Your Core budget offers exceptional flexibility, covering four main categories of support:
- Consumables: This includes everyday items like continence aids.
- Daily Activities: Receive assistance with self-care activities throughout the day or evening.
- Assistance with Social and Community Participation: Access support enabling engagement in social or recreational activities.
- Transport: If public transport isn't feasible due to disability, funds are available for transportation needs.
The beauty of the Core budget is its ability to reallocate funds across categories, except for specific purposes like periodic transport payments or specialised accommodations.
These exceptions include:
- Compensation
- Specialised Disability Accommodation (i.e., housing solutions for significant functional impairments or high support needs)
- In-kind supports (e.g., government-provided school transport or select therapy supports)
- Stated items (including quotes for certain services), such as assistance within a shared living arrangement.
In these cases, funds within each category must be strictly allocated to their designated purpose. For further information about your Core supports, consult your NDIS plan.
The Capacity Building funding is distributed across eight distinct support sub-categories, each aligned with the goals outlined in your plan. While you have the flexibility to choose how to utilize these funds for purchasing approved individual supports within their respective categories, it's important to note that funds cannot be transferred from one category to another.
Here are the Capacity Building support categories:
- Choice and Control: Examples include training in planning and plan management.
- Daily Activity: This encompasses therapy aimed at enhancing your capacity to participate.
- Employment: Services may include employment-related assessment and counseling.
- Health and Wellbeing: This covers advice on exercise tailored to address the impact of disability.
- Home Living: Support is available for obtaining or maintaining appropriate accommodation.
- Lifelong Learning: Assistance is provided for transitioning from school to further education.
- Relationships: Services may include positive behavioral support strategies to mitigate concerning behaviors.
- Social and Community Participation: This includes individual life skills development and training, such as public transport training and support, as well as skill development for community, social, and recreational participation.
Support Coordination, if needed, is encompassed within the Capacity Building budget. This allocation is a fixed amount designated to strengthen participants' abilities to coordinate and implement supports outlined in their plans, facilitating greater participation in the community.
The Capital Support budget is designated for specific supports like assistive technology or home modifications, which typically require quotes from suppliers. Funds within this budget must be utilized solely for their intended purpose, such as installing a bathroom rail or acquiring a wheelchair. It's important to note that these funds cannot be diverted to fund other items or services.
