Myth:

SDA is for people that need 24/7 1:1 support

Fact:

Being eligible for SDA is not only about the amount of support you need.

Exploring the fact

There is legislation that the NDIA must use to determine who is eligible for SDA funding. The legislation uses words like ‘extreme functional impairment’ and ‘very high support needs’ in relation to eligibility. ‘Very high support needs’ is not necessarily the same as needing 24/7 1:1 support. 

Having very high support needs might mean you need support often throughout the day and/or that you need support closely available at all times. Close support might not mean someone in the same room, it might mean someone in the same building, or in a property next door (for example). 

Having very high support needs could be support for remembering what you need to do on a day to day basis, physical support to undertake  tasks, or it might mean support to keep you or others safe. This support could be provided to you by a support worker or your family or friends. The NDIA has never defined how many support hours a person with very high support needs requires per day.

Case study 1

Jack has 5 hours of ‘planned’ support needs per day. For Jack, this means that at 8 am - 10am every morning, he is supported with his morning routine.  He is also supported at 5pm - 8pm every day with his evening routine.

Jack also has unpredictable support needs, and needs someone close by at all times so that he can call for assistance when he needs it. Jack’s unpredictable support needs are for things like exiting the building, using the toilet, and taking off or putting on clothes. On average, Jack calls for assistance 5 times per day. 

Although Jack has low ‘planned’ support needs (5 hours per day), his unpredictable support needs mean that he needs support closely available to him 24/7. Due to this, it is likely that Jack will be deemed to have very high support needs. 

Case study 2

Murray lives in a Supported Residential Service (SRS) house and is provided with support for his personal care and domestic tasks. There is someone always in the house for Murray to call if he needs assistance. 

Murray goes into the community a couple of times per week to do some shopping and catch up with his friends. He does this independently. 

Even though Murray doesn’t require 24/7 support, given that Murray requires support in his home for the majority of the day, it is likely that Murray will be deemed to have very high support needs. 

Case study 3

Daniel is independent in most aspects of his life. He has a support worker assist him for 2 hours, 3 times per week for shopping and assistance to appointments. This level of support is meeting Daniel’s needs. 

It is unlikely that Daniel will be deemed to have very high support needs.

Any questions?

Contact our NDIS Housing Advice Line on 1300 61 64 63 from Monday-Friday, 10am-3pm (AEDT).

Learn more about SDA

  • Find out if you are likely to be eligible for SDA with our easy-to-use SDA Eligibility Checker!
  • The Housing Hub has great resources to help people understand SDA!  You can learn more about different types of housing and places to live here. 
  • The Housing Hub provides free webinars about housing options for people with disability and you can find more here. 
  • To keep up to date with accessible housing news, events, stories and NDIS, updates, you can subscribe here.


Go to Myth 9


Go back to the Mythbusters Homepage

Was this article helpful?

Myth:

SDA is for people that need 24/7 1:1 support

Fact:

Being eligible for SDA is not only about the amount of support you need.

Exploring the fact

There is legislation that the NDIA must use to determine who is eligible for SDA funding. The legislation uses words like ‘extreme functional impairment’ and ‘very high support needs’ in relation to eligibility. ‘Very high support needs’ is not necessarily the same as needing 24/7 1:1 support. 

Having very high support needs might mean you need support often throughout the day and/or that you need support closely available at all times. Close support might not mean someone in the same room, it might mean someone in the same building, or in a property next door (for example). 

Having very high support needs could be support for remembering what you need to do on a day to day basis, physical support to undertake  tasks, or it might mean support to keep you or others safe. This support could be provided to you by a support worker or your family or friends. The NDIA has never defined how many support hours a person with very high support needs requires per day.

Case study 1

Jack has 5 hours of ‘planned’ support needs per day. For Jack, this means that at 8 am - 10am every morning, he is supported with his morning routine.  He is also supported at 5pm - 8pm every day with his evening routine.

Jack also has unpredictable support needs, and needs someone close by at all times so that he can call for assistance when he needs it. Jack’s unpredictable support needs are for things like exiting the building, using the toilet, and taking off or putting on clothes. On average, Jack calls for assistance 5 times per day. 

Although Jack has low ‘planned’ support needs (5 hours per day), his unpredictable support needs mean that he needs support closely available to him 24/7. Due to this, it is likely that Jack will be deemed to have very high support needs. 

Case study 2

Murray lives in a Supported Residential Service (SRS) house and is provided with support for his personal care and domestic tasks. There is someone always in the house for Murray to call if he needs assistance. 

Murray goes into the community a couple of times per week to do some shopping and catch up with his friends. He does this independently. 

Even though Murray doesn’t require 24/7 support, given that Murray requires support in his home for the majority of the day, it is likely that Murray will be deemed to have very high support needs. 

Case study 3

Daniel is independent in most aspects of his life. He has a support worker assist him for 2 hours, 3 times per week for shopping and assistance to appointments. This level of support is meeting Daniel’s needs. 

It is unlikely that Daniel will be deemed to have very high support needs.

Any questions?

Contact our NDIS Housing Advice Line on 1300 61 64 63 from Monday-Friday, 10am-3pm (AEDT).

Learn more about SDA

  • Find out if you are likely to be eligible for SDA with our easy-to-use SDA Eligibility Checker!
  • The Housing Hub has great resources to help people understand SDA!  You can learn more about different types of housing and places to live here. 
  • The Housing Hub provides free webinars about housing options for people with disability and you can find more here. 
  • To keep up to date with accessible housing news, events, stories and NDIS, updates, you can subscribe here.


Go to Myth 9


Go back to the Mythbusters Homepage

Was this article helpful?