What is Plan Management?
Plan management is when an NDIS-registered plan management provider takes care of managing your NDIS funding for you. This means dealing with your providers, paying your invoices, storing your receipts, and helping
to manage your budget. Having a plan manager also means you can use service providers who are either registered or not registered with the NDIS.

Is there any cost to me?
No. Being plan managed means no out of pocket expense to you.

How does plan management work?
Plan managers need to be registered with the NDIS as they will provide you with financial administration support. Your providers send their invoices to us and we pay them on your behalf. We can also help you manage your budget so that you can get the most out of it to achieve your goals. If you request plan management, your NDIS planner will make your budgets plan
managed which will allow us to claim for services on your behalf and pay your service providers directly.

How do I become Plan Managed?
To be plan managed, you must have ‘Improved Life Choices’ included in your NDIS plan. At your planning meeting please advise your NDIS planner or Local Area Coordinator that you would like to be plan managed. They will then
include an “Improved Life Choices” budget in your plan in addition to your other budgets. This will cover all plan management fees so there is no cost to you. If you have a current plan that does not have Improved Life Choices
included, but you do wish to be plan managed, you can request a review of your NDIS plan to have plan management included.

How do I use my allocated funds?
Once your budgets are plan managed, all you need to do is find the service providers you would like to use and ask them to invoice us for the services you receive.

What is covered in my plan?
The NDIS will fund claims that are ‘reasonable and necessary’. These are goods or services that are directly relevant to achieving the goals in
your NDIS plan.The NDIS is unlikely to approve claims that are not directly related to a participant’s disability, such as; items everyone has to pay for like day to day living costs, entertainment, food, support items already delivered under other government funding schemes (such as education or Medicare), items
that do not represent value for money, and items that may pose a risk of harm to the participant or others.

Should a plan manager help to determine whether supports or services are
‘reasonable and necessary’?
No, the role of a plan manager is not to determine whether the supports or services
purchased are ‘reasonable and necessary’.
Your plan will have funds approved for reasonable and necessary supports at the
planning stage.

The role of the plan manager is to ensure your plan is implemented as intended. This
includes ensuring funds are being spent in accordance with your plan.

What is the difference between a plan manager and a support coordinator?
A plan manager will pay providers for supports delivered. A plan manager will help
you monitor your funds and provide you with financial reporting.

A support coordinator will support you to understand and implement supports included in your plan. A support coordinator will link you to providers and other community and government services. A support coordinator will also support you to build skills and direction.

If I change plan manager, who is responsible for paying my ‘old’ invoices?
If you change your plan manager, the new plan manager becomes responsible for the ongoing management of your plan. As the new manager of your funds, this includes processing payments on your behalf irrespective of the date the services were rendered or the invoice date. This is to ensure that any late invoices issued by a provider from earlier in the plan period
are able to be paid.

What are the Support Budgets in my plan?

There are three types of support budgets that may appear in your NDIS plan: core, capacity building and capital supports. Your NDIS planner will tailor your NDIS plan with support budget categories and funding connected to achieving your goals and supporting you in your day-to-day
life.

CORE SUPPORTS

The core supports budget is funding to support all your assistance with day-to-day tasks that relate to your plan and life goals. Your core funding is where all your carer, support worker, cleaning and other regular expenses
will be paid from.

The core budget is often flexible across the four support budget categories meaning you can choose to spend your funding interchangeably between them.

For example, you may want to spend more of your total core funding on continence products and less on your transport expenses.

The four budget support categories under core support are:

01: Assistance with Daily Life
Name on NDIS portal – “Daily Activities”. This budget will cover all your expenses related to assisting you to undertake daily tasks. This could
include:

• personal care, cleaning, gardening or meal preparation (with approval from the NDIS)
• assistance with laundry – linen service (with approval from the NDIS)
• access to alternative living arrangements
• short and medium term accommodation and assistance (including the provision of respite care)
• Supported Independent Living (SIL) options
• assistance with daily life tasks provided in residential aged care facility
• nursing care to assist with your disability related health needs

02: Transport
Funding to cover transport expenses related to the impact of your disability, such as:

• taxi expenses if you are unable to access public transport
• specialised transport services to attend school, educational
  facility, employment, or the community

03: Consumables
Funding to pay for everyday items and low risk/low cost products, like:

