An NDIS behaviour support plan is a written plan, prepared by a behaviour support practitioner, that explains how to reduce behaviours of concern. This guide covers who writes one, what it includes, how interim and comprehensive plans differ, how funding works and when the plan is reviewed. Universal Ability provides positive behaviour support in Westmead.
Key Takeaways
- A practitioner the NDIS Commission considers suitable writes the plan, after an assessment.
- Interim plans cover safety first, while full plans follow once the assessment is done.
- Funding depends on the participant's own NDIS plan and the NDIS funding criteria.
- Reviews are due at least every 12 months, or sooner if circumstances change.
Who Writes an NDIS Behaviour Support Plan?
A behaviour support practitioner writes every NDIS behaviour support plan, and the practitioner must be one the NDIS Commission considers suitable. The NDIS behaviour support guideline adds that only registered NDIS providers can deliver behaviour support. Its stated goal for the plan is to improve the participant's quality of life.
Before any writing starts, the provider agrees a service agreement with the participant. A functional behaviour assessment comes next. It draws on conversations with the people in the participant's life, plus reports, data and a look at their surroundings. The provider must have the participant's permission before it speaks with other supporters, as the Commission's participant fact sheet sets out.
Once the assessment is done, the practitioner writes the NDIS behaviour support plan with the participant and their supporters. Training follows. That way, everyone who supports the person knows how to use it. If you need a plan written, our behaviour support plan services team can arrange an assessment and draft it with your family.
What Does an NDIS Behaviour Support Plan Include?
A full NDIS behaviour support plan includes, or is based on, a functional behaviour assessment of why each behaviour of concern happens. The NDIS Commission's checklist for comprehensive plans lists what else belongs in it:
- Proactive strategies that meet the person's unmet needs and teach new skills.
- Environmental changes linked to the triggers the assessment found.
- Reactive strategies that describe how to respond if the behaviour does occur.
- Goals, a monitoring plan and the role each person plays.
The approach behind these plans is positive behaviour support. The Commission describes it as an evidence, values and rights based approach that works by understanding why a person behaves in certain ways. In practice, an NDIS behaviour support plan reads as a set of practical steps for home, school or the community.
Where Restrictive Practices Fit
Some plans also cover restrictive practices, which are actions that limit a person's rights or freedom of movement. The Commission regulates five types: seclusion, chemical restraint, mechanical restraint, physical restraint and environmental restraint. Participants subject to them must have a plan. A restrictive practice sits in the plan only as a last resort, as the least restrictive option, with steps to reduce and eventually stop it.
Interim Plan or Comprehensive Plan?
An interim plan is a short document that focuses on safety and reducing risk while the assessment is carried out. According to the Commission's interim plan checklist, it is brief and easy to follow and sets out general preventative strategies. It does not contain the assessment itself.
Timeframes come from the same Commission material. One month applies to an interim plan and six months to a comprehensive plan. Where a regulated restrictive practice is involved, the clock starts from the date set in the service agreement. The interim plan is then replaced within six months, and the plan is lodged in the NDIS Commission portal as soon as practicable.
Some situations call for an interim plan, and the NDIS guideline lists them: a restrictive practice used without state or territory authorisation, one used outside the current plan that is likely to continue, or one that needs to be put in place. Outside those situations, the usual path runs from the assessment to the comprehensive NDIS behaviour support plan.
How Is an NDIS Behaviour Support Plan Funded?
Behaviour support is a therapeutic support that can be included in an NDIS plan, provided it meets the NDIS funding criteria. It must relate to the participant's disability and fit their plan. It must also come from a registered NDIS provider that uses a suitable practitioner.
Within the plan, Improved Relationships is the category that lists behaviour support plans. It is one of the capacity building supports in an NDIS plan. Because capacity building funding is stated, it cannot be moved into other support categories.
Fundable items include the assessment, the plan itself, staff training and monitoring, and training for family members or carers. The NDIS may fund an assessment first, to gather the evidence it needs before deciding on further support. Whether a particular plan is funded depends on the participant's own NDIS plan, so check with your plan manager or support coordinator.
How Often Is an NDIS Behaviour Support Plan Reviewed?
Twelve months is the longest gap allowed between reviews of an NDIS behaviour support plan. The practitioner can bring a review forward when circumstances change. The review asks the participant what is and is not working. With permission, it also includes the people around them.
Each NDIS behaviour support plan states its review date, and strategies are updated as needs change. If needs shift enough, the practitioner may write a new plan, which goes to the NDIS Commission. Where restrictive practices are included, the aim is that they are stopped or used less over time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does every NDIS participant need a behaviour support plan?
No. An NDIS behaviour support plan is required for participants who are subject to restrictive practices. For others, behaviour support is requested as a funded support. It is included only when the funding criteria are met and a registered provider delivers it.
Is there an NDIS behaviour support plan template or example?
Checklists published by the NDIS Commission show what interim and comprehensive plans must contain. Because each plan comes from a practitioner's assessment of one person, a blank template cannot replace that work. The checklists do help families know what to expect from a draft.
What happens when a plan includes restrictive practices?
Each practice is identified, along with when, why, how and by whom it is used. A copy goes to the NDIS Commission, and state or territory authorisation may also be needed. Implementing providers must understand their reporting duties, and a review is due at least every 12 months.
Who can I contact with questions about behaviour support?
Enquiries to the NDIS Commission contact centre are taken on 1800 035 544, Monday to Friday except public holidays. You can also call Universal Ability on 1300 436 088 to talk through where to start with an assessment.
Talk to Our Team
To arrange an assessment or ask about a plan, contact our Westmead team at 12 Caroline Street.
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