Managing your assistance with daily life NDIS funding shouldn’t feel like solving a puzzle. But if you’ve opened your NDIS plan and felt overwhelmed by budget categories, support codes, and what you can actually use your funds for, you’re not alone. Over 739,000 Australians currently receive NDIS support, and many struggle to understand how their Assistance with Daily Life (ADL) budget actually works.
Here’s the thing: your ADL funding is one of the most flexible parts of your entire NDIS plan. But without clear guidance, participants often underspend, overspend in the wrong categories, or miss out on supports they’re actually entitled to. This guide breaks down exactly what your NDIS assistance with daily life funding covers, what it doesn’t, and how to make every dollar count.
Key Insights
- Assistance with Daily Life (ADL) sits under Core Supports and covers help with personal care, household tasks, meal prep, and getting out into the community
- It’s the most flexible NDIS funding category — you can generally move money between Core categories as your needs change
- ADL covers the support worker’s time (not the food, cleaning products, or event tickets themselves)
- Different from Improved Daily Living, which funds therapy and skill-building under Capacity Building
- Pricing varies by time of day, location, and worker qualification — weekday rates start around $70 per hour, higher on weekends
What is NDIS Assistance with Daily Life?
Assistance with Daily Life is a Core Support category that funds help with daily personal activities you can’t safely or easily do yourself because of your disability. ADL funding is personalised to your situation.
Think of ADL as the hands-on support that keeps your day running — whether that’s a support worker helping you shower in the morning, someone prepping your meals, or assistance getting to a medical appointment.
The key word here is “assistance.” Your assistance with daily life NDIS funding pays for someone’s time to help you complete tasks or supervise you while you do them. It doesn’t cover the everyday costs that everyone pays. We’ll get to what’s not covered shortly.
What Assistance with Daily Life Covers
Your NDIS assistance with daily life budget can fund a wide range of supports. Here’s what’s included:
What Assistance with Daily Life Does NOT Cover
Understanding what ADL doesn’t fund is just as important. These are the everyday living costs everyone pays, disability or not:
Scenario 1: Maria, living independently with spinal cord injury
Maria is 34 and uses a wheelchair. Her ADL funding pays for:
- A support worker 2 hours each morning (Mon-Fri) to help with showering, dressing, and breakfast prep – around $140 per day at weekday rates
- 3 hours of household cleaning and laundry every Wednesday – roughly $180
- Support to attend her weekly physiotherapy appointments – 2 hours at $70 per hour
Maria buys her own groceries and toiletries, but her support worker helps her prep meals for the week, which she stores in containers. Her ADL budget is roughly $1,800 per week, giving her the independence to work from home and manage her household.
Scenario 2: James, teenager with autism and intellectual disability
James is 16 and lives with his parents. His ADL funding covers:
- Support to develop independent living skills like cooking simple meals and personal grooming – 5 hours per week
- Community access support to attend a social skills group – 3 hours weekly, including transport
- Support during school holidays for activities and respite – flexible hours as needed
James’s family uses around $800-$1,000 of ADL funding per week. The rest of his NDIS plan includes Improved Daily Living funding for occupational therapy, which is separate from ADL.
Scenario 3: Sarah, living in Supported Independent Living
Sarah is 28 with cerebral palsy and requires 24-hour support. Her SIL arrangement includes overnight support, but she also has ADL funding for:
- Additional personal care support during the day when she attends a day program
- Support to attend medical appointments outside her regular support roster
- Extra household assistance during times when she’s unwell
Sarah’s ADL budget is used flexibly to top up her core support needs beyond what her SIL arrangement covers.
These NDIS assistance with daily life examples show how differently ADL can work depending on your situation. Your plan is unique to your needs and goals.
ADL vs Improved Daily Living: What's the Difference?
This confuses many participants because the names sound so similar. Here’s the key difference:
Assistance with Daily Life (ADL)
- Sits under Core Supports
- Funds ongoing assistance with daily tasks
- You need this support regularly because your disability prevents you doing these tasks independently
- Examples: Help showering, meal prep, household tasks, community access
- Flexible funding — can move between Core categories
Improved Daily Living
- Sits under Capacity Building Supports
- Funds therapy, assessments, and skill-building to increase independence
- Goal is to reduce your need for support over time
- Examples: Occupational therapy, physiotherapy, speech therapy, dietetics, psychology
Think of it this way: ADL is about getting things done now with support. Improved Daily Living is about building skills so you can do more independently in the future.
A participant might use ADL funding to pay a support worker to help them cook dinner each night, while using Improved Daily Living funding for occupational therapy sessions to learn adaptive cooking techniques. Both support the same goal (independent meal preparation), but through different approaches.
Understanding ADL Costs and Pricing
NDIS providers charge within the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits, which set maximum prices registered providers can charge. As of the 2025-26 pricing arrangements (effective from 1 July 2025), support worker rates increased by 3.95% — the largest increase in recent years.
Weekend and after-hours rates:
- Saturday rates are typically 25% above weekday rates
- Sunday rates are around 50% above weekday rates
- Public holiday rates can be 75-100% above standard weekday rates
- Evening rates (after 8pm on weekdays) also attract higher pricing
If you’re plan-managed or self-managed, you might negotiate rates below the maximum price limits with providers. NDIA-managed participants must use registered providers who typically charge at or near the price limit.
