Overview of the committee's work since December 2020

Inquiry	Date inquiry commenced	Public submissions	Reports
Supported Independent Living	1 August 2019	51 submissions	May 2020
NDIS Planning	1 August 2019	157 submissions	December 2019 (interim report) December 2020 (final report)
NDIS Workforce	6 February 2020	58 submissions	December 2020 (interim report) December 2020 (final report)
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission	23 June 2020	75 submissions	November 2021
Independent Assessments	10 December 2020	374 submissions	October 2021
NDIS Implementation and Forecasting	6 October 2021	47 submissions	Final report scheduled for 2022
General Issues	See resolution establishing the committee	97 submissions	December 2020 (first report) November 2021 (second report)

Inquiry into general issues around the implementation and performance of the NDIS – 2020 Report

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Recommendation	Reason for the recommendation	Government response	Committee view
Recommendation 3 The committee recommends that the National Disability Insurance Agency regularly and systemically engage with people with psychosocial disability and representative organisations to better understand the needs of people with psychosocial disability and mental illness.	In light of the measures progressed by the NDIA, and the consideration given to relevant issues in the committee's other inquiries, the committee proposed to maintain a watching brief in relation to issues facing people with psychosocial disability. However, irrespective of these matters, the committee considered that the NDIA should regularly consult with the psychosocial disability sector, to better understand and address the issues facing people with psychosocial disability seeking to access the NDIS and obtain reasonable and necessary supports. The committee also strongly encouraged the NDIA to incorporate any feedback from this engagement in policy and program design.	Supported ‘The NDIA engages regularly with people with psychosocial disability and mental illness, including through the Mental Health Sector Reference Group, established on 9 December 2014, to develop a strong working partnership between the mental health sector and the NDIA. The Participant Reference Group also provides advice to the NDIA about the needs and experiences of NDIS participants, including people with psychosocial disability and mental illness. In addition, the NDIA engages with participants with psychosocial disability and mental illness through targeted national public consultation. For example, national consultation is scheduled for February 2021 on the Psychosocial Recovery Coach Framework.’	The committee remains concerned about the extent to which the NDIA is consulting with people with psychosocial disability and implementing changes in response to this feedback, particularly in light of the evidence that the committee received about the impact independent assessments could have on people with psychosocial disability. The committee encourages the NDIA to continue consulting with people with psychosocial disability, including through forthcoming co-design processes, and to put in place robust measures to ensure that it is not just listening to what people from this cohort say in consultations, but also taking action.
Recommendation 7 The committee recommends that the National Disability Insurance Agency develop a strategy to engage with people with disability who are homeless and to work with this cohort or participants once their access requests have been approved.	Evidence to the committee suggested that an unknown, but significant, number of people with disability experiencing homelessness may not be accessing the NDIS or may be struggling to meet access requirements because of their lack of documentation, informal supports and involvement with the allied health sector. This group of people is especially marginalised, with limited existing supports to introduce them to the NDIS in the first instance, and to help them with an application and support them once they have been approved. Without access to housing and basic needs, there may be challenges for these participants in accessing and implementing supports. The committee therefore considered that, at a minimum, the NDIA should develop a strategy to engage with people with disability who are homeless, and to work with them once their access requests have been approved.	Noted ‘All governments have agreed to the "Principles to determine the responsibilities of the NDIS and other service systems", including Applied Principles and Tables of Support (Applied Principle). Applied Principle 8 outlines housing and community infrastructure responsibilities with homelessness related services primarily the responsibility of states and territories. This includes homelessness prevention, outreach and access to temporary and long term housing for people who are homeless, or at risk of homelessness. The Commonwealth, states and territories developed the National Housing and Homelessness Agreement (NHHA) which commenced on 1 July 2018 and includes $129 million set aside for homelessness services in 2020–21. Under the NHHA, to receive funding, state and territory governments are required to have publicly available housing and homelessness strategies and contribute to improved data collection and reporting.’	While the committee acknowledges the role of states and territories in the provision of housing and homelessness services to individuals experiencing homelessness, the committee is of the view that issues with accessing housing should not prevent individuals with a disability experiencing homelessness from engaging with the NDIS and using the supports that the scheme has to offer. The committee will also continue to examine issues regarding the interfaces of mainstream service provision, such as housing and homelessness services, and the provision of NDIS supports in its inquiry into NDIS Implementation and Forecasting (see Chapter 5)
Recommendation 8 The committee recommends that the National Disability Insurance Agency introduce Liaison Officers to work with homelessness organisations and related services to facilitate improved National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) access and planning for people with disability who are homeless and eligible for the NDIS.	The committee was of the view that the NDIA should introduce Homelessness Liaison Officers to help coordinate services for this group, modelled on existing Justice Liaison Officers (JLOs). The committee recognised that the Complex Support Needs Pathway goes some way towards providing specialist planners for participants who are homeless, but liaison officers would take this initiative a step further by coordinating with existing homelessness services that may already have a relationship with the participant and may be able to provide specialist advice.	Noted ‘The Government notes the recommendation to implement homelessness Liaison Officers for the NDIS, but recognises that homelessness services remain the responsibility of state and territory governments. The NDIA currently has a network of Health and [JLOs] who support both participants and mainstream systems to understand and connect to the NDIS, including participants who have experienced, or may be experiencing, homelessness. In addition, the NDIA undertakes a range of community and mainstream engagement activities, including with homelessness services. NDIA Local Area Coordinators (LACs) also work with mainstream and community services to support potential and existing participants to access the NDIS and supports.’	See above.

