Building With Strength

Building With Strength Michelle Garland
NDIS Support Navigator and Consultant
South Coast NSW.
(1)

What to Expect in Your First NDIS PlanGetting approved for the NDIS is a big moment 🎉Opening your first plan can feel… a...
16/02/2026

What to Expect in Your First NDIS Plan

Getting approved for the NDIS is a big moment 🎉
Opening your first plan can feel… a lot 😅

Your first NDIS plan is usually a starting point, not the finished product.

Here’s what most first-time participants experience:
🟦 A focus on current needs, not everything at once
🟦 Core supports to get daily life moving
🟦 Capacity building to learn what works over time
🟦 Recognition of family and informal supports

It’s normal if your first plan feels cautious or limited. That’s how the system tests supports, builds evidence, and plans for growth 📈

At Building With Strength, we help participants understand their first plan, use it confidently, and prepare for what comes next — without needing Support Coordination.

Your first plan isn’t your forever plan 💙
It’s the foundation.

🌿 Resilience is learning how to bend with the season. 🌿Not every week will look the same — and that’s okay.Some seasons ...
15/02/2026

🌿 Resilience is learning how to bend with the season. 🌿

Not every week will look the same — and that’s okay.
Some seasons are for growth 🌱
Some are for rest 😌
And others are about adjusting and finding your footing again.

Resilience isn’t about pushing through at all costs.
It’s about knowing when to slow down, when to pivot, and when to give yourself grace. 💙

You’re allowed to change pace without losing direction.
You’re still moving forward — just in a way that fits this season. ✨

Getting Feedback from Participants — and Using It WellFor NDIS providers, participant feedback can be one of your strong...
11/02/2026

Getting Feedback from Participants — and Using It Well

For NDIS providers, participant feedback can be one of your strongest tools for improving quality, trust, and retention — if you know how to collect it and act on it.

At Building With Strength, we help providers strengthen their feedback processes in practical, real-world ways.

We can support you to:
✔️ Create simple, participant-friendly feedback questions
✔️ Set up easy feedback systems (formal and informal)
✔️ Ask questions that go beyond “Are you happy?”
✔️ Turn feedback into meaningful service improvements
✔️ Respond to concerns in a person-centred, professional way
✔️ Build participant trust through transparent follow-up

Good feedback isn’t about defending your service — it’s about learning, improving, and showing participants their voice matters.

If you want support to build stronger feedback systems that actually improve outcomes, we’re happy to help.

NDIS Guidelines – Your privacy and informationWhen you interact with the National Disability Insurance Scheme, the NDIA ...
10/02/2026

NDIS Guidelines – Your privacy and information

When you interact with the National Disability Insurance Scheme, the NDIA is required to collect certain personal information — but your privacy must always be protected.

The NDIS:
• only collects information it genuinely needs
• stores information securely and limits who can access it
• uses your information to assess eligibility, create and review plans, and fund supports
• cannot share your information without consent, unless required by law
• allows you to access most of the information they hold about you
• lets you update details like your name, pronouns or gender without impacting eligibility

You also have rights to:
✔️ know why information is being collected
✔️ control consent for sharing information
✔️ request corrections if information is wrong or outdated
✔️ apply for extra privacy protections in higher-risk situations

Understanding how your information is handled can reduce anxiety and help you engage with the NDIS more confidently

How we help

At Building With Strength, we support participants and families to:
• understand what information the NDIS can and can’t request
• complete consent forms clearly and safely
• manage information sharing with providers and professionals
• request records, corrections, or additional privacy protections
• feel confident advocating for their rights

Privacy matters — and knowing the rules helps you stay in control.

👉 Learn more about how we support NDIS participants at
www.buildingwithstrength.com.au

Feeling Confident Making Quick, Informed Decisions ⚡✅Emergencies and last-minute changes don’t always give you time to t...
09/02/2026

Feeling Confident Making Quick, Informed Decisions ⚡✅

Emergencies and last-minute changes don’t always give you time to think.

Confidence comes from preparation.

At Building With Strength, we help participants feel ready to:
✔️ Make quick decisions
✔️ Understand the consequences of choices
✔️ Act without second-guessing
✔️ Trust themselves

Confidence isn’t about knowing everything.
It’s about knowing enough to move forward.

And that makes all the difference 🤍

✨ Look for progress, not perfection ✨Perfection keeps moving the goalposts.Progress quietly keeps you going.Some days th...
08/02/2026

✨ Look for progress, not perfection ✨

Perfection keeps moving the goalposts.
Progress quietly keeps you going.

