support them to develop the skills they need to manage their funding and their supports.

In many ways, everyone’s the same: we all want to make every dollar count so we can achieve our goals and enjoy our lives.

That’s where Kinora comes in!

What’s Kinora?

An online community created by My Plan Manager, Kinora helps people with disability and their supporters connect with peers, NDIS experts, disability sector professionals, and service providers, assisting them to build lasting connections with the people and businesses who can support them throughout their lives.

Want to know more?

When you first get started in the NDIS, lots of new information comes your way, and that takes time to unpack. It can take months (or even years!) to work out the right places to spend your funding and to gather inside knowledge and tips, like:

And that’s just for starters!

As the saying goes, ‘you don’t know what you don’t know’, and we want to make sure you’re not missing vital information and supports.

Again, that’s where Kinora comes in!

How can Kinora help?

Kinora has a wide and varied community of people you can engage with and learn from – everyday people, Kinora coaches, and disability professionals who all have terrific experience that can help you to upskill so you can manage the juggle between your life and the NDIS.

Whether you’re at the start of your NDIS journey or several years in, there’s something for everyone in Kinora and lots of support to be found.

And the best part is… it doesn’t cost anything.

Sign up today – after all, it’s free!

Are you ready to get involved in a supportive, nurturing community that’s genuinely invested in helping you to take control of your NDIS journey?

Yes? Then join Kinora today. You won’t regret it!

Leaning into the chaos: travelling as a neurodivergent family

Time marches on, and for all the parents out there, that means there’s always a set of school holidays on the way.

If your budget and time allows, you might be thinking about planning a family holiday – and whether that’s heading to the coast for a couple of weeks or taking a 24-hour flight to the northern hemisphere, it’s doubtless you deserve the break!

But just like holidaying with children means parenting in a new location, travelling when you’re neurodivergent – or your child is – means that wherever you go, there you are. Your neurodivergence doesn’t take holidays, but planning for considerations and accommodations allows everyone to make the most of the trip, while also making sure their own needs are being met.

We asked a neurodivergent Mum to keep a diary on a recent family holiday, and to share her experiences and travel tips with us. Here’s what she had to say.

Amelia’s travel tales

Take it from me – as an adult diagnosed with ADHD who took her seven-year-old with ADHD (and undiagnosed, but probably ADHD, partner) globetrotting on a three-month working holiday, there are more than a few tips and tricks out there that can make travel an experience to remember for all the right reasons!

To add to your options, here are several of mine – feel free to take on board the advice that’s useful for you and your family… and ignore what isn’t!

Our secret weapon – dividing responsibilities

Having the least inattentive of us handling the bookings and dates was key. My husband is more organised than me and loves the hyper-fixation of travel research, so he took the lead on booking flights, hotels and apartments across our trip.

We booked things as we went, which was very helpful when it came to the spanner in the works that was said husband getting shocking food poisoning and us staying in Singapore five days longer than planned. If everything had been booked, the knock-on effect would have been a nightmare.

Plus, waiting to book last minute also nets better last-minute deals on apartments!

We doubled down on our commitment to playing to my husband’s strengths when, during our very first international flight, our passports slid out of my handbag and disappeared three rows back without me realising – instantly making him the Keeper of Passports!

As a self-confessed coffee snob, my husband also sourced and returned with the best coffee in each city every morning… so his strength became my win.

As for me, I took the lead on morning childcare, including breakfast and pool time, finding local playgrounds, reading and (minimal) homework, the organising of mine and our kid’s luggage and items, and wrangling new washing machines in each city.

Google Translate – especially using the camera or photo function on the app – was vital, as was a bit of lateral thinking with some descriptions on washing machines coming from left field!

Consider tapping into the services of a travel agent

If organisation is no one’s strong suit, you might do well to find a travel agent to be your best friend.

In addition to holiday planning, a travel agent also offers an amazing extra set of eyes to pick up on potential issues before they become a problem – which could be a real bonus for the inattentive traveller (who, me?).

I’ve never forgotten an experience relayed by our friends. When booking their own flights and accommodation for a trip to Bali, they were puzzled that online check in was only available for mum and the three kids, but not Dad. The sad, sorry mystery was solved at the airport when they realised dad couldn’t check in because his passport was set to expire in five months (lots of countries require six months’ validity on passports before you can enter).

The result? Mum travelled with three kids on her own, while Dad hurriedly got a new passport photo taken, went to the city to pay for an emergency passport, and then paid for another, expensive flight to get him to Bali the next day.

