Occupational therapy assessment and reporting for NDIS Home and Living requests — where a participant lives, what support they need there, and what evidence the NDIA requires to decide.
These are among the highest-stakes reports in the NDIS. They determine where someone lives, sometimes for years.
Select Your Funding to Book an Appointment:
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The language here confuses almost everyone, including people who work in the sector, and the distinction matters because the funding pathways are entirely separate.
SIL — Supported Independent Living funds the support a participant receives in their home: the staffing, usually in a shared living arrangement, described through a roster of care that sets out how many hours of what type of support are needed and when. They can assist with personal care, meal preparation, domestic tasks, medication management. It is important to note that the funding does not cover rent, groceries or other everyday living expenses.
SDA — Specialist Disability Accommodation funds the building — housing designed and built to specific accessibility standards for participants with extreme functional impairment or very high support needs. SDA pays for the dwelling which is fully accessible for clients, not the support staff. The two are funded separately and a participant may receive one, both, or neither.
Individualised Living Options, Supported Independent Living alternatives and other Home and Living supports cover the arrangements between these, and are often a better fit than either.
Most people who ask about SDA are not eligible for it.
SDA is deliberately narrow. It is intended for a small proportion of participants — broadly, those with extreme functional impairment or very high support needs where the built environment itself is the barrier, and where housing design will substantially reduce support costs or improve outcomes.
Wanting more accessible housing, finding the current home unsuitable, or being unable to find a rental are all real problems, and none of them establish SDA eligibility on their own.
We will tell you at the initial discussion whether SDA looks plausible before you commit to a full assessment. Where it does not, we will say so and talk about what does apply — home modifications, assistive technology, an individualised living option, or a Home and Living request built around support rather than housing. That conversation costs you nothing and saves a great deal of time and disappointment.
Raise urgently with your support coordinator, the NDIA and, where relevant, emergency services if:
A report is not an emergency response. Where the situation is urgent, escalation runs in parallel with assessment.
Assessment happens over one or more visits, at home or wherever the participant is currently living, and usually involves family, support workers and the support coordinator.
We assess function in detail, observe support being provided where possible, and talk with the participant about what they want — which is central to a Home and Living request and is the part most often under-documented.
We review existing reports, behaviour support plans, allied health assessments and incident records, so the report builds on what already exists rather than contradicting it.
You receive a report written to the NDIA's evidence requirements, with clinical reasoning that addresses the decision the delegate has to make. We work with your support coordinator through submission and respond to requests for further information.
On timeframes: these assessments take longer than most. The assessment itself may take several weeks depending on complexity and how many people need to be involved, and NDIA decisions on Home and Living requests commonly take months. Anyone suggesting a fast outcome is not describing this process accurately.
Occupational therapists across Victoria (Melbourne, Roxburgh Park and the northern suburbs), Queensland (Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Ipswich and Logan) and New South Wales (Sydney and Western Sydney), assessing in private homes, group homes, supported accommodation, hospitals and rehabilitation units.
Simple Process
Support coordinators, plan managers, participants and families, SIL and SDA providers, hospital and rehabilitation teams and specialist services can all refer.
This conversation matters more here than on any other service we provide. We ask what the current arrangement is and why it is not working, what has already been tried, what the participant wants, and what evidence already exists. We give you an honest early view on whether SDA is plausible, and on what pathway is most likely to succeed — before you commit to an assessment.
Detailed functional assessment across one or more visits, involving the people who know the participant.
A report written to the NDIA's evidence requirements, with clear clinical reasoning and recommendations.
We work with your support coordinator through submission and respond to NDIA requests for further information.
Got Questions?
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Contact inOne Healthcare on 1300 765 456, email info@inonehealthcare.com.au, or submit a referral online.
Monday to Saturday, 9:00am to 5:00pm. Closed Sunday.
Related: Functional Capacity Assessments · Home Modification Assessments · Assistive Technology Assessments
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Make A Referral 1300 765 456 info@inonehealthcare.com.auReviewed by Anchalpreet Kaur, Occupational Therapist, OCC0002664853. Last reviewed 10/09/2026.
This page provides general information only and is not a substitute for individual clinical advice.