When you receive your NDIS funding, there are 3 core ways you can manage it:
- Agency-managed
- Plan-managed
- Self-managed
You can choose the one that suits you best depending on your preference, goals and support needs.
When self-managing your NDIS plan, you choose what supports you buy to meet your plan goals.
This means you have the flexibility and choice to:
- Book the support workers you want
- Schedule support sessions
- Negotiate rates with support workers
- Manage your NDIS funding and budget the way you want.
Benefits of self-management
Here are some benefits of self-managing your NDIS plan:
More choice and control over everything
By everything, it really does mean you have control over every aspect of your life, if you choose it.
So, you can decide the ‘who, what, when, where, and how’ of support.
You can engage non-registered providers
As a self-manager, you can purchase support from anyone running a business. They don’t have to be a registered disability service provider.
They can be a company, charity, not for profit, independent contractor or any other type of business.
For example, you can book support workers on Mable to receive a variety of support services such as cleaning, gardening, meal preparation and grocery shopping.
The only exception to this is if you want to purchase Specialist Disability Accommodation or Specialist Behaviour Supports. These can only be provided by NDIS registered providers.
More transparency about use of funds
Because you are managing your own NDIS funding, you are aware of the invoicing, payments, expenses and claims. You can track exactly how and where your funds are being used.
You can also use the information on the NDIS portal to see how you are spending your funds.
No unnecessary fees
As you have removed any ‘middle man’ as a self-manager, there should be no hidden or unnecessary fees that pop up unexpectedly along the way.
You are in control
As you are a self-manager, you have complete control over your support journey.
- Things are likely to get done in a timely manner
- You don’t have to be at the mercy of some other person or organisation
- You don’t have to chase them to ensure bills are right and that they get paid on time.
Potentially more support hours
When you self-manage your NDIS plan, there are no unnecessary fees and you can negotiate rates with workers because self-managed participants don’t need to adhere to NDIS price limits.
Responsibilities of self-management
While there are many benefits of self-managing an NDIS plan, it’s important to be aware of the responsibilities as well. Some of them include:
- Buying supports that align with the goals in your NDIS plan. For example: you could use Capacity Building funding to purchase sessions with an allied health professional if there was a goal around ‘having supports that help me develop skills to formulate meaningful relationships with others through social skills building’.
- Making agreements with your providers.
- Managing your budgets. A spreadsheet detailing the ins and outs of the funding across the life of a plan will go a long way to assist you. You can also set up a separate bank account (if you wish) for all NDIS transactions. The account must be in the name of the person responsible for self-managing the supports. This may be the person with disability if they are managing their own plan, the nominee or a child representative for participants under the age of 18 years of age. Having a separate bank account makes tracking funds easier and very useful at the time of an audit, if that happens.
- Paying for your supports on time.
- Keeping records of invoices and receipts for five years.
- Managing your support team.
How Mable works with your self-managed NDIS funding
As a self-manager, you can directly book independent support workers on Mable.
Mable is an online platform that connects clients looking for disability support, with support workers.
By booking and managing support through Mable:
- You have choice and control over who supports you, when and where they support you, and how much you pay for the support.
- You’re safeguarded by Mable’s strict approval and verification process, and the high-level suite of insurances arranged by Mable on behalf of support workers.
There are two ways to book support workers on Mable — by searching for support workers or by posting a job ad on Mable. The benefit of posting a job ad is that you can get really specific about your support needs.
