For us to fund home modifications, they need to meet all the NDIS funding criteria.
When we think about the home modification supports you need, we’ll ask things like:
- Does the home modification relate to your disability?
- Will the home modification help you pursue your goals?
- Will the home modification help you take part in social and work life?
- Is the home modification effective and beneficial for you?
- Is the home modification legal and safe?
- Should the home modification be funded or provided by another service?
- Is the home modification value for money?
Each support, and your total package of supports, need to meet the NDIS funding criteria.
Learn more about the principles we follow to create your plan.
If home modifications aren’t the right supports for you, there are other home and living supports that might help.
Does the home modification relate to your disability?
We can only fund home modifications if they relate to your disability. We’ll look at how the home modification will help you do things you find difficult because of your disability. Or if it will make it less tiring for you to do things, or mean you need less help from someone else.
We don’t fund home modifications that aren’t related to your disability. These might include renovations, restorations or repairs, or changes to your home layout if they don’t relate to your disability support needs.
Will the home modification help you pursue your goals?
The home modifications we fund need to help you to pursue your goals. When we’re making decisions about funding home modification supports, we’ll look at how your disability prevents you from pursuing your goals.
For example, you might have a goal to move around your house more easily. We’ll look at all the ways you might be able to pursue that goal. Funding home modifications to widen your doorways could be a simple way to do this.
Remember:
- If you set more and bigger goals it doesn’t mean we’ll fund more and bigger supports.
- If you set a goal about an exact type or amount of support you want, it doesn’t mean we’re obliged to fund that support or in that amount.
Learn more about setting goals .
Will the home modification help you take part in social and work life?
We need to know the home modifications we fund will help you participate more in social or work life.
Home modifications can help you do basic activities, like cook food and have a shower. They can also help you do things more independently at a time of day that suits you. This could mean you can participate more in the community and in work.
Is the home modification effective and beneficial for you?
We need to know the home modification will be effective and beneficial for you, having regard to current good practice. This means we consider if there is evidence the home modification is effective and beneficial for someone with similar disability support needs. It should do what you need it to do, or make things better for you by helping you do more things by yourself.
To work out if the home modification is likely to be effective and beneficial for you, we’ll look at:
- evidence from skilled professionals like an occupational therapist or home modification assessor. A home modification assessor is an occupational therapist who is qualified to recommend more detailed home modification supports. Learn more about home modification assessors and how to find them on the Occupational Therapy Australia website
- if the modification is effective for other people in situations like yours
- your own experiences, as well as your preferences, culture or family situation.
We’ll also think about if your needs and your home and living arrangements are likely to change during your plan. This helps us make sure the home modification will meet your current and future needs.
You should explain your support needs to your occupational therapist or home modification assessor. This will help them understand what the home modification needs to achieve. This is important to make sure you get a home modification that will work for you. We have assessment templates on our website that your occupational therapist or home modification assessor can use and give to us.
Is the home modification legal and safe?
We can only fund home modifications that are legal and safe for you to use. The home modifications we fund need to comply with the relevant standards. Poorly constructed home modifications can be dangerous, so we don’t fund home modifications if they are likely to cause harm to you or others.
You (or the homeowner), and the builder or tradesperson doing the work, are responsible for making sure your home modification complies with Australian laws. These include:
- state, territory, and local government acts and regulations
- the National Construction Code
- relevant Australian standards.
You are responsible for checking your provider has the right credentials to do the job. You are also responsible for checking with your builder that they have the right qualifications, registration, and insurance before they do the work. Sometimes we’ll specify a licensed builder needs to modify your home.
If you have a building construction practitioner or building works project manager, they can help you check your builder’s credentials.
Learn more about checking builder qualifications, registration, and insurance on your state or territory building authority website.
You also need to get any building permissions or approvals your local council needs. This can affect your home insurance.
Before we can fund home modifications, we need the legal owner of your home to agree to them in writing. Learn more about who needs to approve your home modifications.