NDIA Accountability Project

Concerns regarding impact on Year 12 students transitioning from school

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Submission 1592

23.5.26

Submission in relation to: National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026

To Whom It May Concern, I am writing with sincere concerns about specific aspects of the proposed National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026. As someone who has worked in the Disability sector since 2006, I am concerned that some of the proposed changes will have catastrophic impacts on current NDIS participants. Specifically, I work as a Family Engagement Officer in a NSW Schools for Specific Purposes (SSP) - a school that supports students with diagnoses of intellectual disability and impairment, autism spectrum disorder, and other sensory and communication impairments. I work with over 100 families, and the vast majority of our students have had their current NDIS plans rolled over for at least 3 years; many of them have not had their plans reassessed for over 5 years. This often means that a Year 12 student had their plan built when they were in Year 7 or 8. This is particularly problematic for our students who are in Year 12, and who are about to experience a major life stage change or transition, including starting or leaving school, tertiary education or employment as per the National Disability Insurance Scheme (Variation and Reassessment of Participants’ Plans) Rules 2025 (Part 3, 6, 3 (a) (iv): hhttps://www.legislation.gov.au/F2025L00280/latest/text). These Year 12 students require plan reassessments this year, to ensure that their post- school NDIS plans provide the NDIS supports they require to enable them to build their capacity and independence, provide supports for exploring and developing skills relating to employment, to prevent skill regression and social isolation, and to prevent an unreasonable and unstainable load on their informal supports. As it stands, the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 proposes a profound reduction in the number of approved unscheduled plan reassessments. When considering item 21 on page 21 of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026, and if a participant is requesting an unscheduled plan reassessment due to a significant change in the

Submission 1592

If a participant’s personal circumstances, they must also meet criteria that there has been an unanticipated, significant and ongoing change in their:

  • living arrangements; or
  • education arrangements; or
  • work arrangements; or
  • network for informal support.

Does this mean that the matters to which the CEO must have regard for the Reassessment of participant’s plan, as currently listed in the legislative instrument National Disability Insurance Scheme (Variation and Reassessment of Participants’ Plans) Rules 2025 - specifically ‘a major life stage change or transition, including starting or leaving school’ will no longer be considered as a reason for Plan Reassessment, because the profoundly impactful transition of leaving school is not unanticipated? https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2025L00280/latest/text Page 17 of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 states: ‘Unscheduled plan reassessments are a key driver of plan and whole of Scheme inflation’, however there appears to be an assumption that plans are built with adequate supports in the first place. It also assumes that there has been a consideration of plan length approval as it may impact pending major life stages change or transitions. However, this is very often not the case. For example, a participant in Year 11 may have their plan reassessed and have a 5 year plan approved (without the participant or their nominee being given the chance to negotiate plan length), with absolutely no consideration for post school supports when the structure of school ends just one year later. That is, the new 5 year plan has not considered or approved any post-school related funding. If unscheduled plan reassessments can only be approved if the significant changes to a participant’s person circumstances are unanticipated, this theoretically rules out approval for an unscheduled plan reassessment request for the purposes of supporting someone following the genuine and ongoing change in a participant’s support needs due to the major life stage change or transition of leaving school. This will mean that young adults will not be funded with the essential and reasonable and necessary supports that they need to facilitate their social and economic participation, and to prevent skill regression, undue and unreasonable expectations on their informal supports, and risks of profound levels of social isolation.

Recommended Alternatives:

  • Remove the “unanticipated” qualifier when a participant is requesting an unscheduled plan reassessment due to a significant change in the participant’s personal circumstances.

Submission 1592

  • Provide varied options for unscheduled reassessment pathways across different priority areas – as the current Bill treats all unscheduled reassessments the same, and for some people, their changes in personal circumstances may be urgent.

The current scheme has no statutory fast-track pathway for these participants, and the Bill does not create one. It should.

Related suggestion: Insert into s 48A a separate emergency reassessment pathway with a statutory 14-day decision timeframe, available where the participant, a nominee or a treating practitioner certifies that the participant faces an urgent safety, housing, behavioural or support-breakdown risk. Provide that a missed 14-day deadline is a deemed decision in the participant’s favour pending final determination.

I urge you to consider this cohort of young Australians who have the right to be supported to have meaningful roles in, and contribute to, their communities and Australia’s economy, with the reasonable and necessary supports to reduce the functional impact of their impairments for which they have met NDIS Access, so that they can lead ordinary lives without being made to feel like their support needs are burdens to Australia’s economy.

In the vast majority of cases that I have experienced in my two decades of work in this sector, having adequate supports will require unscheduled plan reassessments in the final year of High School.

Thank you for the opportunity to contribute.

Community Member, and Advocate for young Australians with disability 20 year work experience in NSW Disability and Community Services sector across multiple roles including Case Management, Independent Disability Advocacy, Educator, Support Coordination, Family Engagement, NDIS Support Management.