The NDIA announced a Co-Design reset this week. What Does It Mean for People with Disability?
11 April 2025
The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) recently announced a co-design reset. In this blog we explain what it means for people with disability.
The NDIA is changing how it works with people with disability, families, and advocates to improve the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
Why the Change?
The NDIA is making changes based on feedback they received from disability advocates and NDIS participants that people were feeling rushed, overwhelmed, and unclear about what changes were being made. As well as feeling unclear on how they could get involved. Many, including People with Disability Australia (PWDA), shared that fear and confusion were growing in the community due to a lack of communication.
People with disability and advocates have been telling the NDIA that:
- The biggest problems aren’t being fixed first
- Too many changes are happening too fast
- There isn’t enough time to properly discuss issues
- It’s unclear how decisions are being made
What’s Happening Now?
From April 2025, the NDIA will focus on the most important changes—especially the new planning system, which is coming later this year.
Changes to planning, budgets, and assessments will begin with a small group of people in late 2025. From mid-2026 to mid-2031, the changes will gradually include more participants across the country.
Which Co-Design Groups Will Continue?
Four groups will keep working until December 2025 including:
- Navigation – Deciding how NDIS Navigators can help people better understand the system
- Assessments & Budgeting – Making sure assessments and funding decisions (including for housing and assistive tech) are fair
- Participant Pathway Experience – Improving the process people go through when using the NDIS
- Participant Safeguarding – Strengthening protections to help people manage their plans safely
Other groups will pause for now and may resume later.
How Will It Be Better?
- People with different lived experiences will be more involved
- The NDIA will share more updates on what’s happening
- There will be clearer communication about changes
This reset aims to focus on what matters most while making sure the voices of people with disability continue to shape the NDIS.
What to expect from future communication?
- Easier-to-understand updates
- Online information sessions
- Meeting summaries and workplans shared publicly and,
- A new digital platform in 2025 to make collaboration easier
Who will they be listening to?
The NDIA have committed to listening to people with diverse lived experiences
including children with disability, First Nations people, Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) participants, and those with intellectual or complex communication needs.
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