NDIA Accountability Project

Submission 380 — National Disability Insurance Agency — Inquiry into the Thriving Kids initiative

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Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Disability

Thriving Kids Initiative – 21 October 2025

Answer to Question on Notice

National Disability Insurance Agency

Topic: NDIS Participants - Children with Autism

Question reference number: NDIA IQ25-000015

Question asked by: Ms Ali France MP

Type of Question: Spoken. Hansard Page: 3

Date set by the Committee for the return of answer: 31 October 2025

Question:

Ms FRANCE: Do you have an average wait time or an idea of average wait times for kids with autism in terms of how long they wait to get the support that they need? Particularly in regional and rural areas, to get access to support, they may have had a package approved. Do you have an idea of whether people are waiting long times for diagnoses or long times for the support that they need?

Answer:

Please refer to the below table which provides the average wait time from an access met decision to first plan, by remoteness, during Quarter 1, 2025–26:

Modified Monash Model (MMM) Remoteness Description Average days*
1 Metropolitan areas like major cities 20
2 Regional centres (population greater than 50,000) 20
3 Large rural towns (population between 15,000 and 50,000) 20
4 Medium rural towns (population between 5,000 and 15,000) 21
5 Small rural towns (population less than 5,000) 19
6 Remote communities 18
7 Very remote communities 23
6 and 7 Remote and very remote communities 20
Overall 20

*The average days are calendar days and therefore include non-working days. By excluding non-working days, the average days fall to around 15 days.

The National Disability Insurance Agency does not have structured data on diagnostic waiting times or how long providers take to deliver supports.

Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Disability

Thriving Kids Initiative – 21 October 2025 Answer to Question on Notice National Disability Insurance Agency

Topic: NDIS Access - Wait Times

Question reference number: NDIA IQ25-000016

Question asked by: Ms Ali France MP

Type of Question: Spoken. Hansard Page: 3

Date set by the Committee for the return of answer: 31 October 2025

Question:

Ms FRANCE: ….We heard from the quality and safeguards commission yesterday, and I’m interested in the interface between the two organisations. We were interested in the number of complains that were made regarding waiting times or anything to do with kids with developmental delays or autism. How do you two work together on that sort of thing? Do you have any data on complaints regarding the kids?

Answer:

The heads of the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) and NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission (NDIS Commission) have a Joint Operational Protocol (JOP) that sets out the arrangements for:

  • How the agencies will work together to facilitate the efficient and effective delivery of the NDIS.
  • Identifying and escalating certain risks about the wellbeing and safety of NDIS participants and jointly responding to participants with critical support needs.
  • The effective, efficient and lawful disclosure of information between the agencies to enable them to discharge their respective legislated responsibilities, including those for which they have joint responsibility.

The Complaint Handling and Incidents Management, Data Access and Transfer and NDIS Reform schedules of the JOP support the sharing of information between the agencies about complaint volumes and themes.

The agencies securely share data to inform policy and operational development and decision-making consistent with the functions or purposes of each agency as specified under relevant legislation and agreements.

While the NDIA shares general complaint data and themes with the NDIS Commission at regular meetings under the JOP, complaints about wait times for children with developmental delay or autism have not been a specific subject of discussion between the NDIA and the NDIS Commission.

In addition, the NDIA also engages with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) to explore opportunities to enhance the safety, quality, and accessibility of health practitioner services for NDIS participants.

Please refer to the below table for the number of complaints submitted by/on behalf of National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) participants aged between 0 to 14 with developmental delay or autism. Data as at 30 September 2025.

Timeframe Autism Ages 0 to 8 Autism Ages 9 to 14 Autism total Ages 0 to 14 Developmental delay Ages 0 to 8 Developmental delay Ages 9 to 14 Developmental delay total Ages 0 to 14
2024–25 2,593 4,707 7,300 1,928 43 1,971
Q1 2025–26 445 1,057 1,502 365 5 370
Total 1 July 2024 – 30 September 2025 3,038 5,764 8,802 2,293 48 2,341

Please refer to the below table for the number of complaints submitted by/on behalf of NDIS participants aged between 0 to 14 with developmental delay or autism, where complaint reason is related to timeliness/delays. Data as at 30 September 2025.

