Arrival and Registration  

Welcome and Introductions 

This session provides an in-depth exploration of the proposed NDIS Amendment (Integrity and Safeguarding) Bill 2025 and its anticipated impact on providers, auditors, consultants, and the broader disability sector.

​

Delegates will gain a comprehensive understanding of how the Bill aims to enhance the NDIS Commission’s regulatory powers, including:

• Expanded banning powers for auditors and consultants to protect participants and uphold scheme integrity.

• Stronger penalty frameworks with increased civil penalties and the introduction of new criminal offences.

• Anti-promotion measures to prevent predatory marketing practices targeting NDIS participants.

• Enhanced information-gathering powers to improve investigation capabilities and compliance oversight.

​​

​​The session will also discuss how these reforms align with recommendations from the NDIS Review and the Disability Royal Commission, and the practical implications for provider operations, risk management, and safeguarding practices.​

Attendees will leave with actionable insights to ensure compliance, strengthen participant protection, and navigate the evolving regulatory landscape.

​The 2026 NDIS reform package announced by Health and NDIS Minister Mark Butler represents one of the most significant structural shifts to the disability sector in over a decade, with direct implications for Supported Independent Living (SIL) providers and the broader SIL–SDA interface.

​

Key reforms include the introduction of standardised functional capacity assessments, tighter eligibility criteria, and a deliberate strategy to slow NDIS growth from an uncapped trajectory to around 2% annual growth.

These changes are expected to reduce overall participant numbers over time and redirect people with lower support needs into mainstream or foundational supports outside the NDIS.

​

At the same time, the government is targeting areas of rapid cost escalation—particularly high-cost care packages, SIL funding intensity, and social and community participation budgets, which have significantly increased since 2023.

This includes stronger scrutiny of provider claims, tighter plan reviews, and reduced flexibility in unscheduled reassessments.

​

For SIL providers, this signals a decisive shift away from growth-driven funding models toward evidence-based, functionally justified support allocations, where every hour of support must be clearly linked to assessed need and measurable outcomes.

The role of support coordinators and plan managers is also tightening, with increased compliance expectations and digital payment oversight.

​

This session will unpack what these reforms mean in practice for SIL providers navigating:

​

• Increasing pressure on SIL funding approvals and renewals

• Greater scrutiny of 24/7 and high-intensity support ratios

• The intersection between SIL and SDA viability in a constrained funding environment

• Risks and opportunities in a system moving toward standardised assessment-based budgeting

• Strategies to maintain sustainability while protecting participant outcomes

​

Designed for SIL providers, operational leaders, clinicians, and housing partners, this session will provide a clear, grounded roadmap for surviving—and adapting to—the most significant funding and eligibility reset the SIL sector has faced in years.

Morning tea 

From mid-2026, the NDIS will introduce a more structured, rule-based planning framework that will reshape how supports are assessed, allocated, and reviewed within participant plans nationally.

These changes will have direct flow-on impacts for SDA supports, funding consistency, and provider operations across Western Australia.

​

This session provides a practical, provider-focused overview of the emerging planning framework and what it means for day-to-day service delivery in SIL and SDA environments

. It will unpack how evolving plan structures may influence support allocation, funding predictability, and participant access to accommodation and services.

Delegates will explore:

• How more structured plan design and funding rules may affect SDA support allocation and continuity of care

• The implications of changes to reassessment, review, and appeals pathways on budget certainty and occupancy planning

• How providers may need to adapt engagement processes, scheduling, and operational workflows to align with new planning timeframes

• Practical opportunities to improve service efficiency while maintaining participant-centred and flexible support delivery

​

Attendees will leave with a clear understanding of how to prepare for the transition to the new planning framework and practical strategies to align SIL and SDA operations with the anticipated mid-2026 changes, reducing risk while supporting sustainable service delivery.

This session provides a strategic overview of the evolving NDIS review and appeals landscape, focusing on the transition from the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) framework toward updated internal and external review processes under the 2026 planning reforms.

​​

Delegates will gain insight into how structured planning, staged funding, and expanded internal review pathways are reshaping dispute resolution, with implications for SIL and broader disability services.

Key considerations include:

​​

• The changing scope of Tribunal authority and its impact on plan amendments, funding disputes, and service continuity.

• Operational challenges for providers managing contested plans, staged payments, and service delivery during review periods.

• Downstream effects on cashflow, workforce planning, accommodation viability, and governance requirements.

• Practical strategies to balance advocacy, compliance, and financial sustainability in an increasingly scrutinised environment.

​​

Attendees will leave with actionable insights to strengthen governance, improve review readiness, optimise communication with participants and families, and align operational practices with the current and emerging Tribunal and policy frameworks.​

The regulatory landscape for NDIS providers is evolving rapidly. With new SIL Practice Standards under development and the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission intensifying enforcement actions, providers face heightened expectations for participant safety, workforce capability, and operational compliance.

