15/02/2025
The NDIS and Schools: Who is responsible for what?
Many of the families with children with disabilities I work with are often unsure about what supports should be provided by schools and what supports should be provided by the NDIS. This confusion sometimes makes families reluctant to ask either their school or the NDIS for what they are entitled to. So, to clarify:
Schools are responsible for supports for your child's learning at school, including:
• teaching, learning assistants and other supports such as Auslan interpreters
• general support, resources and training for teachers, tutors and other staff
• therapy delivered in schools for education or training purposes, such as allied health practitioners
• aids and equipment to make the curriculum accessible, such as modified computer hardware, software and Braille textbooks
• school building modifications such as ramps, lifts and hearing loops
• transport for educational or training activities such as excursions, field trips and sporting carnivals.
If your child is a NDIS participant this will not affect any extra support they get at school to support their education. This includes support your child may be getting if they are eligible for Disability Inclusion or the Program for Students with Disabilities (PSD).
PSD is one of the supports available to help schools meet the needs of eligible students with disability and high needs who attend Victorian government schools. Disability Inclusion (DI) is the new funding and support model for students with disability. For more information about PSD and DI, see https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/disability-inclusion-funding-support/policy and https://www.vic.gov.au/program-students-disabilities-psd.
Supports the NDIS is responsible for:
The NDIS is responsible for support your child gets for their disability to help with their daily lives, for example:
• equipment that needs to be transported such as a wheelchair or personal communication devices
• therapies a family and school have agreed may be delivered during school time but are not for educational purposes
• specialised training of teachers and other staff about the specific personal support needs of a student with a disability
• transport to and from school and specialist transition supports to and from school to further education, training or employment.
• personal care and support. Your child may need personal care assistance at school to support their activities of daily living. This may include help with, toileting, eating and drinking, dressing, moving around or complex health or medical support. Personal care is currently provided by school staff. This arrangement will continue until the end of the 2024 school year. The department will continue to work with the Commonwealth to agree future arrangements.
If your child is an NDIS participant and gets personal care it will be in their NDIS plan. When you see ‘personal care in school’ support in your child’s NDIS plan, it’s only there to show that you get the service. You do not need to use your NDIS funds to pay for this service, and you can’t manage it yourself. You do not need to pay anyone for your child's personal care at school and you cannot use the money in your child's plan for a different personal carer.
For more information, visit: https://www.vic.gov.au/ndis-and-schools
Examples of school education supports that are not provided by the NDIS:
• Education and tuition fees across all education settings, including reduced school fees for families with financial difficulties
• Fees or payments for outside school hours care, including before school, after school, student free days, vacation care and school holiday programs
• Day-to-day support and supervision of school-age participants, whether they’re at school, excluded from school or attending school on reduced hours
• Standard school equipment, including school uniforms, shoes, lunchboxes or drink bottles
• Personalised learning or supports students need to help them learn, including Auslan interpretation or other inclusion supports
• Learning aids or equipment needed for learning, such as modified computer hardware, education software and braille textbooks
• Textbooks and teaching aids, including in alternative formats
• Fixed and non-transportable assistive technology that students may need to access their education, such as hoists and specially adapted furniture
• Making reasonable adjustments to school buildings so that students can access the school, such as ramps, lifts and hearing loops
• Teaching, learning assistance and other services from teachers and other staff employed by the school or relevant education Department, either at school or in alternative settings
• Tutors and scribes
• Educational supports for home schooling
• School refusal programs
• Fees for school camps, incursions or excursions
• Transport between school activities, including excursions and sporting carnivals
• Work experience that’s generally provided as part of a school program
• Changes to the curriculum to meet students’ learning needs
• General support, tools, training and awareness building for teachers and other school staff to support and engage students with a disability
• Therapy delivered in schools for education purposes, such as allied health practitioners helping classroom teachers to adjust the curriculum
• Case coordination for a student’s educational supports.
For more information, visit this link:
https://ourguidelines.ndis.gov.au/how-ndis-supports-work-menu/mainstream-and-community-supports/who-responsible-supports-you-need/school-education
If you would like further assistance to make sense of this often-confusing space, my contact details are:
Steph Shanahan
E: beststartsc@gmail.com
M: 0409 870 156
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