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Independent Advisory Council to the NDIS Meeting 5 of 2021-22

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FOI 24/25-0546 DOCUMENT 45

OFFICIAL

AGENDA

INDEPENDENT ADVISORY COUNCIL TO THE NDIS

Meeting 5 of 2021-22

Date: Monday 22nd November 2021

Log-in details:

Independent Advisory Council meeting redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material

Session Timing
SESSION 1: PRINCIPAL MEMBER’S WELCOME & OPEN 1.30pm-2.00pm
ITEM 1.1 Principal Member’s welcome
ITEM 1.2 Confirmation of minutes, matters arising and declaration of interest
ITEM 1.3 CEO Update
SESSION 2: COUNCIL REPORTS 2.00pm-2.30pm
ITEM 2.1 Members and Expert Advisers: Reports ‘from the ground’
SESSION 3: REFERENCE GROUP CO-CHAIR REPORTS 2.30pm-3.00pm
ITEM 3.1 Update from each Co-Chair
Presenter: Leah Van Poppel, Leighton Jay, Jennifer Cullen, Sylvana Mahmic
Break 3.00 – 3.10pm
SESSION 4: QUARTERLY REPORT 3.10pm-3.55pm
ITEM 4.1 Q1 Quarterly Report
Presenter: Sarah Johnson, Scheme Actuary
Break 3.55 – 4.00pm
SESSION 5: PARTICIPANT SAFETY POLICY 4.00pm-4.45pm
ITEM 5.1 Discussion
Presenters: Dr Sam redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material and Erin redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material
SESSION 6: MEETING CLOSE 4.45pm-5.00pm
ITEM 6.1 Other business
ITEM 6.2 Next meeting

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1

Independent Advisory Council

Minutes of the Independent Advisory Council to the NDIS

Meeting 5 – 22 November 2021 1.30pm to 5.00pm, hosted on MS Teams

Members

Ms Robyn Kruk AO (Principal Member) Ms Leah Van Poppel (Deputy Chair) Ms Kerry Allan-Zinner Ms Sharon Boyce Ms Jennifer Cullen Mrs Judy Huett Dr Leighton Jay Ms Sylvana Mahmic Ms Tricia Malowney OAM Mr James Manders Ms Sam Paior Ms Liz Reid AM Mr Mark Tonga

Expert Adviser

Dr Ben Gauntlett, Disability Discrimination Commissioner

NDIA Representatives

Mr Martin Hoffman, Chief Executive Officer Mr Oliver Bladek, Deputy CEO, Design, Digital and Strategy Ms Sarah Johnson, Scheme Actuary Dr Sam redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material General Manager, Policy, Advice and Research Mr Trent redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material Branch Manager, Agency Policy Ms Erin redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material Director, Agency Policy Ms Fiona redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material Director, Independent Advisory Council Ms Carly redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material Assistant Director, Independent Advisory Council Ms Hannah redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material Assistant Director, Independent Advisory Council Ms Lirije redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material Assistant Director Communications, Independent Advisory Council Ms Jaklin redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material Senior Project Officer, Independent Advisory Council

Attending

Ms Belinda redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material AM, Council’s Independent Consultant redacted: s47F - personal privacy

Apologies

Dr Helen Nugent, NDIA Board Chair

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1. Principal Member’s welcome and open

1.1. Principal Member’s welcome

The Principal Member opened the meeting at 1.30pm.

The Principal Member acknowledged the Traditional Owners of the lands on which Members, Expert Adviser and attendees were meeting.

The Principal Member provided an overview of the agenda, noting the Members report session was only 30 minutes and thanked those Members who provided reports in advance.

The Principal Member acknowledged all the work occurring out of session, thanking Members for working collaboratively with the Agency to provide advice and expertise on important topics. The Principal Member advised that the Secretariat intends to survey Reference Group members to get a better understanding of their expertise and interests. This will help identify the most appropriate members to take part in out of session meetings and strengthen the diversity of the participant voice.

The Principal Member noted the following additional information available in the Resource Centre on Diligent:

redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material

  • Out of Session meeting reports from Ms redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant material and the Secretariat on:
    • Remote and Very Remote Strategy
    • Autism Early Intervention
    • NDIS Legislative Amendments
    • Social, Community and Civic participation
    • Research and Evaluation Advisory Panel
    • Communication with participants from diverse Communities
  • Participant Reference Group report from Kerry Allan-Zinner
  • Action log of issues raised during previous CEO update and Members reports sessions

1.2. Minutes, matters arising and declarations of interest

Council noted the updated register of conflicts of interest circulated in advance of the meeting.

