Even if you are familiar with the scheme, the terminology, acronyms and jargon used within the NDIS space can be confusing. It is guaranteed that you will speak to a range of different people about your plan and sometimes it can be difficult to remember which person takes care of which aspect of your plan. Commonly participants and their families think a ‘Plan Manager’ will help to manage the different aspects of a plan as the name suggests. In this article we provide clarification on the different roles within the scheme.
Think of a Plan Manager as your own personal bookkeeper for your NDIS plan. Your chosen Plan Manager will pay your providers for supports you receive and will assist you to monitor your funds through the provision of regular reports. A Plan Manager can assist you to understand the NDIS price guide and review your service agreements to ensure that your approved funding will cover the cost of the services agreed to with your providers.
Support Coordination is a support which can be included as part of the funding allocated in a participants plan. A Support Coordinator is someone who will assist you to understand the different supports available via the funding in your plan and can assist you to link with these supports. A Support Coordinator will have a good understanding of the different mainstream and community services and how these services could work with your disability supports to assist you to pursue your goals and aspirations. It is important to note that not every participant will have a Support Coordinator as each participant has a different set of circumstances.
A Local Area Coordinator is someone who works for one of the NDIS ‘partner organsiations’. The name of the partner organisation will vary dependent upon where you live. The role of a Local Area Coordinator is to gather information on behalf of the NDIA, which will assist in creating a plan. An LAC will assist you at different stages throughout the NDIS journey including the first plan meeting, plan implementation, providing support as required throughout the plan and again at review time. An LAC can assist by providing information about a range of services and supports in your local area.
ECEI Coordinator’s work with the families of children aged 0-6 years of age. ECEI Coordinators have background working with children with disability or developmental concerns. Much like an LAC, ECEI Coordinators assist families of children to access the scheme and link with appropriate services and supports.