This wouldn’t have happened if they had used their usual travel agent!

What we organised well before we left

To be honest, this one feels like a mega-list, but it got us holiday ready and off to see the world. We packed:

Before we left we also paid for a session with our occupational therapist (OT) where she wrote (and laminated) a whole series of games and exercises we could do on the road to help with ongoing OT goals.

From using the painter’s tape for obstacle courses to playing tug-of-war with towels, she had lots of games and ideas for us to implement and – bonus – we have continued using this guide when our kiddo has taken a therapy breaks.

What we left behind (which I knew we’d regret)

We really should have packed an Australian power board or two so we could use just one converter to charge/use multiple Australian electronics!

The Hidden Disabilities Sunflower

Have you heard about the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower? Our family didn’t use it on this trip, but we know lots who have, and we’ve heard nothing but positive things.

Some disabilities, conditions and chronic illnesses are not immediately obvious to others – and for some people, that can make it hard to understand and believe that a person with a ‘non-visible’ condition genuinely needs support.

That’s why the internationally-recognised Hidden Disabilities Sunflower was created – to encourage inclusivity, acceptance and understanding.

It's a simple tool for people to share with others that they have a hidden disability and might need extra help, understanding, or just more time.

Frequent flyer programs and family pooling

Another thing to try to lock in before you go is signing all your family members up to the frequent flyer programs of the airlines you’re travelling with.

Some airlines also allow family pooling, which means everyone’s points are put together – which is great if they boost you up to a level where you can then access airline lounges, because airports are expensive and free food and drinks in the lounge are welcome.

Lounges also provide more quiet space for regulating yourself and others, and an opportunity to support your child to learn about appropriate behaviours – like monitoring voice volume and showing consideration for others.

Obvious tip – you need less than you think you do

Resist overpacking! I know everyone says it, but very few listen, including us. So, we overpacked.

We had the extra degree of difficulty in starting and ending our trip in sunny, hot Vietnam, while experiencing rain, wind and – briefly and excitingly – snow in Europe and the United Kingdom, but we still had about 30 per cent too much luggage, even accounting for things lost on the way.

Remember that you’ll probably buy some things on the road too, so if you can, leave room!

Choose your suitcase wisely

We had new hardshell suitcases which looked like they could fit loads in them… but they really didn’t. The trunk-style hard shell suitcases mean you need to limit your belongings and distribute them on each side of the suitcase evenly, and they open right up and take up lots of floorspace too, so be aware.

I could go on and on about the benefits of our old backpacks vs suitcases, but luggage is a personal choice with advantages and disadvantages to every option!

Also, if you’re flying on budget carriers you may have to pay extra to take a small rolling cabin bag as carry-on. Every airline seems to have strange, arbitrary rules, so brace yourself.

Thermals transform your usual Aussie clothes into suitable clothes for a European winter

We bought two pairs of Uniqlo Grade 3 Heat Tech long johns and three same grade tops in Berlin. I had bought a single set of long johns and a top and managed to lose them in our house before we left, likely in mountainous peaks of clean washing. That’s inattentive ADHD for you!

The Heat Tech tops were fine on their own or under short sleeves or long sleeves, and the long johns fit well under the usual cotton jogger jeans or track pants.

The Heat Tech long john, top, socks, gloves and beanie combo (along with a very warm puffer jacket) kept our son content, even on a freezing cold, three-hour Cold War Berlin tour that was definitely not engaging for children.

Useful apps

There were four apps our family relied on constantly – and I mean, constantly.

  1. The SunSmart app, which works in many places around the world to tell you live UV ratings and when you need extra sun protection!
  2. The CityMapper app, which was recommended to us by a London-based friend and was beyond helpful while we were there. Basically, you put in your start location and destination, and it maps the best combo of walking and public transport options for you. It also works in Australia for Sydney and Melbourne!
  3. For places not covered by City Mapper, trusty Google Maps is decent too.
  4. The aforementioned Google Translate was super handy as we traversed the globe.

There are also lots of apps and podcasts that are specific to neurodivergent users, and I’m a superfan of several.

Prescription and over-the-counter medication

Always remember to keep prescription medications in their original packaging, with your details on the sticker, and pack a letter from your doctor explaining the medication and dosage.

We made sure to check the regulations for the countries we were travelling to, especially for Schedule 8 drugs (which can include ADHD medication). If you’re off on a trip you may wish to seek advice from your doctor and your destination country’s customs websites.

