FOI 24/25-1367 - DISCLOSURE LOG DOCUMENT 20
Priority Enquiry KA
May 02, 2025 02:06
General
- Overview
- NCC roles and responsibilities
- What is a Participant Critical Incident
- Further information
Procedure
- Priority enquiry criteria
- NDIA Escalation Prioritisation Risk Matrix
- Types of priority enquiries
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- Participant streaming
- Priority enquiry follow up guidelines
- Instructions for NCC Team Leaders
- Enquiry note template
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To be used by NCC.
This article assists you to:
- Identify when an enquiry should be managed as a priority enquiry to be escalated or
- an enquiry that should be managed as a participant critical incident (PCI).
Recent Updates
| Date | Update description |
|---|---|
| 02/05/2025 | Added link to the NCC Escalations Queue Knowledge Article in the Further information section. |
| 21/08/2024 | Removed Escalation Email Template and replaced with a link to the template which is now provided in the Priority Enquiry Escalation Contacts Team Leader QRG. |
| 12/07/2024 | Deleted link to Participant Critical Incidents (PCI) for Service Officers KA in the Types of priority enquiries table. |
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Procedures for NCC Team Leaders on Priority Enquiry Escalation
When escalating enquiries NCC Team leaders to make sure to fill out all necessary information in the Escalation Email Template provided in the Priority Enquiry Escalation Contacts Team Leader QRG. This will help the escalation teams in handling enquiries more effectively. Refer to the Instructions for NCC Team Leaders below for more information.
Overview
It is important that priority enquiries are considered on a case-by-case basis. Unnecessary cases can create a negative experience for the caller. It also creates additional workload and re-work for other NDIA departments, which can delay response times.
Priority enquiries
The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) has a process to manage enquiries as a priority enquiry.
- A priority enquiry is escalated based on the type of priority enquiry and is resolved quickly where possible for callers.
- There are a number of situations where the National Contact Centre (NCC) will need to create and reassign cases.
- NCC Service Officers should attempt to resolve enquiries in the first instance and identify if a priority enquiry is appropriate.
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NCC roles and responsibilities
If the call meets the criteria for a Participant Critical Incident (PCI), a critical incident case should be completed.
- Identify when a priority request meets the priority referral matrix criteria for escalation and should be submitted.
- Resolve enquiries at first contact where possible.
- Refer to appropriate area for callers and enquiry.
- Ensuring escalations meet the criteria based on the Priority enquiry criteria in this KA.
- Consider if there is an appropriate State crisis number in the External Referral Points for Enquiries QRG to refer the caller to.
- Consider if the enquiry is a participant critical incident (PCl).
- Assess the level of urgency, risk and distress to yourself or the caller to decide if transfer to NCC Team Leader is needed.
- Seeking support from their NCC Team Leader if they are unsure of the enquiry.
- Request team leader approval to submit the priority enquiry.
- Refer to the Manage Unreasonable Behaviour Knowledge Article for guidance on how to handle the enquiry if required.
What is a Participant Critical Incident
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A report of a PCI is any information provided to the NDIA or its Partners in the Community that alleges a NDIS participant:
- Has suffered an unexplained death.
- Has suffered a serious injury.
- Has suffered abuse or neglect.
- Has suffered unlawful sexual or physical contact, or assault.
- Has been subject or in the presence of sexual misconduct committed, including grooming for sexual activity.
- Has suffered from unauthorised use of a restrictive practice, being any practice or intervention that has the effect of restricting the rights or freedom of movement of a person with disability.
- Is threatening or attempting self-harm, even if the threat is retracted.
Important
A PCI allegation may involve any stakeholder including NDIS providers, NDIA staff, informal supports, family or other person/s.
If the participant / caller is at risk of immediate harm alert your NCC Team Leader immediately who will take actions and contact emergency services.
Procedure
To complete the PACE Steps:
Navigate to the relevant account for historical information and activities to assist with the enquiry.
Follow the PACE steps below to complete the enquiry.