• products related to your disability like nutritional supplements or continence products
• interpreting and translating support
• Auslan or signed English training
• low-cost assistive technology for personal care and safety, such as modified cutlery and hand rails to improve your independence and/or mobility – you may also use these funds
  to do minor repairs to aids and equipment (assistive technology), for example wheelchair tyre puncture repair
• low cost assistive technology for prosthetics and orthotics

04: Assistance with Social, Economic and Community participation
Name on NDIS portal – “Social, community and civic participation”. Covers cost to access and participate in the community, such as:

• assistance with engaging in a community, social or recreational activity
• support can be provided in a range of environments such as in a community setting or centre
• one-to-one support to assist you with attending a social outing, holiday, camp, class or specific interest/hobby i.e. art, music, drama class
• participate in sport and exercise including joining a sporting club
• assistance to attend a community event such as the movies
• activity based transport including cost per km, parking, road tolls and public transport fares
• support to maintain your current employment

CAPITAL SUPPORTS

The capital supports budget pays for products to reduce the impact of your disability. These budgets are not very flexible and usually cover specific items which were discussed in your planning meeting and have been approved in your plan by the NDIA.

05: Assistive Technology
Specialised technology or equipment, like a smart device, wheelchair, or app.

06: Home Modifications
Funding for modifications to be made to your home to make it easier for to live your everyday life where your disability creates barriers. This may include modifications to your kitchen or bathroom equipment.

CAPACITY BUILDING SUPPORTS
The capacity building supports budget is funding specifically allocated to assist you to build your skills and achieve your goals.

07: Support Coordination
A support coordinator can be claimed from this budget. Support coordinators help you put your plan in action and organise your supports.
They can assist you to build connections with the community and broader systems of support; develop and design support options to help you work towards your goals; and work with you to prepare for review and report on
what you’ve achieved.

08: Improved Living Arrangements
Name on NDIS portal – “CB Home Living”. This funding is for help for you to find suitable accommodation to live more independently, and could cover someone to assist you with inspecting properties or negotiating your
contract. Supports may including assistance with applying for a rental property, meeting tenancy obligations and ensuring the home is
appropriate for your needs.

09: Increased Social and Community Participation
Name on NDIS portal – “CB Social Community and Civic Participation”.
This is to pay for support to help you build your skills in accessing the community. This may include funding a mentor or therapist to assist with learning skills for independence in the community.

This category of funding can be used to pay for tuition fees, art classes, sports coaching and similar activities that build skills and independence. You can use this category to pay for camps, classes and vacation activities that have capacity-building components. Activity based transport is also included.

10: Finding and Keeping a Job
Name on NDIS portal – “CB Employment”. Funding to support you to find a job and have assistance in your work. This budget can pay for a support worker to assist you at your job or helping you to find a job that’s right for
you, including:

• on the job training to assist you manage the demands of the job
• other options may include life and work coaches, private recruitment specialists, career counsellors and employment mentors

11: Improved Relationships
Name on NDIS portal – “CB Relationships”. Supports to help build your skills to connect and build relationships in your community. This could
include funding to pay for someone to help you build your social skills or behavioural therapy services.

12: Improved Health and Wellbeing

Name on NDIS portal – “CB Health and Wellbeing”. Services that improve your health and wellbeing, like a personal trainer, exercise physiologist or dietitian to improve your skills in maintain your own health and wellbeing.

13: Improved Learning
Name on NDIS portal – “CB Lifelong Learning”. Access to services that will help you to transition from school to further education. This budget could fund a support worker to help you to go to university or TAFE.

14: Improved Life Choices
Name on NDIS portal – “CB Choice and Control”. This budget pays for your plan manager.

15: Improved Daily Living
Name on NDIS portal – “CB Daily Activity”. Funding to cover your therapies and other programs to build your capacity to reduce the impact of your disability. This could be a physiotherapist, speech pathology, OT or any
other therapy that assists you to become more independent with your daily living tasks.

If I change plan manager, who is responsible for paying my ‘old’ invoices?
If you change your plan manager, the new plan manager becomes responsible for the ongoing management of your plan.
As the new manager of your funds, this includes processing payments on your behalf irrespective of the date the services were rendered or the invoice date. This is to ensure that any late invoices issued by a provider from earlier in the plan period are able to be paid.