FOI 25/26-0529 DOCUMENT 3
Understand behaviour support SGP KP Publishing
Exported on 2025-11-24 23:38:42
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FOI 25/26-0529 SGP KP Publishing – Understand behaviour support
Table of Contents
1 Recent updates …………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 4
2 Before you start …………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 5
3 Understand behaviour support ……………………………………………………………………………… 6
4 Understand when to include behaviour support …………………………………………………….. 7 4.1 What to think about when including behaviour support ……………………………………………… 7 4.2 Behaviour support in supported independent living (SIL) ………………………………………….. 7
5 Understand when to include intensive and complex behaviour support …………………. 9 5.1 What to think about when including intensive and complex behaviour support …………….. 9 5.2 Who can provide intensive and complex behaviour support ………………………………………. 9
6 Fund management ………………………………………………………………………………………………. 11
7 Next steps …………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 12
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This article provides guidance for all NDIA staff and partners to:
• understand behaviour support • understand when to include behaviour support • understand when to include intensive and complex behaviour support.
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1 Recent updates
19 May 2025 Guidance updated to add new Participant Budget Update (PBU) pathway links and link to new article Action a budget update with funding periods. 3 April 2025 Guidance updated to: • remove link to article Understand behaviours of concern and restrictive practices in a technical advice case
• remove links to article Guide – Behaviour support • add links to article Our Guideline – Behaviour support • add section Behaviour support in supported independent living (SIL) • add section Fund management.
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2 Before you start
You have read and understood:
• Our Guideline – Reasonable and necessary supports (external) • Our Guideline – Creating your plan (external) • Our Guideline – Behaviour support (external) • article Complete a streaming case (Streaming and Restreaming). If a participant is streamed as General or Supported and needs behaviour support, you may need to restream them to Intensive or Super Intensive • article Support Categories.
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3 Understand behaviour support
Behaviour support includes:
• specialist behavioural support • an interim behaviour support plan • a functional behavioural assessment • a comprehensive behaviour support plan • training for formal and informal supports in behaviour management strategies • monitoring and reporting • ongoing review of effectiveness of the behaviour support plan • individual social skills development.
A behaviour support practitioner works with the participant, their family, supports and carers to complete a functional behavioural assessment. They’ll also develop the behaviour support plan.
If a participant needs behaviour support, their plan duration should be 12 months. This is because of the need to monitor and review outcomes and their situation. If you need to change the plan duration, go to article Change plan duration.
Use Our Guideline – Reasonable and necessary supports (external) and article Our Guideline - Behaviour support (external) to support your decision-making for behaviour support.
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4 Understand when to include behaviour support
To determine if behaviour support should be included in a participant’s plan, you must have read and understood Our Guideline - Behaviour support (external).
When you include behaviour support in a participant’s plan, you’ll need to make sure they receive the appropriate support in their plan to address any behavioural complexities in their current life situation. Think about a participant’s individual situation and supporting information to understand the support they need in their plan. This may include extra supports to build capacity and implement strategies in the participant’s behaviour support plan.
To help develop a draft budget, use the Plan Conversation Support Tool (PCST). You must use the PCST for all new plans and plan reassessments and attach to the participant record. Go to article Understand and update the plan conversation support tool.
4.1 What to think about when including behaviour support
You need to think about:
• reports or information from family, providers or supports that indicate they are concerned about the participant’s behaviour
• recommendations from providers or allied health professionals like occupational therapists or psychologists, including strategies already used and any further interventions that have been identified as necessary • behaviours of concern that could require single or minimal interventions • any lack of services willing to engage with the participant due to presenting behaviours and risk to staff, participants or the community
• any changes in the participant’s situation that will result in withdrawal of service support and need for immediate intervention • multiple complexities that may require multiple interventions • behaviours of concern where there’s use of regulated restrictive practice. Refer to Our Guideline – Behaviour support (external)
• behaviours of concern involving various stakeholders. For example, multiple issues for intensive intervention requiring comprehensive assessment, planning, support and training for the participant and carers
• participants who may have 1:1 or 1:2 support in the community more than 30% of the day due to their behaviour. This includes high level supports at home • participants who need extra support to implement newly developed strategies in the community or in newly engaged activities or services
• participants who are anticipated to experience a significant transition during the plan period. For example, they may move into supported independent living (SIL) or from school to day program.
