What we said to the NDIS Review

An independent review panel was set up last year to look at the design, operations and sustainability of the NDIS.

The Summer Foundation has made 2 submissions to the NDIS Review:

• Building a strong and effective NDIS for participants with complex housing and support needs, which explores how the NDIS assists participants to live independently by funding home and living supports.
• An NDIS Quality and Safeguarding Framework that improves choice and control over shared support in SDA, which responded to the public inquiry into improving the NDIS Quality and Safeguarding Framework.

The Summer Foundation has participated in a number of NDIS Review Roundtables that discussed housing and supports to live well in the community. Key priorities to best support participants with high and complex needs were identified in the sessions:

• Supporting participants to navigate their home and living goals and supports 
• Ensuring consistency and fairness in the allocation and delivery of home and living supports
• Developing a range of quality and innovative home and living supports

A mix of ideas were presented during the session, many of which align with the Summer Foundation’s strategic objectives:

• Independent skilled support to navigate the NDIS and access housing and supports
• Participants to have increased choice and control over supports in shared living arrangements, particularly around who provides support to them and how individual and shared supports are provided 
• Disability housing policy to move away from congregate care/group home settings towards individualised, smaller scale models of contemporary housing

Most recently, the NDIS Review has released the What We Have Heard report. The Summer Foundation will provide a submission in response to this report and encourages people with disability, close others and supporters to share their views or answer the questions that most resonate with you. The NDIS Review Panel is due to present its findings and recommendations to the Disability Reform Ministers’ Council in October.