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Inquiry into NDIS planning – Final report

Recommendation	Reason for the recommendation	Government response	Committee view
Recommendation 2 The committee recommends that the Australian Government implement Recommendation 3 of the Review of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 (the Tune Review).	The committee agreed with the Tune Review that the Commonwealth should provide additional funding for people with disability to navigate the NDIS, following concerns raised that advocacy groups ‘are stretched beyond breaking point’ with limited funding, meaning that ‘they are only able to help those most in crisis’.	Supported in principle ‘The Government agrees with the intent of Mr Tune's recommendations in relation to ensuring participants are supported to navigate the NDIS. … In addition: • the NDIA is currently reviewing the Local Area Coordination (LAC) framework to ensure the Partners in the Community provide effective outreach and referrals. • $20 million has been committed to expand the NDIS Community Connectors Program to assist hard to reach communities to navigate the NDIS… • Under the Department of Social Services, more than $75 million will be made available in 2020–21 and 2021–22 through two new grant opportunities under the Information, Linkages and Capacity Building (ILC) program... The Government will monitor the effectiveness of these reforms before considering whether further investment is needed.’	The committee encourages the Government to monitor the effectiveness of its current measures in relation to funding for advocacy services.
Recommendation 7 The committee recommends that the National Disability Insurance Agency develop, publish and implement a strategy for engaging with participants in custody to ensure that these participants are not unfairly disadvantaged in planning; and are assigned to planners who have the expertise to work with them.	Justice Liaison Officers (JLOs) help to ensure participants in custody have supports to help them transition, but core planning work may be beyond the scope of their role. Evidence highlighted factors that negatively impact the ability of participants in custody to self-advocate (such as limited documentation, lack of support, a history of homelessness, and a history of substance abuse, trauma and mental illness) along with the challenges involved in planning for a group of participants who are involved in multiple service systems. This evidence underlined the importance of planners being equipped to work with this cohort.	Noted ‘The NDIA has committed resources to overcome the challenges custodial settings present for supporting people with disability to navigate the NDIS, while appreciating the clear state and territory responsibility for criminal justice settings... This includes the introduction of [Justice Liaison Officers] in all jurisdictions, undertaking awareness raising activities, and better promotion of standard practices and information sharing in the criminal justice space. In addition, the NDIA is developing an external resource, Our Guideline – Justice System… This guideline is due for publishing before 30 June 2021.'	The committee encourages the Government to re‑examine whether its current measures to engage with participants in custody are sufficient, particularly in light of evidence received by the Disability Royal Commission.
Recommendation 18 The committee recommends that the Australian Government amend the National Disability Insurance Scheme (Supports for Participants) Rules 2013 to require the CEO of the National Disability Insurance Agency (or their delegate) to take into account any expert advice developed specifically for a participant when deciding whether a support would, or would likely, be effective and beneficial for that participant.	A large body of evidence suggested that some planners were ignoring or changing recommendations from experts. Under the current Rules, the CEO or their delegate is required to be satisfied that a ‘support will be, or is likely to be, effective and beneficial for the participant, having regard to current good practice’, and should ‘take into account, and if necessary seek, expert opinion’ as to whether a support would be, or is likely to be, effective and beneficial for a participant. Evidence from multiple sources suggested that these requirements did not go far enough.	Noted ‘From late 2021, the outcomes of independent assessments will be a key input into deciding the value of a plan budget. This will mean that the current approach to creating a participant's plan budget will change, with the amount of funding in a participant’s plan informed by their functional capacity as determined through an independent assessment, not a listing of individual reasonable and necessary supports…’	Given the Government has announced that independent assessments and Personalised Budgets in their proposed form will not proceed, the committee urges the Government to revisit this recommendation and its response to it.
