National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
Submission 2714
Submission on the NDIS Amendment Bill
Who I am
I am the parent/carer of my 7-year-old daughter who accesses the NDIS through early intervention supports.
My daughter has complex developmental and neurological needs and requires ongoing support across communication, learning, emotional regulation, daily living skills, and participation in everyday activities.
Her funding has not increased since 2023 despite multiple additional diagnoses since then, updated cognitive and psychoeducational assessments, and increasing support needs as she gets older.
As she has grown, the gap between her and same-age peers has become much more noticeable, particularly due to cognitive delays and increasing expectations around independence, learning, communication, and social participation.
What I am concerned about and how it links to the Bill
My concerns relate to parts of the Bill that could:
- restrict plan reassessments
- reduce flexibility when support needs change
- increase administrative burden on families
- reduce access to capacity building supports
- allow broader funding reductions across groups of supports
- increase reliance on administrative processes rather than individual circumstances As a family who has never needed to request a review before, we are already finding the process difficult to navigate.
Children’s needs change over time. My daughter’s support needs at age 7 look very different to what they did when she was younger.
I am concerned that more restrictive reassessment processes could make it harder for children like my daughter to access increased support when developmental gaps become more obvious with age.
I am also concerned about increased communication requirements or “not contactable” rules.
Families supporting children with disability are often juggling therapies, school meetings, assessments, specialist appointments, daily care needs, and paperwork. Missing a call or deadline does not mean families do not need support.
A short example
Our family life involves coordinating therapies, school supports, specialist appointments, assessments, and supporting our daughter across multiple areas of daily life.
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
Submission 2714
Updated cognitive and psychoeducational assessments completed last year showed our daughter is functioning significantly below age expectations across multiple cognitive domains, which has made it clearer why the gap between her and peers continues to widen.
Day to day, this looks like:
- repeated instructions and reminders to complete routines
- difficulty completing multi-step tasks independently
- support needed to stay on task and complete activities
- difficulty managing transitions and emotional regulation
- significant support with writing and school-based tasks
- challenges participating socially with same-age peers
- ongoing support required across home, school, and community settings At younger ages, some delays were less noticeable because peers were also learning foundational skills. As expectations have increased, the difference in support needs has become much more significant.
Without ongoing supports like occupational therapy, speech therapy, psychology, and capacity building supports, families are left trying to fill increasingly large gaps themselves.
What I want Parliament to do
I want Parliament to reconsider, amend, or withdraw parts of this Bill that create additional barriers for participants and families.
I want Parliament to:
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ensure reassessment processes remain flexible and responsive to changing needs
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protect access to occupational therapy, speech therapy, psychology, and capacity building supports
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ensure children can access increased supports as developmental gaps become more obvious over time
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reduce administrative burden on families already managing significant care responsibilities
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ensure participants are not disadvantaged because they miss communication deadlines or struggle to navigate complex systems
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ensure human decision-making remains central and that individual circumstances are considered
Children’s needs do not stay the same over time. The NDIS needs to remain flexible enough to respond when support needs increase, rather than creating more barriers to accessing help.
I support recommendations that protect participant access to occupational therapy, capacity building supports, and community participation supports.