Australian Government response to the Joint Standing Committee on the National Disability Insurance Scheme report: Inquiry into market readiness for provision of services under the NDIS

The Joint Standing Committee on the National Disability Insurance Scheme (the Committee) released a report on the Inquiry into market readiness for provision of services under the NDIS in September 2018. 

The Australian Government welcomes the Committee’s report as part of the Inquiry into market readiness for provision of services under the NDIS. 

The Committee’s report focuses on market readiness for the provision of services under the NDIS by examining a range of issues relating to the readiness of NDIS participants, providers and the workforce in the NDIS market, and market stewardship responses by the Government. 

The Report contains 29 recommendations to the National Disability Insurance Agency, the Department of Social Services, the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the Australian Skills Quality Authority and the Department of Education, Skills and Employment. 

The recommendations cover a number of issues relating to market readiness. The Australian Government supports 14 recommendations, partially supports one recommendation, and supports in-principle 12 of the 29 recommendations made in the committee’s report. The Australian Government notes one recommendation and does not support the remaining recommendation. 

Since the release of the report, there has been significant progress to assist the development of an efficient and effective NDIS market and workforce. The Australian Government has supported the transition of the disability sector by: 

• providing more information to the market through the NDIS Demand Map so providers can identify the opportunities to provide services under the NDIS 
• supporting businesses transition to the NDIS operating environment by providing up to $20,000 through the Transition Assistance Funding initiative 
• allocating a total of $45.6 million to the NDIS Jobs and Market Fund to support the growth of the NDIS provider market and workforce in capacity and capability of which $10 million was awarded to grant recipients in August 2019 
• providing more flexibility in the approaches taken to address service gaps in some markets 
• developing a coordinated national approach to workforce development through the National NDIS Workforce Plan. 

Read the Australian Government response to the Joint Standing Committee on the National Disability Insurance Scheme report: inquiry into market readiness for provision of services under the NDIS.