NDIA Accountability Project

Autistic child's NDIS funding challenges and school supports

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National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026

Submission 1789

Submission to the Senate Inquiry into the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026

Submission May 2026

As a parent of an autistic child, who is an NDIS participant, I would like to make a brief submission regarding the abovementioned amendment bill.

In relation to the explanatory memorandum Schedule 1 – Paragraph 3 – funding only to be provided for needs arising out of recognised disabilities.

It is well documented that autistic people will often have co-morbid diagnoses that are not covered by NDIS. For my own autistic child, his other diagnosis is ADHD, however other neurodiverse and mental health diagnoses are not uncommon for other autistic people. For an autistic person who is struggling at school, trying to sort out which part of their difficulties with school is caused by autism and which part is caused by another diagnosis that is not covered by NDIS is time-consuming and pointless. An autistic child who is struggling with school needs an appropriately supportive educational environment, not endless hoops to jump through to prove that their struggles are a result of autism.

In relation to the explanatory memorandum, schedule 1, paragraph 4 - addressing the financial sustainability of the NDIS.

I understand the need to ensure that the costs of providing disability supports are manageable. However, I would hope that parliament will also give due consideration to the costs of not providing timely and appropriate supports for autistic children. There is both a personal cost to the individual in not receiving those supports and the potential cost for our community if children are not well-supported to achieve at school and gain meaningful employment.

For my son, most of his NDIS funding has been directed to goals that are designed to support his full participation at school. I would hope that it is evident that supports to help children to achieve at school are not optional.

It is possible that NDIS is not the most efficient system for providing these supports that are needed by a large number of children. If this is the case, it is imperative that the government provides parents and carers with a plan for how neurodivergent children are going to be supported away from the NDIS.

My suggestions on what might be included in such a plan are:

  • More allied health experts employed by education departments to work within schools. It seems that the Education Department support services are overwhelmed and that any attempts to direct people away from NDIS and back to the Education Department services are likely to be unsuccessful until this is addressed. For my own son, a request by his teacher within Education Queensland for Occupational Therapy support made in term 4, still had not been addressed by the end of Term 1 of the following year. In

National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026

Submission 1789

  • response, we organised a private Occupational Therapist and used a combination of NDIS and private funding to pay for this additional support. The support could have been more efficient provided at school if the staff were available.

  • Support for quality, evidence-based social and emotional wellbeing programs in schools. At one stage, we were using NDIS funding for a psychologist to go through the Westmead Feelings Program one-to-one with my son. There were probably other children at his school who would have also benefited from the Westmead Feelings Program, but weren’t offered it because the resources were directed to one child.

  • Curriculum overhaul to allow time and space to address social and emotional wellbeing. Just looking at my child’s homework suggests that the school curriculum is a complicated mess. If we are going to allow space for children to develop vital social wellbeing at school, we need to accept that 11-year-olds need friendships and electronic regulation more than they need essay writing skills.

  • Smaller class sizes and more teacher’s aides. My son’s key teacher at his current school is an amazing professional who has skills and enthusiasm for inclusive education. This teacher also responds to parent emails on a Saturday afternoon. It is clear that the people within the education system who care most deeply about inclusion have workloads that are not sustainable and are at risk of being lost to the teaching profession. If we want teachers to provide quality differentiated support for student needs, we have to support them to do this.

  • Incentives and support for teachers to train in inclusive education.

  • Make government funding for private schools conditional on providing quality inclusive teaching practices.

In conclusion, supporting children to achieve success at school and lead happier lives is not optional. If the NDIS has become a bloated, overcomplicated mess in trying to achieve this goal, it is up to the government to announce a plan to provide appropriate supports more efficiently.

Thank you for your attention to this submission.