Make sure you pack enough prescription medication in your carry-on bag to tide you over if your checked luggage is lost and find out whether over-the-counter medication is available and convenient to access in your destination or if you need to pack that too.

If it’s easy to carry or it’s a brand you like more than others, you might decide to bring some from home. Otherwise, for things like paracetamol, ibuprofen, band-aids, antacids and the like, it’s usually fine to pick up over-the-counter supplies locally.

Random things that helped us as a family

Here are five things that really helped us on our trip:

  1. Sourcing loads of fruit for the mornings and for snacks. This helped with getting a bunch of non-processed food into our son to start him off with a good dose of nutrients for the day (especially as he was eating lots of the great burgers of the world and testing out which international location made the best lasagne). For anyone who wants to know, the apples in Paris are the most delicious in all the world.
  2. Packing the handball was a godsend! Even finding quieter corners in airports to play a bit of handball was good. It was a non-screen activity, the ball didn’t do any damage if it hit a window, and it was great for hand-eye coordination and some laughs before a flight.
  3. The Investigators book series was very popular and Max (our son) happily re-read them over and over and over again.
  4. The Nintendo Switch got a hard work out, so setting boundaries from the start was vital. We never took the Switch out of the place we were staying in. On planes, the Switch could only be used when the seatbelt sign was off, which gave us time to pack everything up well before getting off the plane (one pair of headphones was lost at the outset because of a chaotic, last-minute rush).
  5. Uno was always popular. We played as a family and kept a record of who won – thereby playing for the Asian Uno Cup, European Uno Champions League, and United Kingdom Uno Championships.

Connect with local kids

Finding opportunities to connect with kids anywhere and everywhere was important for our only child.

Max spent loads of time with us and the benefit to that was that he grew so much – we saw it happening in front of our eyes! He literally got taller, and new teeth arrived, but it was his understanding of humour (especially our slightly bananas, off-kilter family humour) that really developed as we travelled. We all love to laugh and make each other laugh and it showed.

But no matter how much fun he had with mum and dad, we could tell Max was missing his friends and the company of children his own age. Spending time with older cousins was amazing but we also tried to engineer opportunities for him to play with other kids.

The friendliest places of all were Ireland and Northern Ireland. We found some kids in Belfast playing soccer on an asphalt court with soccer goals – and they were so good!

“Go and ask if you can join in. What do you care? You’ll never see them again, just go,” we said to our son. But he was shy, understandably.

Enter Mummy.

I yelled out: “This is Max, he’s seven, we’re from Australia, and we’re here for one day. Can he play with you please?” and the motley crew of kids welcomed him in.

They worked out names and ages (they were all about seven too) and then they raced around for a good 40 minutes playing soccer. Even though Max wasn’t at their level – they clearly played with each other every day after school – he relished being with kids and they were so kind to him. The toughest thing for him was the Belfast accent, which he struggled to understand!

The next day, this time in Dublin, we found a playground in St Stephen’s Green and a boy the same age as Max ran right up to him and said: “Do you want to play with me?”. The boy asked if Max was Irish, and when he found out we were from Australia, Max (and us) seemed to be a bit of a hit.

Sadly, the playground shut soon after, so it was a short play, but we parted only after handing over a clip-on koala as a gift from our home.

Learn some local language

As the granddaughter of immigrants, including my multilingual grandfather, I have dreams of being easily able to pick up languages other than English. Alas, I have not – unless you count the domestic Ukrainian that my cousins and I learned as children, which is basically how to offer food and understand when you’re in trouble.

But learning a little of each local language goes a long way, and if you can only learn one phrase, then ‘thank you’ does a lot of heavy lifting.

We made a point of teaching our son how to say ‘thank you’ in each local language. In Vietnam, that meant frantically playing the audio translation for ‘thank you very much’ repeatedly right before we needed it, so we could try to get the tonal aspect of the language as accurate as possible!

Consider a sleeper train!

Train travel is a brilliant way to take you right into the centre of towns and it allows you to see the passing countryside on the way.

We booked a private compartment (second class) on the European Sleeper, and it was so much fun. The European Sleeper company finds unused sleeper carriages and puts them back on the rails for a slightly slower (less sensory overload!), more eco-friendly, and way more fun way to travel.

Our train host was brilliant with Max, and we got the ultimate cosy travel experience of seeing it snowing from the train windows (along with the exquisite hell of seeing snow for the very first time and not being able to interact with it!).

