How to Prepare for Your NDIS Plan Review — Evidence, Goals, and What to Actually Say

Why Plan Review Preparation Matters More Than the Meeting

A plan review lasts 60-90 minutes. The preparation you do in the 4-6 weeks before it is what determines whether that meeting gets you the plan you need, or leaves you with gaps you’ll be complaining about for the next 12 months.

Most participants underprepare. They turn up with a vague sense of “things that haven’t been working” and leave the planner to make assumptions. Planners aren’t mind-readers — if you don’t bring the evidence, the decision defaults to whatever’s simplest administratively, not whatever’s best for you.

Start 8 Weeks Before the Meeting

Plan review preparation is not a one-night job. The best outcomes come from starting 6-8 weeks before the scheduled review date. Here’s the timeline:

8 weeks out

• Request updated reports from all your therapists (OT, physio, speech, psychologist)
• Request a provider summary from your support coordinator and any major providers
• Write down your current goals and how your situation has changed

4 weeks out

• Chase therapy reports if they haven’t arrived
• Gather any medical letters, hospital discharge summaries, or specialist reports
• Ask your support coordinator to prepare a support needs summary

2 weeks out

• Compile everything into one folder — digital or paper
• Write your own summary — what’s working, what’s not, what’s changed
• Decide what new supports you’ll be asking for and why

Week of

• Confirm the meeting time and format
• Arrange a support person to attend with you if desired
• Review your notes one more time

Step 1 — Review Your Current Plan

Pull out your current NDIS plan and work through it with these questions:

• Which goals have I achieved, and what evidence can I show?
• Which goals haven’t been achieved, and why?
• Which supports have I used, and were they enough?
• Which supports did I underuse or not use at all? Why?
• What’s changed in my life since the last plan (health, family, work, living situation)?
• Where did I have to pay for things I couldn’t fund under this plan?

Step 2 — Document Your Goals

NDIS plans are structured around goals. The more specific and evidenced your goals, the easier it is for the planner to justify funding. Weak goal: “I want to be more independent.” Strong goal: “I want to prepare my own breakfast and dinner at least 5 days a week, catch public transport to weekly medical appointments independently, and maintain my current part-time employment.” If you are not sure how the funding categories fit together, start with what an NDIS plan includes and how to use your NDIS funding effectively.

Frame each goal with:

• Specifics — what, when, how often
• Why it matters — the impact on your life
• What supports are needed to get there — the bridge to funding

Step 3 — Gather Evidence

Evidence trumps opinion every time. For the supports you want to increase, maintain, or add, bring:

Allied health reports

• OT functional capacity assessment (for daily living supports)
• Physio assessment (for mobility and equipment supports)
• Psychology report (for psychosocial supports)
• Speech pathology report (for communication supports)
• Dietitian report (for nutrition-related supports)

Medical evidence

• GP letter summarising your condition and its functional impact
• Specialist reports from any relevant medical specialists
• Hospital discharge summaries for any admissions during the plan period
• Medication lists and any clinical changes

Provider reports

• Shift reports showing what supports have been delivered and their impact
• Progress notes from therapists
• Support coordinator’s six-monthly reports

Your own documentation

• A journal of support needs you’ve struggled with
• Examples of things that have gone wrong when support wasn’t adequate
• Photos of equipment or environmental issues (accessibility problems, etc.)

Step 4 — Prepare Your Case for New or Increased Supports

For every support you want added or increased, prepare a clear case:

1. What’s the support? (specific description)
2. Why do I need it? (link to disability and functional impact)
3. How much do I need? (hours per week, total annual)
4. What evidence backs this up?
5. What happens if I don’t get it?
6. Why is this “reasonable and necessary” under the NDIS Act?

Be Specific About What You Want

The most common mistake participants make at reviews is asking vaguely for “more support”. Planners can’t action vague. Planners can action specific.

Instead of: “I need more community access support.”

Say: “I’d like 6 hours per week of 1:1 community access support to attend the library, shopping, and medical appointments. My current 3 hours isn’t enough because I’ve missed two medical appointments this year due to lack of transport and support.”

The second version tells the planner:

• The specific support type (1:1 community access)
• The specific hours (6 hours/week)
• The specific purpose (library, shopping, appointments)
• The evidence of need (2 missed appointments)

That’s fundable. The first version isn’t.

Common Supports to Consider

Things participants often forget to request:

• Support coordination — separate category from Core Supports
• Therapy hours — OT, physio, speech, psych
• Capacity building — skill development programs
• Assistive technology — equipment assessments and purchases
• Home modifications — grab rails, ramps, bathroom modifications
• Psychosocial recovery coaching if you have a psychosocial disability
• Transport at the right level

Step 5 — Who to Bring With You

You don’t have to go alone. Depending on your situation, consider bringing:

• Your support coordinator — they know your plan and can speak to implementation
• A trusted family member or friend — for support and to help you remember
• A disability advocate — organisations like Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion provide free advocates for NDIS planning
• Your current SIL or support provider’s representative (we attend plan meetings for our participants when invited)

Step 6 — The Meeting Itself

Practical tips for the meeting:

• Ask for the meeting to be in-person or at least video, not phone. Planners make bigger decisions when they can see you and your evidence.
• Don’t rush. If the planner is time-pressuring you, ask to schedule a follow-up.
• Take notes or ask for the meeting to be recorded.
• Get explicit confirmation on what’s being recommended — don’t leave with ambiguity.
• Ask when you’ll see the draft plan — this is your chance to correct errors before finalisation.

Step 7 — After the Meeting

Within 2-4 weeks you should receive a draft plan. This is the critical review point:

• Compare it line by line to what was agreed in the meeting
• Flag any missing supports or cut funding immediately
• Respond within the window the NDIS gives you (usually 14 days)
• Push back in writing — don’t just verbally disagree

How We Help at Review Time

If you’re one of our participants, we provide:

• A written support summary documenting all hours delivered and why
• Recommendations for the next plan based on observed needs
• Evidence of any incidents or changes that affect support requirements
• Attendance at the review meeting if you want us there

That summary isn’t generic — we write it specifically for your situation and your goals. It’s designed to give the planner the evidence they need to fund what you actually require. It covers every service we deliver for you, whether that is Supported Independent Living, community nursing or daily living support.

What to Do If You Get a Bad Plan

1. Request an internal review (unscheduled plan review) — you have 3 months
2. Get an advocate involved if you haven’t already
3. If internal review fails, appeal to the AAT (Administrative Appeals Tribunal)
4. Don’t delay — the windows for each step are strict

Plan Review Timing

Most NDIS plans run for 12 months, though longer plans (2-3 years) are increasingly common. Your plan review meeting is typically scheduled 6-8 weeks before your plan expires, so start preparation 3-4 months before plan end date.

If your circumstances have changed significantly (new diagnosis, hospital admission, family change, loss of informal supports), you don’t have to wait for the scheduled review — request an unscheduled review immediately.