Timeframe Autism Ages 0 to 8 Autism Ages 9 to 14 Autism total Ages 0 to 14 Developmental delay Ages 0 to 8 Developmental delay Ages 9 to 14 Developmental delay total Ages 0 to 14
2024–25 1,016 2,133 3,149 1,098 2 1,100
Q1 2025–26 74 354 428 65 0 65
Total 1 July 2024 – 30 September 2025 1,090 2,487 3,577 1,163 2 1,165

Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Disability

Thriving Kids Initiative – 21 October 2025

Answer to Question on Notice

National Disability Insurance Agency

Topic: NDIS Participants - Autism

Question reference number: NDIA IQ25-000018

Question asked by: Dr Mike Freelander MP

Type of Question: Spoken. Hansard Page: 7

Date set by the Committee for the return of answer: 31 October 2025

Question:

CHAIR: Do you look at the levels of autism that are being referred to the scheme or the level of—

Ms Durham: Yes. Our scheme does collect all of that data. We’re able to map it by age of people seeking entry as well as location and geography. We have seen an increase across pretty much all of the criteria categories.

CHAIR: Do you have any data you could share with us about that?

Ms Durham: Yes, we do. Are there particular data points?

CHAIR: The age of autism diagnosis and the level of autism diagnosis. The reason I ask for that is that we’ve heard anecdotal reports of the level of autism that people are being diagnosed with seems to be out of kilter with what we’d expect from the normal population. To be completely honest with you, I know that people do upgrade diagnoses to try improve people’s access to the NDIS, which I believe has become all things to all people. One of the problems that we have is that it’s very hard to understand how this fits with population data.

Ms Durham: Yes. Perhaps I could take it on notice to provide you with some of that data. We wouldn’t necessarily have all diagnoses, but we would be able to tell you about access to the scheme of children who have a diagnosis of autism. We could provide that by age and perhaps location at two time points.

CHAIR: It would be terrific if you could provide that for us.

Answer:

The NDIA understands that the Committee is seeking information on changes over time in the rates of autism, disaggregated by age group and geographic location.

The NDIA is unable to provide structured data on the age at which autism diagnosis occurred for individuals.

Please refer to the tables below for the number of active National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) participants aged zero to 14, participation rates as a proportion of the general population and the number of NDIS participants with autism and their participation rates as at 30 September 2022 and 30 September 2025.

