Recommendation 9.9 – Criteria for funding family supports

What has been achieved to date

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) First Nations Strategy 2025-2030, which was released on 17 January 2025, includes Focus Area 2.3 – “Care our way”. This focus aims to expand and embed adequately funded and sustainable community and family-focused services and support that meet the distinct cultural and individual needs of First Nations people with disability. 

It will ensure self-determination and agency of First Nations people is centred as standard practice when developing, embedding and evaluating community and family-focused services and support. Work will be undertaken throughout 2025 to co-design implementation actions, timelines, accountabilities and evaluation frameworks for the Strategy. 

The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) is commencing an engagement and policy design process to implement Disability Royal Commission Recommendation 9.9 and funding family supports.

In the 2021 Census, an estimated 15% of First Nations people had provided unpaid assistance to someone with disability, a long-term health condition or a problem relating to old age in the two weeks before Census night.

The NDIA has committed to respecting ‘our mob, our way’ to create high quality and sustainable programs and services which are culturally safe. Policy development will consider the NDIS First Nations Strategy 2025-2030, including Focus Areas 2.3 – “Care our way”. This focus aims to expand and how funded family supports may impact access to carers’ allowance, and other government allowances.

What the Disability Royal Commission said in the final report

The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), the First Nations Advisory Council and First Nations Community Controlled Organisations should co-design policy guidelines on funding for First Nations family members to provide supports to participants in remote communities. Any policy guidelines should consider:

• the risk of financial exploitation, the need for a regulatory framework and oversight, and whether a similar approach would apply to non-First Nations carers in remote communities in similar situations
• the availability of suitable services, including culturally safe services
• training for NDIA staff on how to apply the policy guidelines, including how staff can support family to apply to be paid for the care provided
• building awareness of the circumstances in which participants and their families can apply to be paid
• how to build the capacity of family and community members to become part of the local workforce, such as trained support or community workers, which may include connecting family members with a First Nations Community Controlled Organisation.

Australian Government Response July 2024

The NDIA, with the First Peoples Disability Network, is co designing a NDIS First Nations Strategy with participants, First Nations disability community, families, carers, and sector stakeholders, to improve access and outcomes for First Nations people with disability in the NDIS.

The NDIS First Nations Advisory Council has been established as the co-design group to ensure that the voices and perspectives of First Nations people with lived experience, and their families, carers and communities are central to the development of the First Nations Strategy.

The NDIA, First Peoples Disability Network and the First Nations Advisory Council are working together to develop goals and initiatives to best support First Nations NDIS participants and to ensure that all decisions that affect First Nations participants: 

• are informed by First Nations voices and experiences;
• reflect the goals and hopes of First Nations communities;
• embed principles of self-determination; and
• are culturally informed, safe, accessible and inclusive. 

This work includes consideration of the initiatives suggested by the Disability Royal Commission in Recommendations 9.8 and 9.9, including in respect of a potential ‘Return to Country’ policy and criteria for funding family supports.

More recommendations

View progress on other recommendations made by the Royal Commission.