Flora’s Kiss Blog
October 2026 | A deep dive into reliability, respect and continuity in disability support
The first phone call was impressive. The agency sounded organised, warm and experienced. They talked about person-centred support, trained staff and flexibility. It is easy to see why our support coordinator thought they would be a good fit. We thought so too.
Then the support itself began. Not one appointment went to plan. Workers arrived late and left before the end of the booked time. Dates and times changed at the last minute, again and again. A different person turned up every single time, so there was never a chance to build trust, routine or understanding. And the people who were sent did not seem to have the training to support someone who is disabled and chronically ill. When we raised our concerns, it felt as though an unhappy client simply did not matter, perhaps because that client is autistic.
We wanted to know whether this was bad luck or something bigger. So we went looking. What we found is that our experience is far from unusual. Government reports, workforce research, inquiries and the disability regulator’s own data describe the same patterns, and explain a lot about why they happen. This deep dive sets out what the research shows, why it hits autistic and chronically ill people especially hard, what providers are actually required to do, and what you can do if it is happening to you.
A note before we start: there are many wonderful support workers and providers out there, and some of them have changed lives in our community. This piece is not about them. It is about the gap between the promise and the delivery, and about making sure no one has to accept that gap as normal.
In late 2023 the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, the national regulator of NDIS providers, published a report drawn from what participants said about the quality of their support workers. Read alongside our own experience, it is striking how familiar it sounds.1
The Commission’s complaints data points the same way. In an analysis of a random sample of 1,500 complaints made between October and December 2023, the largest group, 47%, was about poor quality practice, process and workforce. By type of support, daily and community supports, the everyday support-worker services most of us picture, drew 40% of complaints, more than any other kind.2 The Commission notes that a single complaint can raise several issues, and that some problems may never be reported at all.2
Reliability is not a bonus feature of disability support. For many people, it is the support.
Each of the problems we experienced can sound small on its own. For someone living with disability or chronic illness, they rarely are.
What happens | Why it matters | What good looks like |
Workers arrive late | Medication times, meals, appointments and energy are often planned around the booked time. Waiting in a state of readiness is draining in itself. | Workers arrive on time, or call well ahead if they are running late. |
Workers leave before the booked time ends | Tasks are rushed or left undone, and the participant may still be charged for the full shift. | The full booked time is delivered, and invoices match what actually happened. |
Last-minute date and time changes | Plans, rest, other appointments and family support all have to be rearranged. Uncertainty itself can be distressing, especially for autistic people. | A stable roster, shared in advance, with changes only when truly unavoidable. |
A different worker every time | The person has to explain their needs, history and routines again and again, and never gets to build trust. | A small, consistent team who get to know the person well. |
Workers without the right training | Needs can be misread, sensory or communication differences mistaken for “behaviour”, and fatigue or pain not understood. | Workers trained for this person’s needs, including autism and chronic illness, and properly introduced before working alone. |
Concerns brushed off | The person learns that speaking up changes nothing, and may stop asking for what they need. | Complaints are welcomed, acknowledged and acted on. |
None of this excuses poor service. But understanding why it happens helps explain why the problem is so widespread, and why polished first impressions can be so different from what turns up at the door.
When workers are casual, juggling several jobs and leaving the sector quickly, it becomes very hard for an agency to send the same person each week. A different face every time is often a symptom of that churn.
Newer workers entering the sector have been described by researchers as often less skilled, less trained and less experienced.6 Put an under-trained, under-supervised, over-stretched casual worker in front of someone with complex needs they have never met, and it is not hard to see how things go wrong, even when that worker means well.
The NDIS was built on the idea that participants would use “choice and control” to pick the best providers, and that poor providers would lose clients. The independent NDIS Review found that NDIS “markets” are not yet working for all participants. It heard that participants find it hard to search for good services and connect with providers, and that both providers and participants find it hard to find and keep staff with the right skills and attitudes, especially for complex needs.8
When good workers are scarce and demand is high, a provider may not feel much pressure to keep any one client happy. That may be part of why an unhappy client can be treated as if they do not matter. It is not acceptable, but it is a pattern the system itself makes more likely.
This is our observation rather than a research finding, but it fits everything above. The person who answers the first enquiry is often an experienced, permanent manager or intake officer whose job is to win new clients. The person who arrives for the shift may be a casual worker who was offered it at short notice, has never met the participant, and has had little or no briefing. The professionalism of that first conversation is real. It just does not always reach the front door.
Autism is the most common primary disability in the NDIS. As at June 2023, 35% of all active participants, almost 215,000 people, had autism listed as their primary disability.9 Yet the workforce is not always prepared for them.
Chronic illness adds another layer. Many chronic conditions fluctuate, so a person’s energy, pain and capacity can change from day to day. Every late arrival, rescheduled visit or rushed shift draws on reserves that may already be very low. Having to explain a complex, often invisible condition to yet another new worker is tiring in its own right, and being met with doubt or impatience can feel deeply invalidating. Readers of our earlier deep dive on ableism will recognise how often people with invisible conditions are not believed.
An unhappy client always matters Being autistic, disabled or chronically ill does not make your experience of a service less important. If anything, it makes getting it right more important. You are entitled to say a service is not working, and to be listened to when you do. |
Respect, reliability and competence are not optional extras. They are written into the rules that govern NDIS providers.