​

This session offers a comprehensive overview of the changes and their practical implications

​

Delegates will explore:​

• The upcoming SIL Practice Standards, emphasising participant-centred delivery, human-rights-based supports, and workforce capability.

• Enforcement trends, including banning orders, corrective action requests, and registration refusals, with real-world examples of regulatory risk.

• Strategies for aligning internal governance, staff training, and compliance processes to meet rising standards.

• Practical approaches to mitigate risk, maintain operational continuity, and ensure high-quality outcomes for participants.​

• Attendees will leave equipped to proactively respond to regulatory changes, strengthen workforce practices, and safeguard both participant wellbeing and organisational viability in a rapidly evolving NDIS environment.​

Q & A  and Panel 

Lunch 

With the introduction of strengthened functional capacity assessments and increased scrutiny of Supported Independent Living (SIL) funding allocations, providers are operating in a significantly more evidence-driven environment.

In 2026, rostering is no longer a purely operational exercise—it is a critical component of funding justification, compliance assurance, and service defensibility.

​

This session explores how SIL providers can design and maintain rostering frameworks that directly align with participant functional impairment, assessed support needs, and risk profiles, while ensuring consistency with NDIA expectations for “reasonable and necessary” supports.

​

Attendees will examine how rostering decisions are increasingly subject to audit, plan review, and funding validation processes, and how inconsistencies between claimed hours and documented need can create significant compliance and financial risk.

Key focus areas include:

• Translating functional capacity assessments into defensible support hours

• Structuring rosters that reflect assessed need, not service preference

• Evidencing overnight support, active overnight care, and shared supports

• Strengthening documentation to support funding continuity and audit readiness

• Managing the balance between participant outcomes, workforce constraints, and funding integrity

​

This session is designed for SIL providers, operational leaders, and compliance managers seeking to strengthen governance frameworks and ensure rostering practices remain sustainable, auditable, and aligned with the evolving NDIS funding environment.

In 2026, Supported Independent Living (SIL) providers in Western Australia are navigating an increasingly complex funding and regulatory landscape. Support coordinators play a key role in plan approvals and funding allocations, and are under greater scrutiny themselves to justify every hour of funded support.

​

This heightened focus means SIL providers frequently face challenges when attempting to secure or maintain 24/7 care, negotiate plan reviews, or justify the level of supports delivered. Providers must submit detailed functional evidence—such as occupational therapy assessments, behavioural data, and health documentation—to ensure plans reflect participant needs accurately.

​

At the same time, NDIS price caps remain tight while operational costs, staff wages, and training requirements continue to rise.

Providers are expected to deliver participant-centred, high-quality supports without corresponding increases in funding, creating tension between financial viability and quality care.

​

This session will explore practical strategies for SIL providers to navigate these pressures, including evidence-based plan justification, proactive engagement with support coordinators, and maintaining compliance without compromising participant outcomes. It will also discuss how to manage funding disputes and reassessments effectively, ensuring providers can balance financial sustainability with high-quality service delivery.

​

Key Takeaways

• Understanding the 2026 interpretation of “reasonable and necessary” supports in SIL

• Best practices for preparing and presenting evidence during plan reviews

• Strategies to manage funding reductions and disputes

• Aligning provider operations with coordinator expectations and participant goals

• Maintaining high-quality, compliant, and financially sustainable SIL services

SIL providers and support coordinators operate in a highly interdependent but often misaligned system under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

While coordinators act in participants’ best interests, providers rely on them for referrals, occupancy, and plan approvals.

Misalignment between operational priorities and strategic expectations can negatively affect participant outcomes, service quality, and provider sustainability.

​

Key challenges include referral dependency and vacancy risk, administrative duplication, unclear accountability, and workforce capability expectations.

Providers may be delivering care according to NDIS standards, but when coordinators’ expectations differ—whether on rostering, skill requirements, or participant choice—gaps emerge that create operational inefficiencies, risk exposure, and reputational concerns.

​

This session will focus on practical strategies to improve alignment between providers and coordinators.

It will cover clarifying roles and responsibilities, managing referral pathways effectively, balancing workforce capability with regulatory compliance, and fostering collaborative partnerships.

Delegates will gain actionable insights into navigating a fragmented ecosystem where accountability, operational demands, and participant-centred care intersect.

​

Key Takeaways

• Understanding operational and strategic misalignment between SIL providers and coordinators

• Reducing referral and vacancy risks to ensure stable service delivery

• Streamlining administrative processes to optimise efficiency

• Clarifying accountability and managing risk in participant care

• Balancing workforce capability, participant needs, and regulatory compliance

• Building collaborative relationships for sustainable, high-quality SIL delivery

Q & A and Panel 

Networking and Depart