Every NDIS plan includes funding for different support categories and there will often be conditions or restrictions which will influence how you can use it. To ensure you fully utilise your NDIS funding, it’s important you really understand your plan. If you are having trouble, we recommend you consult with an experienced Support Co-ordinator, Local Area Co-ordinator or the NDIS contact centre. In the meantime, here are our 3 Tips to help you maximise your NDIS budget.
Tip 1: Prioritise your needs and investigate alternatives
If you haven’t already done so, take some time now to really prioritise what’s important to you or the person you care for. To help your NDIS funding go further, once you have your priority list, investigate whether there are:
- Any mainstream service options that may be more cost effective (especially for education and medical services)
- Group-based supports available rather than one-to-one options
- Pricing differences between service providers
- Any desirable inclusions within a service category that incur additional fees with other providers
Tip 2: Monitor your expenses to ensure your funding doesn’t run out
To ensure your NDIS funding doesn’t run out, you should record and monitor all expenses, receipts and service usage. These records will also be useful if you need to provide evidence in a NDIS plan review or audit. To help you, there are a number of online NDIS plan trackers which can streamline your NDIS budget management. Many charge a nominal fee each month. Alternatively, you can set up an Excel spreadsheet or similar to record and monitor your spend.
Tip 3: Regularly review your plan and reassess your spending
Things change and your plan should be adapted to accommodate these changes. Always begin your review by looking at your goals and what’s important to you. Then review your supports to ensure they still align with your priorities. If they no longer align, request a plan review so you can modify your NDIS funding allocations.
We are here to help you
Happy, fulfilling lives encompass both intangible needs (social, spiritual, emotional) and tangible (physical) needs. At Healthcare Request, our unique support model is designed to consider all aspects of our participants’ lives – the tangible and the intangible. For information on the ways we can help you or your family, please get in touch.
