Behaviour Support in Western Australia

What behaviour support actually covers

An NDIS behaviour support practitioner works out what is driving behaviours of concern, then writes a behaviour support plan built around changing the situation rather than the person. Where a plan includes a regulated restrictive practice, a much stricter set of rules applies.

How it's funded

Behaviour support sits under Capacity Building, Improved Relationships. It usually covers assessment, writing the plan, training the people who implement it, and review. Training your support workers is part of the job, not an extra.

What to know in Western Australia

Western Australia runs restrictive practices authorisation on government policy rather than legislation. The Authorisation of Restrictive Practices in Funded Disability Services Policy has applied since December 2020, and the Department of Communities is developing legislation to replace it. Authorisation requires a Quality Assurance Panel, which checks the practice is the least restrictive option and signs a report that becomes the evidence of authorisation. There is no central online system, so the paperwork matters. Providers can draw on a register of independent external behaviour support practitioners to form a panel.

Choosing between providers

This is the one service where the state you live in changes the process. The NDIS Commission regulates behaviour support but does not authorise restrictive practices. That sits with each state and territory, and each one runs it differently. Authorisation comes from where the participant lives, and it does not transfer if you move interstate.

Questions worth asking

• Are you registered with the NDIS Commission, and at what suitability level?
• How long until an interim plan, and how long for the comprehensive one?
• Do you know this state's authorisation process for restrictive practices?
• Who trains my support workers in the plan, and is that included?
• How often will you review the plan?

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