4.2 Behaviour support in supported independent living (SIL)
A participant with behaviours of concern may live in supported independent living (SIL). Behaviour support needs to take a whole of house approach if:
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• the participant lives with other people with disabilities • there are regular incidents such as assaults, self-harm or property damage • high-level staffing ratios are needed to manage risk to staff and residents • restrictive practices are used which impact all residents, such as a locked fridge or removing people to a safe area during an incident.
Behaviour support for a whole of house approach may include:
• a shared living environmental assessment, also known as ecological assessment • a behaviour support systems review • program development • staff training.
The cost of the environmental assessment should be shared between all the people living in the home. For example, if there’s one shared living environmental assessment completed by one provider to understand the household situation.
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5 Understand when to include intensive and complex behaviour support
A participant may need intensive and complex behaviour support if they:
• display frequent behaviours of concern that have a significant effect on their or others wellbeing and safety
• need intensive support and frequent daily implementation of intensive proactive strategies, skill development and response strategies. This may include the use of restrictive practices to reduce the risk of harm to themselves or others
• may or are likely to, experience other issues that worsen or increase the complexity of their behaviour support needs.
5.1 What to think about when including intensive and complex behaviour support
You’ll need to make a decision to include intensive and complex behaviour support using Our guideline – Reasonable and necessary supports (external). To help you understand if the participant needs intensive and complex behaviour support, you can use information from the participant, their providers, functional assessments, therapy reports, behaviour reports and medical information.
Intensive and complex behaviour support can be included and claimed as part of:
• assistance with daily life • assistance with social, economic and community participation • Supported Independent Living (SIL).
You must use the PCST for all new plans and plan reassessments and attach to the participant record. Include intensive and complex behaviour support using article Understand and update the plan conversation support tool.
5.2 Who can provide intensive and complex behaviour support
To provide intensive and complex behaviour support to a participant, a provider must:
• be implementing behaviour support with the participant and in accordance with their interim or comprehensive behaviour support plan, and
• be registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission and assessed for Module 2A (Implementing Behaviour Support Plans), or
• have submitted a registration amendment application or new registration application to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. This includes a completed audit assessment against Module 2A by 30 June 2025.
Learn about the responsibilities and registration requirements for providers in Behaviour support and restrictive practices fact sheet (external). Note: plan managers should only approve claims
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for implementing intensive and complex behaviour supports from registered NDIS providers who meet these requirements.
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6 Fund management
We recommend that behaviour support is Agency-managed to support the use of registered NDIS providers. However, the participant may choose to self-manage their supports or use a registered plan manager. Whichever way they choose to manage their behaviour support, they must use registered providers.
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7 Next steps
- Add a provider relationship for behaviour supports. If the participant hasn’t chosen a provider, add the relationship as soon as the provider is confirmed. This is mandatory so the provider can access funds for payment. For guidance, go to article Add or update a provider relationship.
Note: when a participant transitions from SAP CRM to PACE with an active behaviour support service booking, PACE will create a my provider relationship with the behaviour support category, as well as a general my provider relationship. This could take up to 5 minutes after the plan is approved. You must check the relationships have been created correctly.
Talk with the participant to check if they want to use the same provider and if they want to share any plan information with them. For more information, read section Understand what happens with existing provider relationships when a participant transitions to PACE in article Understand provider relationships.
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Use the Plan Conversation Support Tool (PCST) to include behaviour support. Go to article Understand and update the plan conversation support tool. You can use the PCST when completing a budget update but you must use the PCST for all new plans and plan reassessments.
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For a:
o Plan Approval case, you’ll need to use the Plan Conversation Support Tool to calculate the funded supports. To add or update this support in a draft budget go to article Change the draft budget
o Plan Change or Participant Budget Update case where the plan was approved before 9 October 2024, go to article Action a budget update
o Plan Change or Participant Budget Update case where the plan was approved on or after 9 October 2024, go to article Action a budget update with funding periods.
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