Recommendation 26 The committee recommends that the National Disability Insurance Agency: • increase its family violence training for planners in how to identify family violence and what appropriate referral services exist; • ask participants before their planning meetings if they have a preference for a planner with a particular gender; • create a team of specialised planners within the Complex Support Needs pathway who are specially trained in how to plan for participants experiencing family violence; and • ensure that planners and Local Area Coordinators are able to refer participants who they suspect are experiencing family violence to this pathway.	In-camera and public evidence highlighted concerns from stakeholders that the rate and severity of violence against women with disabilities is high, but current planning processes may be unable to pick up on whether a participant is experiencing family violence – particularly if the participant relies on a family member for communication and perpetrators are present at planning meetings. The NDIA indicated it had online training in place for all staff. However, given that such participants may have little interaction with the community, a more proactive response to domestic violence may be needed on the part of the NDIA, given that some participants may not directly reveal that they are subject to domestic violence or may feel uncomfortable asking for a planner of a specific gender.	Noted ‘The NDIA upholds the Commonwealth, state and territory governments' shared responsibility for effectively responding to family violence and child abuse. As such all new starters in the NDIA complete a mandatory suite of eLearning which includes a module on Family and Gender Based Violence Prevention. Given that the training is mandatory for all those coming into contact with participants, a team of specialised planners in this regard is not judged necessary. If a participant self identifies as someone experiencing family violence, the Partner in the Community or planner will support them to the correct external pathway, for example Police and/or emergency services. Participants are also able to request a different planner should they not be comfortable for whatever reason including if they have a preference for a planner with a particular gender.’	Given that the government response did not identify proactive measures in addition to online training currently undertaken by the NDIA in relation to identifying participants at risk of experiencing family violence, the committee encourages the Government to re‑examine whether its current procedures and training on family violence are adequate to support participants experiencing family violence in the planning process.
Recommendation 34 The committee recommends that the National Disability Insurance Agency develop and publish de-identified summaries of key themes arising from settlement outcomes in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. Recommendation 35 The committee recommends that the Australian Government ensure that the National Disability Insurance Agency is sufficiently resourced to carry out the functions outlined in Recommendation 34	The committee also made this recommendation in its interim report. The NDIA’s response was to state that it would be an inefficient use of resources. Publishing settlement outcomes would be in line with the NDIA’s commitment to transparency. It would also aid the NDIA to identify consistent themes in decisions that may be arising because it has not made changes to policy and procedure. Multiple inquiries have now suggested that the NDIA needs to do better in how it makes use of AAT decisions to ensure consistency in its decision-making.	Noted ‘The AAT generally publishes decisions in relation to the NDIS in accordance with its publication of decisions policy... AAT settlements are not precedent-setting, and all cases are considered on their individual merits. The Government is committed to appropriately resourcing the NDIA so the agency can undertake all its legislated functions.’	The committee calls upon the Government to reconsider its position on this matter.

Inquiry into the NDIS workforce

Inquiry into the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission

Inquiry into independent assessments

Inquiry into current scheme implementation and forecasting

Committee view