National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 1245
I am writing as the parent and primary carer of aged 3, who is autistic and lives in QLD. I am submitting this to the Senate Standing Committee on Community Affairs in response to the NDIS Amendment (Securing the NDIS) Bill 2026.
I am writing about the Thriving Kids program, which from 1 January 2028 will divert autistic children aged 8 and under assessed as having “low to moderate⠀ support needs off the NDIS. The government has used the word “mild†to describe this group. Mild is not a clinical term. It does not appear in the DSM-5 or ICD-11. It has no diagnostic basis. It is a policy label invented to move children off the scheme.
My child is not yet speaking, does not thrive in daycare but not in 1:2 caring structures like ECDP and at home.
On paper, they may appear to have low needs. In practice, our family holds them together daily. Analysis by Disability Support Consultants of the NDIA’s own consultation documents confirms the Agency has already determined that most autistic children will receive mid-range funding, with only a small number expected to receive top- level support. This contradicts the foundational NDIS principle that every
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 1245
participant is assessed according to their individual need.
The Thriving Kids program has not been co-designed with autistic families. There is no published evidence base for its support model. There are no guaranteed transition pathways back to the NDIS if a child’s needs increase. I ask the Committee not to divert any autistic child to a separate system unless that system delivers equivalent individually assessed support, is fully co-designed with autistic families, and has clear, funded pathways back to the NDIS. Every autistic child deserves to be assessed as an individual, not sorted into a funding tier.
Yours sincerely,
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