The following declarations were made by Members:

  • redacted: s47F - personal privacy

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  • redacted: s47F - personal privacy

Council approved the minutes from the meeting held on 18 October 2021 and noted the matters arising.

1.3. CEO update

Mr Hoffman advised he is unsure when the NDIS Bill will be introduced into Parliament, noting with only two sitting weeks remaining, the Bill may not pass this year. Mr Hoffman also advised the Senate References Committee will release their report on the legislation this Friday.

Mr Hoffman said next week sees the full suite of Board and Committee meetings being held, which will be the last for Board Chair, Dr Nugent and Ms Kruk as Board Director. He noted their terms ending on 31 December 2021.

Mr Hoffman discussed with Members the upcoming launch of Australia’s Disability Strategy on Friday, noting the Council’s and Agency’s input and commitment in its development.

Mr Hoffman noted the next Disability Reform Ministers’ Meeting (DRMM) is on 10 December, where the Australian Financial Sustainability report will be discussed.

Members thanked Mr Hoffman for his updates and continued commitment to open and transparent discussions.

2. Members’ Reports

2.1. Council reports on issues heard in their communities

Council Members raised the following concerns they had heard related to the NDIS:

  • Continued challenges with delays in plan reviews, impacted by COVID-19 and lockdowns.
  • Optimism that the Australian Parliament will pass the NDIS Bill, and positive community sentiment and approval for the proposed Bill.
  • Positive feedback about the National Community Connector Program, noting results of the program may help the work of the Equity and Inclusion Reference Group.
  • Concerns the Market Engagement: Partners in the Community paper does not include the Early Childhood Early Intervention (ECEI) reset as a focus for Early Childhood Partners.
  • Service providers wanting to understand how the Agency manages participants and staff who are unvaccinated, acknowledging the Agency’s role is to support, not mandate, vaccines for participants and staff.
  • Positive feedback for Disability Liaison Officers assisting people with disability to access health services and vaccinations.
  • Reports of reductions around behaviour supports and ‘reasonable and necessary’ challenges around parental responsibility.

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  • Lack of accurate information on NDIS supports for participants who are awaiting hospital discharge.
  • Concerns ‘out of school hours care’ and ‘vacation care’ is being removed from plans, noting participants need to apply for ‘social and recreational activities’ to be added to their plans.
  • Ongoing issues about home and living supports provided by the NDIS and states and territories, Members noting the progress being made on short-term pain points, including Individualised Living Options.
  • Challenges around NDIS plan reviews, decisions and builds, with participants without coordinated supports missing out on mainstream services.
  • Lack of knowledge for some communities around Justice Liaison Officers and the NDIS/justice interface that supports prison entry, discharge, and community transition.
  • Concerns with low employment rates for people with disability and general disability workforce issues.
  • Concerns with linked data sets, extremely slow and problematic. Although Members acknowledged the National Disability Data Asset helps the Commonwealth and states and territories develop a national disability data set.
  • Reports that older people with disabilities struggle to pay for support therapies from different systems. Noting that the Disability Support for Older Australians Program supports older people, who are not eligible for the NDIS, get disability services.

Ms Van Poppel provided Members with a brief update on the progress of co-design, noting meetings of the co-design advisory group are continuing with:

  • Terms of Reference nearing finalisation; and
  • consideration of priorities for co-design including Support for Decision Making and Person Centred Model of Assessment

The Principal Member thanked Members who provided a report in advance and noted these will be available in the Diligent Resource Centre.

3. Reference Group Co-Chair Reports

3.1. Update from each Co-Chair

Reference Group Co-Chairs, Ms Van Poppel, Dr Jay, Ms Mahmic and Ms Cullen provided members with an update on recent Reference Group activity.

Co-Chairs noted recent meetings included high levels of engagement from members, wide- ranging discussions and positive contributions about how to progress priority work.

Intellectual Disability Reference Group

Ms Van Poppel noted we are receiving feedback from Members about what works best for them, which is great because it means people feel safe to speak up. In addition, Members have requested Easy Read documents to assist with their participation.