If further guidance is required to resolve the enquiry, refer to the relevant NCC guidance resources.
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Priority enquiry criteria
For PACE Categorisation please refer to the Priority section of the NCC PACE Enquiry Categorisation Guide or the relevant Categorisation section for the enquiry type. The table below is a guide for where to refer to for guidance.
An internal process has been established to support enquiries that are urgent or significant enquiries for callers.
This is an effective way for the NCC to communicate with other business areas, letting them know that their participants have made contact or have changes that are impacting their current supports and potential safety.
NDIA Escalation Prioritisation Risk Matrix
| Timeframe (calendar days) | RISK CATEGORY | RISK LEVEL LOW | RISK LEVEL MEDIUM | RISK LEVEL HIGH | RISK LEVEL EXTREME |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Response due in 5 days and resolution due in 15 days | Health and wellbeing | * No risk to life of participant or another. * Failure to action the request is unlikely to result in a negative impact on a participant’s |
* No risk to life of participant or another. * Failure to action the request is likely to/has negatively impacted the Participants |
* Potential risk to life of participant or another. * Failure to action the request is likely to/has resulted in an immediate risk to severe harm or permanent effect on a participant’s health/well-being. |
* Failure to action the request is likely to/has resulted in loss of life. |
| Response due in 5 days and resolution due in 15 days | Health and wellbeing (continued) | * Risk to the life of participant or another. * Permanence and continuous effect. |
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| Timeframe (calendar days) | Response due in 5 days and resolution due in 15 days | Response due in 24 hours/same day and resolution due in 10 days | Response due in 24 hours/same day and resolution due in 10 days (High) | Response due in 24 hours/same day and resolution due in 10 days (Extreme) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ability to live an ordinary life | * Impact on job. * Impact on the day to day. |
* The plan is due for a scheduled reassessment and there is no risk to employment or critical supports. * Care arrangements unlikely to change. * Accommodation arrangements unlikely to change. |
* The plan will expire, or funds will be exhausted within a month so that critical supports cannot be accessed resulting in a potential risk to employment and/or a minor impact on the individual’s day to day life. * Absence of supports (formal and informal) is contributing to care arrangements potentially changing in the next 6 months. * The participant’s accommodation may be at risk due to changes in |
* The plan is about to expire (within a week) or funds almost exhausted so that supports that are immediately needed will not be able to be accessed resulting in a loss of employment and/or a sizable impact on the individual’s day to day life. * Absence of supports (formal and informal) is contributing to care arrangements changing, or likely to change in the next 6 weeks. * The participant may be at risk of experiencing homelessness due to changes in accommodation arrangements or inappropriate |
| Change of care arrangements | * Care arrangements unlikely to change. | * Absence of supports (formal and informal) is contributing to care arrangements potentially changing in the next 6 months. | * Absence of supports (formal and informal) is contributing to care arrangements changing, or likely to change in the next 6 weeks. | |
| Change of accommodation arrangements | * Accommodation arrangements unlikely to change. | * The participant’s accommodation may be at risk due to changes in accommodation arrangements or inappropriate housing solutions within the next 6 months. | * The participant may be at risk of experiencing homelessness due to changes in accommodation arrangements or inappropriate housing solutions within the next 4 weeks. |
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| Timeframe (calendar days) | Response due in 5 days and resolution due in 15 days | Response due in 24 hours/same day and resolution due in 10 days | Response due in 24 hours/same day and resolution due in 10 days (High) | Response due in 24 hours/same day and resolution due in 10 days (Extreme) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agency reputation | * No expected escalation of the complaint. | * Risk of an escalation of the complaint or significant risk to Agency reputation if escalated. | * Significant impact on public confidence or trust and/or Agency reputation. Escalation received for Ministerial or media involvement. | * Where a failure to respond or act in the timeframe would lead to the NDIA breaching mandated timeframes: * Where the Minister or NDIA will be engaging with the media. * Where the Ministers office (MO) have identified specific sensitivities with extreme timeframes e.g., Question time brief (QTB). |
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| Timeframe (calendar days) | Response due in 5 days and resolution due in 15 days | Response due in 24 hours/same day and resolution due in 10 days | Response due in 24 hours/same day and resolution due in 10 days (High) | Response due in 24 hours/same day and resolution due in 10 days (Extreme) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deterioration of key stakeholder relationships | * Jurisdiction, ombudsman, tribunal. | * No expected escalation of the complaint. | * Where a failure to respond or act would prevent the NDIA effectively engaging with the stakeholder. | * Where a failure to respond or act in the timeframe would breach convention or agreed timeframes. |
Types of priority enquiries
Please refer to the Types of priority enquiries below for guidance.