State Region Active Participants (0 to 14) General Population 0 to 14 Participation Rate 0-14 Autism 0 to 14 Autism Participation Rate
New South Wales (NSW) ALL excl. other 69,418 1,556,064 4.5% 36,690 2.4%
NSW Hunter New England 11,353 183,001 6.2% 5,242 2.9%
NSW Central Coast 3,957 66,491 6.0% 2,605 3.9%
NSW Far West 311 5,363 5.8% 141 2.6%
NSW Illawarra Shoalhaven 3,396 78,190 4.3% 2,014 2.6%
NSW Mid North Coast 3,113 41,347 7.5% 1,817 4.4%
NSW Murrumbidgee 3,118 60,464 5.2% 1,467 2.4%
NSW Nepean Blue Mountains 4,462 79,696 5.6% 2,641 3.3%
NSW North Sydney 4,242 173,507 2.4% 2,196 1.3%
NSW Northern NSW 3,043 54,931 5.5% 1,650 3.0%
NSW South Eastern Sydney 4,355 144,456 3.0% 2,422 1.7%
NSW South Western Sydney 11,897 261,179 4.6% 6,526 2.5%
NSW Southern NSW 1,751 39,455 4.4% 838 2.1%
NSW Sydney 2,111 77,032 2.7% 1,158 1.5%
NSW Western NSW 2,899 60,419 4.8% 1,253 2.1%
NSW Western Sydney 9,410 230,532 4.1% 4,720 2.0%
State Region Active Participants (0 to 14) General Population 0 to 14 Participation Rate 0-14 Autism 0 to 14 Autism Participation Rate
Victoria (VIC) ALL excl. other 64,210 1,272,289 5.0% 31,764 2.5%
VIC Barwon 3,969 62,073 6.4% 1,893 3.0%
VIC Central Highlands 2,259 41,535 5.4% 1,145 2.8%
VIC Loddon 3,383 48,903 6.9% 1,815 3.7%
VIC North East Melbourne 5,699 129,124 4.4% 2,732 2.1%
VIC Inner Gippsland 2,238 37,803 5.9% 1,042 2.8%
VIC Ovens Murray 1,579 25,353 6.2% 792 3.1%
VIC Western District 1,457 28,198 5.2% 591 2.1%
VIC Inner East Melbourne 4,092 116,167 3.5% 2,329 2.0%
VIC Outer East Melbourne 4,423 85,154 5.2% 2,550 3.0%
VIC Hume Moreland 5,142 88,138 5.8% 2,143 2.4%
VIC Bayside Peninsula 7,058 166,911 4.2% 3,528 2.1%
VIC Southern Melbourne 6,778 146,180 4.6% 3,132 2.1%
VIC Brimbank Melton 5,259 82,959 6.3% 2,509 3.0%
VIC Western Melbourne 7,099 144,817 4.9% 3,691 2.5%
VIC Goulburn 1,821 34,341 5.3% 897 2.6%
VIC Mallee 1,100 18,257 6.0% 565 3.1%
VIC Outer Gippsland 854 16,374 5.2% 410 2.5%
Queensland (QLD) ALL excl. other 50,576 1,025,591 4.9% 27,118 2.6%
QLD Bundaberg 1,266 17,038 7.4% 609 3.6%
QLD Ipswich 4,162 77,800 5.3% 2,381 3.1%
QLD Mackay 1,834 37,431 4.9% 887 2.4%
QLD Toowoomba 2,814 57,739 4.9% 1,361 2.4%
QLD Townsville 3,077 55,094 5.6% 1,223 2.2%
QLD Rockhampton 3,274 52,883 6.2% 1,821 3.4%
QLD Beenleigh 6,158 111,424 5.5% 3,339 3.0%
QLD Brisbane 8,312 228,795 3.6% 4,178 1.8%
QLD Cairns 2,152 60,787 3.5% 1,046 1.7%
QLD Maryborough 1,757 26,822 6.6% 999 3.7%
State Region Active Participants (0 to 14) General Population 0 to 14 Participation Rate 0-14 Autism 0 to 14 Autism Participation Rate
QLD Robina 5,473 117,848 4.6% 3,022 2.6%
QLD Caboolture/Strathpine 5,986 100,943 5.9% 3,554 3.5%
QLD Maroochydore 4,311 80,987 5.3% 2,698 3.3%
Western Australia (WA) ALL excl. other 17,558 528,083 3.3% 10,104 1.9%
WA North East Metro 2,562 67,014 3.8% 1,482 2.2%
WA Wheat Belt 393 14,030 2.8% 232 1.7%
WA South Metro 3,055 81,918 3.7% 1,779 2.2%
WA Central South Metro 2,125 65,787 3.2% 1,250 1.9%
WA South West 1,344 37,825 3.6% 832 2.2%
WA Goldfields-Esperance 340 11,748 2.9% 194 1.7%
WA North Metro 2,698 79,551 3.4% 1,543 1.9%
WA Kimberley-Pilbara 606 23,361 2.6% 275 1.2%
WA South East Metro 1,917 56,708 3.4% 1,056 1.9%
WA Central North Metro 1,577 65,825 2.4% 885 1.3%
