Service Agreements With Participants

A service agreement is an agreement between a participant and a provider about the supports to be provided and the conditions around them. This lesson explains why agreements matter for participants and for us, when a written agreement is required, and how agreements differ from other documents such as support plans. Key points: agreements create a shared understanding and protect the participant, written agreements are strongly recommended and are mandatory for specialist disability accommodation, our policy is to have a written agreement for every participant, and agreements are one of the first things an auditor asks to see.

For registered providers, the NDIS Practice Standards include an outcome about service agreements, and the NDIS Code of Conduct applies to everything we do when making one. This lesson explains what auditors look for, how the Code of Conduct shapes the way we negotiate and explain agreements, and the rules in the NDIS pricing arrangements about conditions we can include. Key points: agreements must be developed with the participant and explained in a way they understand, conditions must be explained, copies must be provided or the reasons recorded, emergency arrangements must be included, and agreements cannot include conditions that conflict with the pricing arrangements.

The core of any agreement is what we will deliver and what it will cost. This lesson covers how to describe supports clearly, how to set out prices, how travel, non face to face work and other charges must be agreed in advance, and how payment works depending on how the participant's funding is managed. Key points: describe what, how, when and where, list prices and any other fees including GST where relevant, agree travel and non face to face charges before claiming them, state how we will be paid, and make sure the schedule fits within the participant's funding periods.

Agreements must also cover what happens when plans change or things go wrong. This lesson explains how to set out cancellation terms that match the NDIS pricing arrangements, how participants can raise concerns and complaints, including with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, how either party can change or end the agreement, and what to include about emergencies. Key points: cancellation terms must be in the agreement before any cancellation can be claimed, participants must know how to complain without fear, notice periods must be fair and clear, and participants can change providers at any time.

An agreement only means something if the participant genuinely understands and agrees to it. This lesson explains how to make agreements accessible, how to support participants to make their own decisions, and whose signature or consent is valid. Key points: use plain language and the participant's preferred format, such as Easy Read, an interpreter or a verbal explanation, allow time and a support person, support decision making rather than substituting it, check whether a nominee or guardian has authority for this decision, and give the participant a copy they can use.

An agreement that no longer matches what we deliver is a risk to the participant and to us. This lesson explains when to review an agreement, how to make changes properly, and what records to keep. Key points: review when the participant gets a new plan, when supports, prices or funding periods change, when the participant asks, and at least at the review date in the agreement, always agree changes with the participant before applying them, keep signed versions and records of every change, and remember that providers must keep records about claims and payments for 7 years. The lesson ends with a course summary and your final assessment.

This case study follows Leilani, a young woman with an intellectual disability who is starting supports with us, and her mother, who expects to sign everything for her. Team leader Marcus has to set up the agreement so that Leilani understands it and genuinely consents. The lesson covers preparing an Easy Read version, checking authority, involving a support person without letting them take over, and checking the schedule against the funding periods. Key points: support decisions rather than taking them, check authority and make the agreement truly accessible.

This case study follows Arnav, who self manages his NDIS plan and is surprised by an invoice that includes provider travel and a report writing charge he does not remember agreeing to. Our team leader, Siobhan, investigates and finds the agreement was never updated when a new therapist joined his team. The lesson covers how to respond to a billing complaint openly, how to put things right, and how to fix the system so it does not happen again. Key points: be open, fix the error, and keep agreements, rosters and claims lined up.