Your NDIS funding is broken up into a range of budgets, each designed to assist you in different ways.
It’s important to know how these budgets work so that you can make the most of your NDIS plan funding.
What is the NDIS consumables budget?
The NDIS consumables budget falls under the larger Core Supports budget.
The Core Supports budget is one of the three NDIS funding categories. It’s there to help people with a disability with their everyday activities, disability-related needs and to help work towards their NDIS plan goals.
The Core Supports budget contains the following four categories:
- Assistance with Daily Life
- Consumables
- Assistance with Social and Community Participation
- Transport.
What can I use my NDIS consumables budget for?
The NDIS consumables budget is allocated to spend on reasonable and necessary consumables up to the cost of $1,500.
What are consumables?
Consumables are the everyday items required to manage personal disability-related needs. These products are low risk and low-cost.
Examples of consumables:
- Gloves
- Hand sanitiser
- Face masks
- Continence products
- Wipes
- Disability-related wound Care
- Cleaning supplies
- Modified eating aids
- Food preparation products
- Catheters
- Specialised food supplements
- Vision or hearing-related low cost assistive technology
- Chair and bed protectors
- Auslan or signed English training
- Telephone or video interpreting
- Compression stockings.
How does the consumables budget work?
The consumables budget is flexible, so you can choose how you spend it, provided what you purchase is reasonable and necessary, and is specifically related to your support needs.
For example, you cannot use your consumables budget to purchase continence products if continence issues are not related to your disability.
You can also not use your consumables budget on general groceries, prescription medications and cosmetics.
Where can I use my consumables budget?
Consumables can be purchased from both registered and unregistered merchants. These merchants can be supermarkets, pharmacies, or specialised online stores, such as Mable Direct.
Note if you are NDIA managed, then the provider must be registered.
What is Mable Direct?
Mable Direct is an e-commerce site where, if you’re a plan-managed or self-managed NDIS participant, you can purchase consumables related to your support needs, and ship them direct to your home.
There is a wide range of affordable NDIS consumables to shop online, including:
- PPE including masks, gloves and sanitiser
- Household cleaning items
- Continence support products
- Wearables and safety technology
- Skin care and protection
- Wound care
- Value packs containing a mix of products
The consumables available on Mable Direct can be purchased using your NDIS consumables budget, provided they align with your support needs.
You can learn more about the NDIS in our NDIS Topic Library.
To browse Mable Direct, or to make your first purchase, visit www.mabledirect.com.au.
FAQs
Can I use my consumables budget on nappies?
If a child is under five, you can use your NDIS consumables budget on nappies. However, once your child is over five years old, you can only purchase continence products if they are directly related to their disability.
Can I use my consumables budget on vitamins?
No, if the vitamins are not directly related to your disability, they will not be covered by the NDIS consumables budget. However, if vitamins have been prescribed by a health professional in relation to your disability, then you may use your consumables budget on vitamins.
Can I use my consumables budget on personal protective equipment (PPE)?
You can use your NDIS consumables budget on PPE items when:
- You have a reasonable and necessary need for PPE items
- PPE is used by your disability support worker while providing support
- You get an average of at least 1 hour of face-to-face daily support
- Your PPE costs are no more than $50 a week.
Can I use my NDIS consumables budget on cleaning supplies?
All purchases made using your NDIS consumables budget must be reasonable and necessary for your support needs.
Cleaning supplies may be covered by your NDIS consumables budget if they are directly related to your support needs, assist a carer to support you, or they assist you in living independently.