WA Great Southern 378 11,686 3.2% 235 2.0%
WA Midwest-Gascoyne 563 12,630 4.5% 341 2.7%
South Australia (SA) ALL excl. other 20,492 312,641 6.6% 11,785 3.8%
SA Adelaide Hills 916 15,245 6.0% 549 3.6%
SA Barossa, Light and Lower North 1,139 14,112 8.1% 653 4.6%
SA Eastern Adelaide 1,479 35,370 4.2% 912 2.6%
SA Eyre and Western 637 11,117 5.7% 334 3.0%
SA Far North (SA) 168 4,941 3.4% 77 1.6%
SA Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island 521 7,882 6.6% 317 4.0%
State Region Active Participants (0 to 14) General Population 0 to 14 Participation Rate 0-14 Autism 0 to 14 Autism Participation Rate
SA Limestone Coast 579 12,614 4.6% 338 2.7%
SA Murray and Mallee 840 12,334 6.8% 408 3.3%
SA Northern Adelaide 7,748 92,638 8.4% 4,459 4.8%
SA Southern Adelaide 4,051 65,575 6.2% 2,387 3.6%
SA Western Adelaide 1,651 28,168 5.9% 947 3.4%
SA Yorke and Mid North 763 12,646 6.0% 404 3.2%
Tasmania (TAS) ALL excl. other 4,501 94,605 4.8% 2,292 2.4%
TAS TAS North 1,334 25,451 5.2% 660 2.6%
TAS TAS North West 932 19,877 4.7% 514 2.6%
TAS TAS South East 1,185 21,979 5.4% 570 2.6%
TAS TAS South West 1,050 27,297 3.8% 548 2.0%
Australian Capital Territory (ACT) ALL excl. other 3,691 86,192 4.3% 1,885 2.2%
ACT ACT 3,691 86,192 4.3% 1,885 2.2%
Northern Territory (NT) ALL excl. other 2,164 52,320 4.1% 821 1.6%
NT Barkly 32 2,022 1.6% 12 0.6%
NT Central Australia 294 8,595 3.4% 100 1.2%
NT Darwin Remote 114 6,307 1.8% 24 0.4%
NT Darwin Urban 1,580 30,372 5.2% 644 2.1%
NT East Arnhem 44 2,705 1.6% 4 0.1%
NT Katherine 100 2,320 4.3% 37 1.6%
Missing Missing 0 3,139 0.0% 0 0.0%
Other Other 132 0 0.0% 56 0.0%
NAT Total 232,742 4,930,924 4.7% 122,515 2.5%
State Region Active Participants (0 to 14) General Population 0 to 14 Participation Rate 0 -14 Autism 0 to 14 Autism participation rate
NSW ALL excl. other 94,521 1,530,205 6.2% 51,450 3.4%
NSW Hunter New England 14,715 184,225 8.0% 7,358 4.0%
NSW Central Coast 5,355 64,780 8.3% 3,418 5.3%
NSW Far West 376 5,542 6.8% 210 3.8%
NSW Illawarra Shoalhaven 4,616 76,562 6.0% 2,835 3.7%
NSW Mid North Coast 4,114 40,692 10.1% 2,406 5.9%
NSW Murrumbidgee 4,215 59,879 7.0% 2,020 3.4%
NSW Nepean Blue Mountains 6,155 78,179 7.9% 3,680 4.7%
NSW North Sydney 5,732 157,870 3.6% 3,111 2.0%
NSW Northern NSW 4,279 54,314 7.9% 2,359 4.3%
NSW South Eastern Sydney 6,227 133,912 4.7% 3,399 2.5%
NSW South Western Sydney 16,741 267,288 6.3% 8,934 3.3%
NSW Southern NSW 2,455 39,774 6.2% 1,318 3.3%
NSW Sydney 2,770 67,992 4.1% 1,590 2.3%
NSW Western NSW 3,520 58,965 6.0% 1,745 3.0%
NSW Western Sydney 13,251 240,231 5.5% 7,067 2.9%
VIC ALL excl. other 89,724 1,224,054 7.3% 47,002 3.8%
VIC Barwon 5,184 63,050 8.2% 3,050 4.8%
VIC Central Highlands 3,238 41,048 7.9% 1,753 4.3%
VIC Loddon 4,526 46,009 9.8% 2,637 5.7%
VIC North East Melbourne 8,266 119,749 6.9% 4,139 3.5%
VIC Inner Gippsland 3,129 37,039 8.4% 1,711 4.6%
VIC Ovens Murray 2,080 23,666 8.8% 1,190 5.0%
State Region Active Participants (0 to 14) General Population 0 to 14 Participation Rate 0 -14 Autism 0 to 14 Autism participation rate
VIC Western District 1,878 25,708 7.3% 891 3.5%
VIC Inner East Melbourne 5,125 105,431 4.9% 2,839 2.7%
VIC Outer East Melbourne 5,914 78,279 7.6% 3,372 4.3%
