NDIS Registered vs. Non-Registered Providers: What’s the difference?
The process of becoming an NDIS registered provider is rigorous. It takes a lot of time, effort and significant cost in making sure all requirements are met.
For larger corporate providers who can bear this cost and the additional staff time in order to attain registered provider status, it can be a way of giving their clients comfort that they are being looked after in a professional manner.
For smaller service providers, however, the cost and time can be prohibitive, and they will often either choose not to register with the NDIS or plan to work towards registration down the track as part of their growth strategy.
This doesn’t mean that you should rule out unregistered providers when selecting the right supports for you, however.
THE NDIS is built on providing choice and control for participants, and the importance of maintaining this can’t be understated. Having a support person or organisation that you are comfortable with, that you can trust, is in a location close to you, and that you can maintain easy access to should be the most important aspect regardless of whether they’re registered or not.
Being able to use unregistered providers and having that level of choice and control depends on the way your plan is managed .
If your NDIS Plan is plan managed or self-managed, you can access any provider that you require - regardless of whether they’re NDIS registered not.
Unfortunately if your plan is agency managed, you can only access support from NDIS registered providers.
So if your plan is self or plan managed, how do you select the right provider for you ?
Talk to your LAC or support coordinator - they will be able to provide you with good information that will help make the right choice.
Social media and Google are a good reference - Facebook in particular has many groups with members that will often be very forthcoming with advice and recommendations. Make sure that you get more than one opinion though!
Talk to a plan manager - they should be able to pass on information they are aware of regarding a specific provider. A good plan manager is one that will have a vast knowledge and a database of providers to tap into
Call the potential provider and meet then face-to-face - first impressions are often the best ones when meeting in person and you will soon get a ‘feel’ for how they might suit your needs.
Give them a try - don’t lock yourself in for a long period; try them out for a few weeks and see how its working. You have the choice and control to quickly move to a different provider if it’s not working out.
If you’re convinced that a non-registered provider is right for you, give them a go, even if they haven’t interacted with people who have NDIS plans before.
Talk to your plan manager and ask them to give your potential new provider a call. A good plan manager will be happy to do this and be willing to take the time to coach the provider on invoicing, payment processes and any other information they need to know in order for it to be a smooth experience all round.
If you’d like to learn more about working with registered or non-registered providers, or would like to talk to us about your plan management, please feel free to get in contact with us here and organise your free 15 minute consultation.