How to switch to NDIS Plan Management
If you find navigating your NDIS plan and budget quite time-consuming and complex, you are not alone. In fact, many participants choose to switch to plan management for this exact reason. Fortunately, changing how your plan is managed is a relatively simple process, and you don’t have to wait for your scheduled plan review to request it.
In this article, we’ll explore how to switch to plan management so you can receive help managing your funds and focus on achieving your goals. We’ll start by understanding more about plan management before moving into eligibility criteria and what you need to do to make the request to switch. Lastly, we’ll look at the best ways of finding a plan manager in your area.
What is plan management?
Plan management is one of the three ways you can manage your NDIS funds. It provides a similar level of control as self management but with the added help of a plan manager. Plan managers look after the financial and administrative aspects of the plan - they take over many arduous and time-consuming tasks, such as paying for invoices, tracking your spending, and assisting with planning and budgeting.
Additionally, self management can take anything from five to 25 hours of work per week, so switching can free up some time you could spend on hobbies or recreational activities instead.
Who is eligible for plan management?
All NDIS participants are eligible for plan management. If you choose to have it included in your plan, you’ll receive adequate funding to cover the costs of this service without having to spend any of your other allocated funding.
How to switch to plan management?
Switching to plan management is a rather easy process - you can request it during your first Plan Meeting or Plan Review Meeting as well as anytime in between plans.
Requesting during a Plan or Plan Review Meeting - simply mention your intentions to the meeting planner or Local Area Coordinator (LAC), and they’ll ensure that plan management will be included in your plan going forward.
Requesting in between plans - if your next review is not due for a while, you can still switch by following these three steps:
- Contact your LAC (number can be found on your NDIS plan) or the NDIS (1800 800 110) and ask for a ‘light touch review’ or ‘desktop review’.
- When contacting your LAC or the NDIS, mention that you’d like to switch to plan management as soon as possible. You may wish to provide your reasoning for this decision - this may speed up the process of getting your request approved.
- Once your request is processed, an NDIS representative or your LAC will reach out to let you know. You can then engage a plan manager to support you.
How can I find a plan manager?
There are a few different ways you can find and connect with a plan manager in your area - you could try the following strategies:
- Ask your local area coordinator or support coordinator for their recommendations
- Ask NDIS participants you know for their recommendations
- Use the Provider Finder tool on the NDIS myplace participant portal
- Use online resources, such as MyCareSpace, to view rated and reviewed plan managers
Need more help navigating the NDIS?
Hireup’s NDIS Pathfinder team is here to help support you to understand and make the most out of your NDIS plan.
Get in touch to get started!