VIC Hume Moreland 7,002 88,461 7.9% 3,260 3.7%
VIC Bayside Peninsula 10,212 149,052 6.9% 5,459 3.7%
VIC Southern Melbourne 9,793 147,721 6.6% 4,634 3.1%
VIC Brimbank Melton 7,495 86,455 8.7% 3,702 4.3%
VIC Western Melbourne 10,091 145,969 6.9% 5,393 3.7%
VIC Goulburn 2,951 34,360 8.6% 1,485 4.3%
VIC Mallee 1,659 16,857 9.8% 874 5.2%
VIC Outer Gippsland 1,181 15,201 7.8% 613 4.0%
QLD ALL excl. other 69,885 1,013,034 6.9% 37,687 3.7%
QLD Bundaberg 1,492 16,937 8.8% 816 4.8%
QLD Ipswich 5,930 80,399 7.4% 3,356 4.2%
QLD Mackay 2,303 37,007 6.2% 1,108 3.0%
QLD Toowoomba 3,433 56,292 6.1% 1,856 3.3%
QLD Townsville 4,195 52,870 7.9% 1,713 3.2%
QLD Rockhampton 4,144 51,430 8.1% 2,629 5.1%
QLD Beenleigh 9,538 116,949 8.2% 5,093 4.4%
QLD Brisbane 11,767 223,291 5.3% 5,951 2.7%
QLD Cairns 3,019 56,047 5.4% 1,497 2.7%
QLD Maryborough 2,241 25,272 8.9% 1,248 4.9%
QLD Robina 7,149 114,660 6.2% 4,048 3.5%
QLD Caboolture/Strathpine 8,880 99,304 8.9% 4,783 4.8%
QLD Maroochydore 5,794 82,575 7.0% 3,589 4.3%
WA ALL excl. other 25,861 535,243 4.8% 14,792 2.8%
WA North East Metro 3,637 69,934 5.2% 2,101 3.0%
WA Wheat Belt 532 13,639 3.9% 319 2.3%
WA South Metro 4,908 85,520 5.7% 2,826 3.3%
State Region Active Participants (0 to 14) General Population 0 to 14 Participation Rate 0 -14 Autism 0 to 14 Autism participation rate
WA Central South Metro 3,180 68,153 4.7% 1,894 2.8%
WA South West 1,837 36,903 5.0% 1,184 3.2%
WA Goldfields-Esperance 457 11,145 4.1% 262 2.4%
WA North Metro 4,088 79,940 5.1% 2,302 2.9%
WA Kimberley-Pilbara 880 22,091 4.0% 362 1.6%
WA South East Metro 2,680 58,644 4.6% 1,406 2.4%
WA Central North Metro 2,357 65,217 3.6% 1,380 2.1%
WA Great Southern 524 11,423 4.6% 297 2.6%
WA Midwest-Gascoyne 781 12,634 6.2% 459 3.6%
SA ALL excl. other 26,038 315,588 8.3% 16,146 5.1%
SA Adelaide Hills 1,267 15,901 8.0% 850 5.3%
SA Barossa, Light and Lower North 1,589 14,748 10.8% 993 6.7%
SA Eastern Adelaide 1,762 35,167 5.0% 1,153 3.3%
SA Eyre and Western 789 10,763 7.3% 445 4.1%
SA Far North (SA) 262 4,690 5.6% 124 2.6%
SA Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island 744 8,015 9.3% 493 6.2%
SA Limestone Coast 784 11,806 6.6% 420 3.6%
SA Murray and Mallee 1,078 11,776 9.2% 591 5.0%
SA Northern Adelaide 9,479 95,457 9.9% 5,813 6.1%
SA Southern Adelaide 5,300 65,534 8.1% 3,423 5.2%
SA Western Adelaide 2,056 29,200 7.0% 1,297 4.4%
State Region Active Participants (0 to 14) General Population 0 to 14 Participation Rate 0 -14 Autism 0 to 14 Autism participation rate
SA Yorke and Mid North 928 12,531 7.4% 544 4.3%
TAS ALL excl. other 5,852 94,513 6.2% 3,351 3.5%
TAS TAS North 1,736 25,660 6.8% 993 3.9%
TAS TAS North West 1,190 19,949 6.0% 772 3.9%
TAS TAS South East 1,512 22,766 6.6% 799 3.5%
TAS TAS South West 1,414 26,138 5.4% 787 3.0%
ACT ALL excl. other 4,806 86,235 5.6% 2,542 2.9%
ACT ACT 4,806 86,235 5.6% 2,542 2.9%
NT ALL excl. other 2,687 52,380 5.1% 1,163 2.2%
NT Barkly 54 1,903 2.8% 13 0.7%
NT Central Australia 401 8,720 4.6% 152 1.7%
NT Darwin Remote 227 5,671 4.0% 44 0.8%
NT Darwin Urban 1,743 31,318 5.6% 892 2.8%
NT East Arnhem 68 2,361 2.9% 5 0.2%
NT Katherine 194 2,407 8.1% 57 2.4%
Missing Missing 0 2,778 0.0% 5 0.2%
Other Other 256 0 0.0% 88 0.0%
NAT Total 319,630 4,854,030 6.6% 174,226 3.6%

Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Disability

Thriving Kids Initiative – 21 October 2025

Answer to Question on Notice

National Disability Insurance Agency

Topic: NDIS Participants - Autism

Question reference number: NDIA IQ25-000019

Question asked by: Ms Anne Stanley MP

Type of Question: Spoken. Hansard Page: 7

Date set by the Committee for the return of answer: 31 October 2025

Question:

CHAIR: The age of autism diagnosis and the level of autism diagnosis…

…

Ms STANLEY: Do you have other diagnoses as well, by disability—the top four or something?

Ms Durham: Yes. We do have the data with access by disability type and age as well. We are able to share that.

Answer:

Please refer to the below table which outlines the 4 most prevalent disabilities, broken down by age group at access decision in the 12 months, ending 30 September 2025.

0 to 8 9 to 14 15 to 18 19 to 24 25 to 34 35 to 44 45 to 54 55 to 64 65+ Total
Autism 12,703 13,887 4,801 2,630 2,509 1,622 765 278 12 39,207
Developmental Delay 30,718 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 30,722
Global Developmental Delay 6,190 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6,191
Intellectual Disability 792 1,138 739 353 402 352 337 330 21 4,464

Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Disability

Thriving Kids Initiative – 21 October 2025 Answer to Question on Notice National Disability Insurance Agency

Topic: Assistive Technology - Complaints

Question reference number: NDIA IQ25-000020

Question asked by: Dr Mike Freelander MP

Type of Question: Spoken. Hansard Page: 8

Date set by the Committee for the return of answer: 31 October 2025

Question:

CHAIR: One of the complaints we get to our political offices is about people with significant disability not being able to access supports that they need—for example, things like mobility. Are you getting an increasing number of those complaints? Do you have any data on those sorts of issues?

Ms Durham: Not with me. I can take the question on notice. Is it for all participants?

CHAIR: Yes.

Answer:

Please refer to the table below for the number of complaints following the outcome of decisions relating to mobility equipment submitted by/on behalf of National Disability Insurance Scheme participants. Data as at 30 September 2025:

Quarter complaint submitted Number of participant complaints (all participants) Number of participant complaints (participants aged between 0 to 14)
2024–25 3,372 122
Quarter 1 2025–26 658 32

There are currently 706 assistive technology cases with the Technical Advice and Practice Improvement Branch for advice. These requests are being completed in under 24 days on average, reflecting a 2-day improvement over the past year. The team is working towards a service level target of 21 days.

Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Disability

Thriving Kids Initiative – 21 October 2025

Answer to Question on Notice

National Disability Insurance Agency

Topic: NDIS Access - Developmental Delay and Autism Age

Question reference number: NDIA IQ25-000021

Question asked by: Mr Cameron Caldwell MP

Type of Question: Spoken. Hansard Page: 10

Date set by the Committee for the return of answer: 31 October 2025

Question:

Mr CALDWELL: Thank you. Just very briefly, is there any approximate age that you’re seeing as the entrylevel age point for children who have developmental disabilities or autism getting onto the NDIS services? Do we know approximately?