Some days the win is big.
Some days it’s simply showing up, trying again, or not giving up when it would be easier to stop.

Progress looks like:
• Learning as you go 📚
• Adjusting when things don’t work 🔄
• Taking one small step instead of waiting for the “right” moment 🚶‍♀️

You don’t need flawless plans or perfect conditions.
You just need forward motion — however slow, however messy.

Keep going.
You’re doing better than you think 💙

💬 Building a Person-Centred PracticePerson-centred care shouldn’t just live in policies or training manuals.It’s somethi...
04/02/2026

💬 Building a Person-Centred Practice

Person-centred care shouldn’t just live in policies or training manuals.
It’s something you do, every day.

Practical ways to embed it in daily work 👇
✔️ Start with listening, not assumptions
✔️ Ask “what matters to you?” — and revisit the answer regularly
✔️ Adapt supports as people’s goals, energy and circumstances change
✔️ Involve participants in decisions, even the small ones
✔️ Reflect often: Is this convenient for me, or meaningful for them?

When person-centred practice is done well, people feel heard, respected, and in control — not managed.

It’s not about doing more.
It’s about doing things with, not for.

NDIS Guidelines – Reasonable and Necessary supportsUnder the National Disability Insurance Scheme, every support in a pl...
03/02/2026

NDIS Guidelines – Reasonable and Necessary supports

Under the National Disability Insurance Scheme, every support in a plan must meet the “reasonable and necessary” criteria. This is one of the most misunderstood parts of the NDIS.

To be funded, a support must:
• be directly related to disability support needs
• help pursue plan goals and increase social or economic participation
• be effective and beneficial, based on evidence or lived experience
• represent value for money, including comparison with alternatives
• complement (not replace) family, community and mainstream supports
• be an NDIS support under the legislation

This is why:
– not everything recommended by a therapist is funded
– two people with similar goals may receive different supports
– funding can change from one plan to the next

It’s also why everyday living costs (like rent, groceries, holidays or gym memberships) and supports that belong to health, education or other systems aren’t funded by the NDIS 

How we help

At Building With Strength, we help participants and families:
• understand what actually meets the reasonable and necessary test
• frame requests in NDIS-appropriate language, not just clinical terms
• identify alternatives when a support is unlikely to be funded
• strengthen evidence so supports align with current guidelines
• reduce stress, delays, and unexpected funding knock-backs

Knowing the rules doesn’t mean accepting less — it means planning smarter and advocating more effectively.

Reducing Stress When Things Don’t Go to Plan 🌱💙Let’s be honest — unplanned changes are stressful.But stress often comes ...
02/02/2026

Reducing Stress When Things Don’t Go to Plan 🌱💙

Let’s be honest — unplanned changes are stressful.

But stress often comes from uncertainty, not the change itself.

At Building With Strength, we focus on:
• Clear options
• Simple next steps
• Practical decision-making
• Reassurance that you’re not “doing it wrong”

When people know what to do next, the stress drops — even in difficult moments.

Support should reduce pressure, not add to it.

💙 Monday Motivation: If It Matters to You, It’s Worth the EffortYour goals don’t need approval.They don’t need validatio...
01/02/2026

💙 Monday Motivation: If It Matters to You, It’s Worth the Effort

Your goals don’t need approval.
They don’t need validation.
And they don’t need to make sense to anyone else.

If something matters to you, that’s enough.

Effort isn’t wasted just because others don’t understand the why behind it.
Meaning is personal — and commitment grows from that meaning.

This week, keep showing up for what matters to you.
Your reasons are valid.

✨ Quokka of the Month ✨This little quokka reminds us that even on the hardest days, a smile has the power to shift our p...
01/02/2026

✨ Quokka of the Month ✨

This little quokka reminds us that even on the hardest days, a smile has the power to shift our perspective. A smile doesn’t just lift our own spirits – it can brighten the day of those around us too.
Sometimes the smallest gestures carry the greatest strength. 💙

Collaboration Over Competition 🤝The NDIS works best when providers work together, not against each other.Collaboration m...
28/01/2026

Collaboration Over Competition 🤝

The NDIS works best when providers work together, not against each other.

Collaboration means:
• Sharing knowledge
• Respecting each other’s roles
• Communicating openly
• Keeping participants at the centre

At Building With Strength, we believe strong outcomes come from cooperation, not competition. When providers collaborate, support becomes smoother, gaps close faster, and participants feel more secure.

A stronger community benefits everyone — especially the people we support 💙

Address

Kiama Downs, NSW
2533

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 3pm
Sunday 10am - 3pm

Telephone

+61414837752

Website

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