| Call type | Process |
|---|---|
| Plan has no funds | * Plan has no Funds Priority Enquiry KA |
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| Call type | Process |
|---|---|
| Plan due to expire in under 3 weeks | * Plan Due to Expire in under 3 Weeks Priority Enquiry KA |
| Elderly parents / carers struggling to continue care | * Elderly Parent / Carer Priority Enquiry KA |
| Sudden loss of informal supports | * Sudden Loss of Informal Support Care Priority Enquiry KA |
| Loss of support coordinator | * Loss of Support Coordinator Priority NCC KA |
| Complaints | * Feedback and Complaints Knowledge Article |
| Appointment cancellation in under 48 hours | * Request to Reschedule or Cancel an Appointment Phone Enquiry KA |
| Priority eligibility / urgent access decision | * Priority Access Knowledge Article * Access, Eligibility and Applying to the NDIS Knowledge Article |
| Identifying a vulnerable participant | * Identifying a Vulnerable Participant without Express Consent Priority Enquiry KA |
| Threat to accommodation | * Threat to Accommodation Priority Enquiry KA |
| Threat to site, staff, partners or others | * Threat to Site, Staff, Partners, or Others Priority Enquiry KA |
| Media calls | * Media Calls Priority Enquiry KA |
| Risk of harm due to lack of assistive technology (AT) or home modifications (HM) | * Risk to Self or Others in the Community Priority Enquiry KA * If the request is urgent follow the Urgent Assistive Technology Repairs, Hire and Replacement Inbound Telephony NCC KA and categorise using the NCC PACE Enquiry Categorisation Guide. * If the request does not meet the urgent criteria follow the Assistive Technology (AT) Phone Enquiry KA. * Where the request relates to HM or vehicle modifications follow the Home and Vehicle Modifications Phone Enquiry KA. Note: Refer to Risk to Self or Others in the Community Priority Enquiry KA for further guidance. |
| AT request in progress | * To determine if the request meets the urgent criteria refer to Urgent Assistive Technology Repairs, Hire and Replacement Inbound Telephony NCC KA. * Send an Enquiry Case using the Priority Enquiry categorisation in the NCC PACE Enquiry Categorisation Guide to have the request escalated. Team Leader approval required. |
| Risk of harm to themselves or others | * Follow the Risk to Self or Others in the Community Priority Enquiry KA as well as any relevant escalation processes listed above. |
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| Call type | Process |
|---|---|
| Non-participant that is vulnerable | * Do not create a PCI case in PACE for non-participants * Please follow the instructions in the Participant Critical Incidents intranet page for non-participants. |
Participant streaming
Streaming is an internal Agency descriptor used to identify the needs of each participant. The NCC is not to mention or discuss streaming with participants. For more information, refer to How to identify participant streaming in the NCC PACE SYSTEM GUIDANCE.
General or Supported
- Supported or general streamed participants can be transferred to their Local Area Coordinator (LAC) or early childhood partner via warm transfer.
- When you transfer the call, ensure you have introduced yourself and the caller to the LAC and provided all details that you can before completing the transfer.
- If you have been on hold/phone ringing for two minutes, take the caller off hold and ask if they would like to be put in the queue to wait for the LAC / early childhood partner.
- If they are unable to wait, offer to provide them the contact number so they can call direct at a convenient time.
- Offer to complete a referral and assign to the, my NDIS contact.
