National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 1046
25th May 2026
Submission to the Senate Community Affairs Committee regarding the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
I am the director and occupational therapist at Rise Above OT, a small regional paediatric occupational therapy practice based in Port Macquarie, NSW. We provide therapy services to children and families across clinic, school, daycare and home settings throughout the Mid North Coast.
Our clients are primarily neurodivergent children, including autistic children, ADHD, developmental delay and children with emotional regulation, sensory processing and functional participation difficulties. Many of the children we support would be considered to have low to moderate support needs on paper. In reality, many are struggling significantly at home, school and within the community.
I understand and support the need for a sustainable NDIS. However, I have concerns about the practical impact these reforms may have on children, families, clinicians and regional services.
One of the biggest concerns is reduced access to early intervention supports. In paediatric practice, we often see children well before their difficulties become severe. We work with children who are beginning to disengage from school, struggling with emotional regulation, falling behind socially, or becoming increasingly overwhelmed by everyday expectations. Early support can prevent these difficulties from escalating.
There is concern that stricter access requirements and tighter funding thresholds may result in children only being able to access support once difficulties become more significant and entrenched. This is particularly concerning for neurodivergent children whose needs may fluctuate across environments and developmental stages.
In practice, many children do not present with one major functional issue. Instead, they experience a combination of smaller challenges across emotional regulation, sensory processing, attention, social participation, fine motor skills, school participation and independence. Individually these concerns may appear manageable, but together they can significantly impact the child and family’s daily life.
There is also concern about increasing reassessment requirements and administrative burden. Families are already overwhelmed trying to navigate systems, schools, healthcare providers and therapies. Clinicians are spending increasing amounts of unpaid time completing reports, gathering evidence and justifying supports. If access becomes more difficult or reassessments become more frequent, this burden will continue to grow.
This has flow-on impacts for waitlists and workforce capacity. Every hour spent on administration is an hour not spent providing therapy. In regional areas where workforce shortages already exist, this becomes even more significant.
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 1046
Regional and rural communities are likely to be disproportionately impacted by these reforms. Families in regional areas already face long waitlists, travel requirements, limited provider choice and workforce shortages. Some families travel significant distances to access therapy or rely on telehealth due to lack of local services.
Small private practices are also under pressure. Many paediatric providers are already operating with increasing administrative demands, workforce shortages and financial uncertainty. Reduced flexibility, increased compliance requirements and delays in funding decisions may make it difficult for smaller regional providers to remain sustainable long term. If providers reduce services or close, families in regional communities may have very few alternatives.
There is also concern about the impact these reforms may have on schools and families if supports reduce. When children cannot access therapy or early supports, the pressure does not disappear. It often shifts to parents, teachers and already stretched education systems.
We are already seeing increasing rates of school refusal, emotional dysregulation, anxiety, behavioural challenges and family burnout. Delays in support can lead to more significant difficulties over time, including disengagement from education, reduced community participation and poorer long-term independence outcomes.
Many of the children we support benefit from flexible, relationship-based and developmental approaches that occur across natural environments such as schools, homes and daycare settings. Therapy is not simply about isolated skill building. It is about supporting participation, regulation, confidence, routines, relationships and everyday functioning. There is concern that more rigid funding structures may reduce the ability for clinicians to provide responsive and practical support tailored to the child and family’s needs.
Recommendations
- Maintain access to early intervention supports for children with emerging functional difficulties, not only those with severe presentations.
- Ensure reassessment and evidence requirements are practical, proportionate and do not create unnecessary burden for families or clinicians.
- Consider the unique challenges faced by regional and rural families, including workforce shortages and limited service availability.
- Preserve flexibility within therapy funding to allow supports to occur across home, school and community environments where functional difficulties occur.
- Engage directly with frontline clinicians, families and small regional providers during implementation planning to better understand real-world impacts.
- Consider the long-term social and economic costs of delayed intervention, school disengagement and family burnout when assessing sustainability measures.
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 1046
The NDIS has made a significant difference for many children and families. Early support can improve participation, reduce long-term support needs and help families feel more capable and connected within everyday life.
Any reforms aimed at sustainability should be carefully implemented to ensure children do not lose access to timely and meaningful support during critical developmental periods.
Sincerely,
Occupational Therapist Bachelor Occupational Therapy