The NDIA (National Disability Insurance Agency) have started testing the new NDIS Participant Pathway in North Eastern and Eastern suburbs of Melbourne. The new and improved participant pathway is expected to be completed by end of April 2018.

You may be thinking, “What is the participant pathway?” The pathway is the journey a person goes on as they enter the NDIS, and the experience that the participants and providers have from their first interaction to their ongoing relationship with the NDIS.

So what will actually be different? The new pathway means that all NDIS participants will be given a single point of contact as the go through the scheme, for most, this will be a Local Area Coordinator (LAC). Joint meetings will be held with the participant, the planner and the LAC.

The best bit? The new pathway will mean that there will be no more plans over the phone! All NDIS plans will be written during face to face meetings.

The NDIS plans have also been updated to make it easier for participants to see what their goals are, and what supports they need to achieve them. Participants will soon be able to look at their plan while it is being written and will be able to ask questions if things don’t seem clear.

These changes are due to be rolled out around Australia this year.

A big part of the work to make the NDIS pathway better has been listening to participants and service providers about what works and what doesn’t, as well as collecting ideas on how to make their experience easier.

If you would like to see regular updates about the improvements please visit the latest news page on the NDIS website here. Here you will be able to keep up to date with the latest information about the new pathway and how it relates to you.