The NDIS Code of Conduct applies to NDIS providers and workers, whether or not the provider is registered. Among other things, it requires them to:12
Penalties can apply when providers do not meet their obligations under the Code.12
Registered providers must also meet the NDIS Practice Standards, which are checked through audits. Several of them speak directly to the problems we experienced:13
Standard | What it says each participant should get |
Continuity of supports | “Timely and appropriate support without interruption.” Day-to-day operations must be managed “to avoid disruption and ensure continuity of supports.”13 |
Responsive support provision | “Responsive, timely, competent and appropriate supports.”13 |
Human resource management | Support needs met “by workers who are competent in relation to their role”, with a system to plan, record and evaluate worker training.13 |
Service agreements | A clear understanding of the supports chosen and how they will be provided, with a service agreement developed together that sets out expectations.13 |
Feedback and complaints | Knowledge of and access to the provider’s complaints system, with complaints “welcomed, acknowledged, respected and well-managed.”13 |
Person-centred supports | Supports that “promote, uphold and respect their legal and human rights.”13 |
Registration is changing. From 1 July 2026, supported independent living (SIL) providers and NDIS digital platform providers must be registered with the NDIS Commission.14 Agencies that provide general support workers do not appear to be covered by that change, so it is worth asking any agency directly whether it is registered. Either way, the Code of Conduct still applies.
If you have ever stayed quiet about poor support, you are not alone. Responses to the Disability Royal Commission’s issues paper on safeguards and quality identified fear of retribution, held by the person complaining and by their supporters, as a barrier in complaints processes.15 When you rely on a service for daily needs, worrying that a complaint will make things worse is completely understandable.
It is also worth being honest about the regulator. In September 2026, the ABC reported that the NDIS Commission had just under 13,000 open complaints. That is down from a peak of more than 25,000 in January 2025, but participants described long waits on hold and months without a response.16 A complaint to the Commission is still worth making, because it creates a record and helps reveal patterns. Just go in knowing it may take time, and that the steps below can help in the meantime.
A good first impression is a start, not proof. These questions, drawn from the standards above and from what participants say matters most, can help you look past the sales pitch.
Ask | Why it matters |
Will I have a small, consistent team? How many different workers should I expect in a month? | Consistency was one of the things participants valued most.1 |
How do you match workers to clients? | The right fit in personality, skills and communication style makes a real difference. |
Will a new worker be introduced, or do a shadow shift, before working alone? | Being properly introduced means you are not training a stranger from scratch every time. |
What training do your workers have in autism, sensory needs and chronic illness? | General qualifications may not include autism-specific training.10 |
How far ahead is the roster set, and how will I be told about changes? | A predictable roster protects routine and wellbeing.1,11 |
What happens if a worker is late, unwell or cannot attend? | Participants expect advance notice and a clear plan.1 |
How do you record start and finish times, and can I see them? | Accurate records protect you from being charged for time not delivered.17 |
Are you registered with the NDIS Commission? How do I make a complaint? | Registered providers are audited against the Practice Standards, and every provider should be able to explain its complaints process.13 |
It can also help to agree on a trial period, and to put your key expectations, such as consistent workers, a set roster and minimum notice for changes, into your service agreement.
A word to support workers and providers Many support workers are doing extraordinary work in difficult conditions: casual hours, little supervision, unpaid paperwork and high rates of burnout.3,5 The problems in this piece are mostly failures of systems and management, not of individual kindness. But the people you support are counting on you. Turning up on time, staying the full shift, sending the same faces, training your teams properly, and treating every concern as worth hearing are not extras. They are the job. And when a client is unhappy, that is information worth listening to, not an inconvenience to manage. |
Service | What they offer | How to reach them |
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission | Complaints and concerns about the quality or safety of NDIS supports, or about a provider or worker | 1800 035 544; ndiscommission.gov.au12 |
NDIS Fraud Reporting and Scams Helpline | Reporting charges for supports not provided, or overcharging | 1800 650 717, Mon–Fri 9am–5pm AEST17 |
Disability Gateway | Free national information line that can connect you with a government-funded advocate | 1800 643 787, Mon–Fri 8am–8pm AEST/AEDT; disabilitygateway.gov.au19 |
Disability Advocacy & Complaints Service of SA (DACSSA) | Free, independent advocacy for people with disability, families and carers | (08) 7122 603020,21 |
Disability Rights Advocacy Service (DRAS) | Protects and promotes the rights and interests of people with disability, their families and carers | (08) 8351 9500, or text 0488 805 97220 |
Uniting Communities Disability Advocacy Service | Help to understand the NDIS and your rights, and to resolve issues; phone and video support for country areas | (08) 8202 5960; country callers 1300 886 22022 |
Office of the Public Advocate (SA) | Rights protection for people who need help with decision-making, including dispute resolution and advocacy | (08) 8342 8200 or 1800 066 96920 |
When disability support works, it gives people more independence, more energy and more life. When it does not, it can leave a person more exhausted, more anxious and more alone than before it started. The difference is often not grand gestures, but simple things done reliably: turning up, staying, being consistent, being prepared and listening.
If you are living with this right now, please know that your frustration is valid and your standards are not too high. You are allowed to expect what providers have already promised, and to keep looking until you find support that delivers it.
Please note If this topic has stirred up difficult feelings, Lifeline is available 24/7 on 13 11 14. In an emergency, call 000. This article is for education and information only. It is not legal or professional advice. Rules, phone numbers and services can change, so please check with the relevant organisation or an advocate about your own situation. |
