Engagement on new NDIS rules

Engagement strategy

People with disability must have a say on the design and implementation of NDIS reforms. We will ensure we work with the disability community, and across all governments, on the new rules.

Our engagement strategy builds on the comprehensive engagement of the NDIS Review. They engaged with NDIS participants, families, carers, the disability sector, and researchers. The engagement strategy will ensure people with disability and the community are at the centre of NDIS reforms. We will also use feedback from the co-design work done by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).

We want to make sure we engage with lots of different people. We will use different engagement activities to suit different audiences.

All our engagement aims to:

• give you the opportunity to review information and provide feedback
• give you clear information on government decisions
• demonstrate how these changes fit with broader NDIS reforms
• promote the benefits of the proposed reforms
• build support for long-term implementation of the new rules.

This strategy has been endorsed by the Disability Reform Ministers’ Council.

Who we are engaging with

Our engagement process has 3 stages. We will consult with different groups in each stage, to support engagement with the disability community.

Listen

We will listen to feedback about the participant experience from the:

• NDIA Independent Advisory Council and other NDIA advisory groups
• Disability Representative and Carer Organisations
• NDIA Participant Reference Group
• NDIA codesign working groups
• NDIS Reform Advisory Committee
• Australian public.

Incorporate

We will incorporate this feedback into the proposed rules and seek further advice and comment from the:

• Disability Senior Officials Group
• National Disability Advocacy Program
• Disability representative organisations
• state and territory stakeholders.

Finalise

We will work with disability ministers to finalise the rules and provide them to the Disability Reform Ministerial Council for review and endorsement.

Public engagement

Current consultation

We will share information on public consultations when they are open on DSS Engage.

Previous public consultation

• Consultation on the draft lists of NDIS supports 4–25 August 2024
• Consultation on the Draft Lists of NDIS Supports Report

NDIS Review engagement

The NDIS Review engaged deeply with disability community.

The disability community helped develop the terms of reference for the review. This was a key step to restore the trust between the disability community and government.

The review panel consulted broadly across Australia. They used lived experience from people with disability to inform their recommendations.

The panel:

• heard from over 10,000 people and organisations
• received over 4,000 submissions
• spent over 2,000 hours listening to the stories, ideas, and feedback of people with disability
• had regular meetings with Commonwealth, state, and territory disability ministers
• used findings from other reviews and inquiries, like the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability.

Targeted engagements

Engagement plans and roadmap

The following documents support the Engagement Strategy and help guide our consultation:

• Disability Reform Roadmap 2024 and 2025
• NDIA joint statement on Co-design

Our engagement approach

We will follow these principles in all of our engagement:

• timely, clear and consistent
• inclusive and accessible
• respectful and trauma-informed
• distributed through multiple channels.

We will ensure our engagement materials are available in accessible formats:

• Easy read
• Auslan videos
• Plain English
• Contact us for other accessibility needs.

Get involved

• Stay updated and find out about engagement opportunities – subscribe for updates.
• Help improve NDIA policies, services, templates, communication and more – join Participant First.
• For information on legislation, read our frequently asked questions.
• For information on participant experiences, read the NDIS frequently asked questions.