Home and Living Reference Group

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Dr Jay advised that some Members of the reference group have been involved in the Home and Living demonstration projects, which are very exciting. Council Members requested further information regarding the demonstration projects.

Children, Young People and Families Reference Group

Ms Mahmic noted the main consensus of reference group members is that young people want to be heard within the NDIS and in their own lives.

Equity and Inclusion Reference Group

Ms Cullen advised the next meeting is 6 December. In addition, meetings have been convened with leaders from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, Culturally and Linguistically Diverse and LGBTIQA+ communities. These meetings will help inform Council’s formal advice on Equity in the NDIS.

ACTION 1: Secretariat to share Home and Living Demonstration website with Council Members.

4. Quarterly Report

4.1. Q1 Quarterly Report

Ms Johnson provided Council with an overview of the Quarterly Report for Q1, 2021-22.

Members raised community concerns around reductions in plan funding for participants, noting the Quarterly Report shows plans are constant. Ms Johnson advised the report data is in aggregate and there would be variation across individual plans.

Members mentioned the substantial cost of plan managers to the NDIS and noted the regulation and quality of the plan manager market by the Commission.

Council raised a number of questions which Ms Johnson took on notice, including:

  • whether older women are entering the Scheme due to a late diagnosis of autism
  • where do participants go when they leave residential aged care
  • utilisation rates of plans that are going up and down to see what the trends are
  • further breakdown by age for the 25 to 64 age group, regarding average and median payment trends

Ms Johnson advised that the Agency will soon release the Outcomes Framework Reports for Participants and Family and Carers, noting an out of session briefing for Council would be arranged.

ACTION 2: Ms Johnson to provide responses to Questions on Notice from Members:

  • Can you please provide data on whether older women are entering the Scheme due to a late diagnosis of autism?
  • Can you please provide data on where participants go when they leave residential aged care?

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  • Are you able to link and provide the utilisation rates of plans that are going up and down to see what the trends are?
  • Slide 68: Average and median payment trends. Can you please provide a further breakdown by age for the 25 to 64 age group?

5. Participant Safety Policy

5.1. Discussion

Dr redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant provided an overview of the Participant Safety Policy scope and proposed timelines, noting this program of work was a direct result of Council’s Advice in this area.

Dr redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant said the Agency is progressing this work over the next 12 months, making changes early where possible. Dr redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant noted Council’s expertise in this area and welcomed their feedback.

Members thanked Dr redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant and the team for the paper, acknowledging their progress to date on the Policy Scope.

Council Members provided the following feedback:

  • the importance of clearly defining safety and dignity of risk for people with disability, especially those from diverse cultures
  • the need to empower people with disability to make decisions for themselves to feel safe
  • ensuring people’s rights are not impacted by the policy
  • properly considering nominees that do not have an adequate risk assessment
  • the importance of clearly stating safety risks to children in care or young people in kinship care
  • consideration on the impact of plan review decisions
  • reflect the balance of safety with the need to be included in the community
  • consider people with disability who have children
  • include carers, family members and providers as stakeholders in this process.

Members queried the sustainability impact of the Policy on the Scheme. Ms redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant advised a Sustainability Assessment had been completed and offered to share it with Members.

ACTION 3: Ms redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant to share Sustainability Assessment for Participant Safety Policy with Members.

6. Meeting close

6.1. Other Business

The Principal Member advised that Ms Huett has decided not to renew her term and the December Council meeting will be her last. It was noted that the Council is very fortunate that she will continue as a Member on the Intellectual Disability Reference Group.

Dr redacted: s22(1)(a)(ii) - irrelevant provided a brief update on Co-design, advising:

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  • Support for Decision Making and Home and Living are early priorities
  • work on Person Centred Model of Assessment is continuing, noting concerns have been raised around language, and the use of ‘Assessment’.
  • the Agency is commissioning external reviews of baseline current state of:
    • Access and Planning
      • is it consistent, equitable and fit for purpose?
    • Clinical advisory capability in the Agency
      • is this fit for purpose in comparison to other insurance agencies?

6.2. Next Meeting

The next meeting is scheduled on 16 December 2021 from 1.30pm-5.00pm.

Delivered by the National Disability Insurance Agency

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