Impact of NDIS changes on communication skills development (Provider experience) | External submission

Submission 2804

31 May 2026

To the Honourable Senate Committee members,

Re NDIS Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026

Summary

Cost-cutting is counter to the originally presented aims of the NDIS: a. It will result in poorer outcomes for Participants, b. Reduced accessibility to community, c. Less visibility of those with disabilities in communities, d. Reduced opportunity to develop potential skills, both from social engagement and therapy, e. Greater risk of future consequences of areas of weakness.
The proposal for reducing Capacity Building supports appears to have been made on the erroneous assumption that engaging in therapy/capacity building indicates that a disability is not permanent.
Those with mild or moderate Autism and developmental disabilities have the greatest potential outcomes and therefore a greater reduction in future costs.
Finally, the proposed Amendments will not result in a saving to the Government, but rather result in transferring of cost to other sectors and budgets, because of the consequences of disability.

I write to you as a Speech Pathologist of 40 years, and as the owner of a private Speech Pathology practice that provides service to 140 Participants. Whilst that involves a ﬁnancial interest in the outcomes of this Amendment, I request that you consider that that is not my motivation in writing to you. I write instead to advocate for our Participants and for their needs which will potentially be adversely impacted by the proposed changes.

I want to applaud the Australian Government for its institution of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). Australia has been a world-leader in the provision of long-term, guaranteed funding for people living with disabilities, and other countries have looked to us to consider the model.

In the period over which NDIS has been running, we have seen remarkable changes for people living with disabilities in Australia. We have seen changes in the general community, in terms of the numbers of those living with disabilities out and about, but also in changing attitudes of the able-bodied in the community as they learn to interact with those living with disabilities. And we have seen changes in the communication skills of Participants who have engaged with our service.

Originally, the NDIS stated that its goal was to

Promote the participation and inclusion of people with disability in the community
Engage the community
Give ‘choice and control’ to people with disability
Provide certainty of lifelong support
Provide greater sustainability The changes being recommended in the Amendment will reduce participation and inclusion, and engagement in communities (due to decreases in Social and Community budgets). The positive impacts of people with disabilities being visible in the general community will be undone. The reduction of Capacity Building supports, particularly for Speech Pathology, will reduce the ability of Participants to employ their choice and control.

It should be noted that where Support Workers (funded through Social and Community) have engaged with their Participants in therapy sessions, they have been able to greatly magnify the outcomes of therapy, by the

Submission 2804

changes in their own communications with the Participant and with their ability to support that person in their interactions with others in the community.

Adverse impacts of communication disorders

Australian Bureau of Statistics 2015 stated: “Communication is fundamental to development and wellbeing. The ability to share information and be understood is critical to forming relationships, education and employment, as well as participating in society more generally. People with communication disability, whose ability to understand or be understood is limited, may face barriers to this participation.”

Communication disorders impact people with disabilities in proportions higher than the general population. According to the ABS (2015), “of the 4.3 million Australians living with disability over one-quarter (27.4% or 1.2 million people) had communication disability.” The proportion in the general population is 9%.

Communication ability signiﬁcantly impacts on our sense of self and our wellbeing. It impacts on academic success and is negatively correlated with increased drug and alcohol use, mental health issues, engagement with juvenile justice and with incarceration rates.

Failure to input funds into building capacity early in life results in signiﬁcant consequences in the future, both for the person and for the society (see point 4 below).

Implication of reduction of Capacity Building Supports funding The deﬁnition of what an applicant must have tried before being considered for NDIS funding in the future is insufficiently well deﬁned. ‘Having tried all means available’ to manage the disability before being considered for funding under the NDIS is concerning at many levels. Is it deemed necessary for extended therapy to have been engaged in before eligibility might be agreed to? The proposed cuts to the Capacity Building budget suggest that Capacity Building is seen as potentially removing/reducing the disability. This is not the case. Disability is permanent. A Cochlear Implant does not remove a person’s deafness. Therapy does not remove/’undo’ a disability. It can only improve a person’s skills, knowledge, and the ability for them and their advocates to manage their environment, in order to reduce the impact of their disabilities on their ability to function in ways that approach those of people who do not live with disabilities.
Removal of access to NDIS for those with mild or moderate disabilities There is always a dilemma regarding whether you fund those with the greatest need, or those with less need who are likely to achieve better outcomes and contribute to society economically.

With the NDIS funding available to teenagers and young adults with ‘mild and moderate’ disabilities over the last 10 years, our service has seen marked changes in the communication skills of these Participants. Some are now able to carry on brief conversations with people other than their primary Caregivers. Some can now ask for assistance, where they could not before. Some have been able to make friends, reducing their sense of isolation. Some have been able to gain employment, which would not have been possible without consistent, long-term Speech Pathology intervention. Therapy does not remove the risks associated with poor communication skills, but it mitigates against the potentially negative outcomes.

We are tremendously concerned that these people will lose their funding under the proposed Amendment. So much potential will remain unrealised.

Submission 2804

Transference of costs to other sectors/budgets Referring back to: Communication ability signiﬁcantly impacts on our sense of self and our wellbeing. It impacts on academic success and is negatively correlated with increased drug and alcohol use, mental health issues, engagement with juvenile justice and with incarceration rates. (See Speech Pathology Australia submission to Senate Committee 2014)

It should be noted also that a signiﬁcantly higher proportion of communication disorders are found in those with lower socio-economic status. NDIS funding being removed from these Participants means it is likely that they will not be able to access Speech Pathology at all, given the cost of service.

Should funding be cut so drastically to the NDIS, it is highly likely that there will be little cost saving evident. Failure to attend to communication development results in the above outcomes, all of which have impacts on the economy later in the person’s life in the areas of disability pensions, mental health supports, unemployment beneﬁts, and policing and justice costs. If communication abilities can be improved, then other costs can be mitigated against.

I would sincerely request that you consider carefully the potential consequences of the proposed changes to the NDIS Amendment Bill.

I would be pleased to provide further information on request.

Yours sincerely,

Louise Rowland

Director/Principal Speech Pathologist

Telephone:

@speaking_of_learning

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