And while it wasn’t the most restful of sleeps, the sleeper train was a novelty, it was much calmer, and it also covered a night of accommodation while getting us to our destination, so we get lots of bang for our buck!

Trains also don't have the same onerous security checks or luggage weights of airlines, and they deliver you right into town – so you’re saving time as well as money on a taxi or rideshare fare to the airport.

Try to find calm amongst the storm of travel days

There were certainly some emotionally and mentally draining days, and we soon realised how tough travel days could be for everyone, but especially for Max.

Airport days in particular were their own unique stress, with queues, security and customs checks, finding gates and getting space in the overhead lockers just some of the challenges we faced.

As adults, it’s easy to forget how much we rush and how much we rush our kids, so we tried to keep the evening of a travel day quieter because we found Max to be really stimmy on arrival in each new city.

He was tired, he was picking up on our stress, and – just like us – he had the anticipation, excitement and anxiety of being in a new place and finding his next bed, as well as wondering what we’d be doing, how far we’d need to walk, and what would be on the menu.

He adjusted as we adjusted and, on the whole, we just tried to be extra patient with him and each other on a travel day.

Most staff associated with travel – like those working with customs, airlines, trains etc. – were absolutely brilliant with Max, which was lovely to see!

Factor in downtime

The last time my husband and I did a trip like this was 11 years ago. We had backpacks and no kid, and we stayed in cheap accommodation because we were constantly on the go, so we spent minimal time in our room.

On this trip, we needed to factor in lots of downtime – not just because we were working while Max relaxed (and wow, that was a juggle!), but also because we wanted to make sure we had quality time together, with lots of connection and cuddles. When you’re seven, the world is very big and you need time to rest and recover… and the same could be said for us these days.

This is Max’s life, too

Imagine you’re told where to go all the time, hurried along, and told not to get in other people’s way. You’re uncertain about the menu and what you’ll be eating (though Max was great with eating brain ice cream in Romania and trying intestine pasta in Rome), and you want to play more video games, but it feels like you’re told all the time that you can’t.

That is a particularly bitter pill to swallow when the adults around you are on their phones – often looking up maps or booking tickets (but you don’t know that). It looks like they’re having fun, but you aren’t, and having no control feels yuck!

We tried to support our son’s choices as much as possible and also remind ourselves that the 'Big Trip' was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for him as well as us.

We wanted to make it good for Max too, and that meant prioritising time for him to be himself, to run and jump about, and to get wriggly and have squeezy cuddles with us.

Everyone needs time to regulate themselves and so we made sure Max knew it was fine if held us up for a minute or two, because adults hold other people up all the time, and this holiday was his to enjoy as well.

Things will go wrong, and things will be lost – but hang on to your mindset

A subtle undertone of chaos is the nature of travel. Things won’t always go to plan, but rolling with the punches is really important – and that’s why we tried not to sweat the small stuff (and to minimise the meltdown triggers along the way).

Brace yourself that some things will be lost – our tally at the end of the trip was one pair of headphones, one scarf and one hat. While it’s annoying and everyone wants to hang onto their possessions, lost property is a something you’ll almost certainly face along the way, so try not to let it derail you.

Accommodation might fall through, taxi drivers could rip you off, it might rain, you might miss out on snow, who knows? With any luck, you won’t lose anything really important (loads of cash, passports etc.) and when things do inevitably go wrong, you’ll hopefully learn a lesson or have a funny story to tell once the situation has passed.

Above all, we tried to support each other to take responsibility and learn from things without pointing fingers, throwing someone under the bus, or suggesting helpful tips about how things might have been kept safer once they’d gone.

The most valuable lesson we learned from our trip

Our trip taught us all about the value of the reset – how to enjoy walking when you don’t want to walk any more, to be patient when maps are loading, and to realise that iPhone batteries on old phones really do run out quite quickly.

We consciously worked as a team, especially on the big travel days. While we did encourage Max to be responsible for his own backpack, and to take it on the plane with him, we also carried it if it got heavy. A bit of a metaphor for life as a family really!

We tried to hold each other in unconditional positive regard, especially on days with early starts (our record was a 2.30am wake up for a 5.20am international departure). It’s easy to gripe or snap at each other when you’re tired and stressed and rushing, but travel days were a big part of the Big Trip, so they needed to be positive too.

It goes more smoothly and is just nicer for everyone when you work as a team and lean into the chaos, anticipation and excitement of packing up together and getting on the road again to the next adventure.

And, no matter where you are in the world, if you’re with people you love and who love you, you’ll always feel at home.