Ms Durham: Age of access?

Mr CALDWELL: Yes.

Ms Durham: If I can have a moment—

Mr CALDWELL: If you don’t have access to that now, then perhaps it could be taken on notice.

Ms Durham: I’m just thinking about the best data to answer your question.

Mr CALDWELL: That’s okay. I’m interested in how soon in a child’s life is this beginning to be an issue and when they’re really starting to have serious relationships with NDIS providers and the whole system. So if you’ve got some data on that that you could provide at some later point, that would be helpful.

Ms Hammond: I think we would be best to take it on notice and provide you with some structured data. What we do know, particularly for those with autism, it’s five to seven years of age and, particularly for young boys, there are higher rates of access. I can certainly share that now, but we will undertake to provide you with some more structured data.

Answer:

Please refer to the below tables for the number of people with access met decisions with developmental delay, global developmental delay, and autism as primary disability by individual age at access decision in the 12 months ending 30 September 2025.

Developmental delay

Age at access decision Number of people
0 305
1 1,190
2 4,174
3 7,359
4 8,352
5 8,468
6 850
7 15
8 <11
9+ <11
Total 30,722

Global developmental delay

Age at access decision Number of people
0 96
1 578
2 1,346
3 1,512
4 1,392
5 938
6 289
7 38
8 <11
9+ <11
Total 6,191

Autism including DSM-V Level 1 Requiring Support

Age at access decision Number of people
0 <11
1 13
2 402
3 761
4 889
Age at access decision Number of people
5 1,129
6 1,006
7 1,341
8 1,406
9 622
10 324
11 292
12 219
13 151
14 167
15 134
16 113
17 60
18 48
19 34
20 20
21 26
22 20
23 17
24 21
25 14
26 <11
27 11
28 11
29 <11
30 14
31 15
32 <11
33 15
34 <11
35 <11
36 <11
37 <11
38 <11
39 <11
40 <11
41 <11
42 <11
43 <11
44 <11
45 <11
46 <11
47 <11
48 <11
Age at access decision Number of people
49 <11
50 <11
51 <11
52 <11
53 <11
54 <11
55 <11
56 <11
57 <11
58 <11
59 <11
60 <11
61 <11
62 <11
63 <11
64 <11
65 <11
Total 9,459

Autism including DSM-V Level 2 Requiring substantial support

Age at access decision Number of people
0 <11
1 <11
2 54
3 192
4 276
5 336
6 432
7 829
8 1,178
9 1,915
10 1,916
11 1,648
12 1,351
13 1,220
14 1,138
15 1,029
16 866
17 787
18 533
19 398
20 319
Age at access decision Number of people
21 284
22 250
23 233
24 241
25 196
26 190
27 179
28 165
29 178
30 150
31 136
32 144
33 148
34 129
35 141
36 131
37 98
38 113
39 115
40 108
41 92
42 100
43 89
44 79
45 73
46 66
47 47
48 51
49 50
50 50
51 32
52 49
53 41
54 28
55 20
56 14
57 25
58 23
59 25
60 14
61 17
62 <11
63 <11
64 17
Age at access decision Number of people
65 <11
Total 20,779

Autism including DSM-V Level 3 Requiring very substantial support

Age at access decision Number of people
0 <11
1 <11
2 52
3 74
4 102
5 73
6 83
7 96
8 132
9 181
10 153
11 116
12 147
13 146
14 122
15 122
16 125
17 130
18 105
19 74
20 71
21 65
22 67
23 60
24 52
25 52
26 41
27 53
28 38
29 46
30 27
31 29
32 28
33 31
34 32
35 27
36 27
Age at access decision Number of people
37 29
38 32
39 25
40 23
41 16
42 17
43 28
44 11
45 17
46 20
47 14
48 <11
49 <11
50 <11
51 11
52 12
53 <11
54 <11
55 <11
56 11
57 <11
58 <11
59 <11
60 <11
61 <11
62 <11
63 <11
64 <11
65 <11
Total 3,140