- Advise the callers to allow three days for a response, before following up.
Intensive or Super Intensive
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- Intensive and super intensive participants are usually serviced by staff at the local NDIA office or their early childhood partner for some children.
- Not all sites have reception phones, so you will need to complete a case in PACE to the, my NDIS contact using the NCC PACE Enquiry Categorisation Guide.
- Advise the caller that you are unable to transfer their call, but you will complete request to let them know they have called and to call them back /complete the request.
- The queues are monitored daily so their enquiry will be referred to the right person quickly and they should expect a response within approximately 3 days. If they haven’t heard from them within 3 days, they can call back to have their request followed up.
Complex Support Needs
- For participants who have been streamed as complex support needs (CSN) you will need to reassign using the NCC PACE Enquiry Categorisation Guide.
Priority enquiry follow up guidelines
- Locate the existing open enquiry.
- Check if there has been a change in urgency, or the risk rating using the Escalation Prioritisation Risk Matrix:
- If yes:
- Consider if further escalation should be actioned. Refer to your Team Leader for guidance. Team leaders to follow the Instructions for NCC Team Leaders.
- If yes:
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- If no escalation is required, leave a log activity note detailing any changes to the nature of the priority enquiry.
- Assure the caller their enquiry is active and will be addressed promptly.
- If no:
- Create log activity note to record the details of the contact made to follow up.
- Assure the caller their enquiry is active and will be addressed promptly.
- If no:
Instructions for NCC Team Leaders
If a priority enquiry case was submitted more than 3 days ago, or if it was submitted within the last 3 days but the risk rating has increased,
NCC Team Leader should:
- Review the case details and using the Escalation Prioritisation Risk Matrix to assess the escalation requirements.
- It is important to make sure that the risk is clearly stated and corresponds with the agency’s risk matrix.
- Note that escalation is mandatory only if the risk rating is High or Extreme.
- Document the actions taken by adding a Log Activity note to the existing Priority Enquiry case.
- Address the email to the contacts listed in the Priority Enquiry Escalation Contacts Team Leader QRG.
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- If escalation is required, send an email using the Escalation Email Template provided in the Priority Enquiry Escalation Contacts Team Leader QRG .
- The NCC Team Leader must fill out the email template with all required information to help the escalation teams in effectively handling the enquiries.
Further information
Please refer to:
- External Referral Points for Enquiries QRG
- Manage Unreasonable Behaviour Knowledge Article
- Plan has no Funds Priority Enquiry KA
- Plan Due to Expire in under 3 Weeks Priority Enquiry KA
- Elderly Parent / Carer Priority Enquiry KA
- Sudden Loss of Informal Support Care Priority Enquiry KA
- Loss of Support Coordinator Priority NCC KA
- Feedback and Complaints Knowledge Article
- Request to Reschedule or Cancel an Appointment Phone Enquiry KA
- Priority Access Knowledge Article
- Access, Eligibility and Applying to the NDIS Knowledge Article
- Identifying a Vulnerable Participant without Express Consent Priority Enquiry KA
- Threat to Accommodation Priority Enquiry KA
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- Threat to Site, Staff, Partners, or Others Priority Enquiry KA
- Risk to Self or Others in the Community Priority Enquiry KA
- Media Calls Priority Enquiry KA
- NCC Escalations Queue Knowledge Article
Enquiry note template
Please select the enquiry note template listed in the relevant Knowledge Article that is appropriate for the enquiry.
Document owner and approver
Director, Support and communications, Contact Centre Branch
Feedback
If you have any feedback about this procedure, please refer to your NCC Team Leader.
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- NCC Service Officers (NCC SOs) please send your feedback to your NCC Team Leader. Your Team Leader may have an answer to your question or have information to share with you to resolve your questions and feedback.
- NCC Team Leaders (NCC TLs) please review the feedback from NCC SOs and provide advice, information and resolve questions where possible. NCC TLs can request new or updated NCC Guidance Resources and assistance using the relevant form on the National Contact Centre Service Desk on the intranet.
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