What affects your ADL costs:
- Time of day and week – Weekday mornings are cheapest, Sunday mornings most expensive
- Your location – Regional and remote areas may have higher rates to cover provider travel
- Worker qualification level – More experienced or qualified workers may cost more
- Type of support – High-intensity or specialised care costs more than standard assistance
- Travel time and distance – Providers may charge travel time between the price limits, especially if you’re not on their regular route
A typical participant using 10 hours of support per week might budget:
- 6 hours weekday daytime: $70.23/hour = $421.38
- 2 hours Saturday morning: $88/hour = $176
- 2 hours Sunday morning: $105/hour = $210
- Weekly total: $807.38 (approximately $3,500-$3,700 per month)
This varies significantly based on your support needs and when you schedule support. Working with a plan manager helps you understand your specific cost breakdown.
How a Plan Manager Can Help You Maximise Your ADL Budget
A plan manager does more than just pay your invoices. They’re your financial navigator for your NDIS plan, and they’re particularly valuable for managing ADL funding because it’s your largest and most flexible budget category.
What a plan manager does for your ADL funding:
- Tracks your spending in real-time so you know exactly how much ADL budget you have left and where it’s being spent.
- Verifies that provider invoices match agreed rates and that you’re being charged correctly.
- Helps you understand pricing variations and why your Thursday support costs $70/hour while Sunday costs $105/hour.
- Manages the paperwork and payment process with multiple providers.
- Provides budget reports showing spending trends, which is particularly useful before your plan review.
- Advises on Core budget flexibility — when it makes sense to reallocate funding between categories and how to do it within the rules.
- Supports you to access both registered and unregistered providers, giving you more choice and often better value compared to NDIA-managed plans
At NDIS Superhero, we specialise in helping participants make the most of their funding. Our NDIS plan management team understands the nuances of ADL spending and can help you spot opportunities to get better value or access supports you didn’t realise were available.
Plan management is funded separately under Improved Life Choices (Capacity Building), so it doesn’t reduce your ADL budget. For many participants, especially those new to the NDIS or managing complex support needs, having a plan manager is the difference between confidently using all your funding and watching thousands of dollars expire at plan end.
How to Get ADL Funding in Your NDIS Plan
If you’re preparing for your first NDIS planning meeting or a plan review, here’s how to request Assistance with Daily Life funding:
Before your planning meeting:
- Document your current daily routine and where you need help — keep a diary for 1-2 weeks, noting every task you struggle with or can’t do safely
- List all disability-related tasks: personal care, household tasks, meal prep, getting to appointments, community access
- Be specific about frequency and duration (e.g., “need help showering 7 days per week, approximately 30-45 minutes each time”)
- Gather evidence from your treating health professionals—letters from your GP, occupational therapist, or physiotherapist explaining your support needs
- Calculate roughly how many hours of support you need per week and per month
During your planning meeting:
- Explain your goals and how ADL support helps you achieve them. The NDIS funds supports that are “reasonable and necessary” to help you reach your goals
- Be honest about what you can and can’t do — don’t downplay your support needs
- Provide specific examples: “I need help with showering because I have limited upper body mobility and it’s unsafe for me to shower alone”
- Discuss both your current needs and anticipated changes (e.g., upcoming surgery, transitioning from school to work)
- Ask questions if the planner suggests funding levels that seem too low or unclear
After your plan is approved:
- Review your plan statement carefully — check your ADL funding amount and any stated restrictions
- If your ADL funding seems insufficient, you can request a plan review (Section 48) or reassessment if your circumstances have changed
- Connect with providers, get your supports in place quickly and understand what you can use your NDIS funding for
The NDIA assesses ADL funding on a case-by-case basis. Two participants with the same disability might receive different ADL funding if their support needs, living situations, and goals differ. Your funding isn’t just about your diagnosis—it’s about what reasonable and necessary supports you need to live your best life.
Managing your assistance with daily life NDIS funding doesn’t have to be complicated. With the right knowledge about what’s covered, how flexibility works, and support from an experienced plan manager, you can make every dollar in your ADL budget work harder for you. Whether you’re new to the NDIS or looking to get more value from your existing plan, understanding your Core Supports puts you in control of your support choices.
If you’re struggling to navigate this process or feel your ADL funding doesn’t match your needs, consider working with a Support Coordinator (funded separately) or get in touch with NDIS Superhero to sign up with a plan manager who can provide guidance for your next plan review.
Let’s Get Started
Still unsure about how to switch NDIS plan managers or want to learn more about the support we can provide? Get in touch with our team, and we’ll be happy to help.
Ready to switch to independent support run by real people who care? Make the move today and discover the NDIS Superhero difference.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use my ADL funding to pay family members to provide support?
Generally, the NDIS won’t fund family members who live with you to provide support that would normally be part of family care. However, there are exceptions — if a family member is a registered provider or if there’s no one else available to provide the support in your area, it may be considered. You’ll need to discuss this with your planner and provide evidence of why this arrangement is reasonable and necessary. Using a support worker outside the family is preferred because it provides you with broader community connections and gives your family respite.
What happens to my unused ADL funding at the end of my plan?
Unused funding doesn’t automatically roll over to your next plan. The NDIA will look at how much you’ve spent when determining your next plan’s funding level. If you consistently underspend your ADL budget, the NDIA may reduce your funding at your next review, assuming you don’t need that level of support. This is why budget monitoring with your plan manager is important — you want to use the funding you’re allocated and demonstrate that it’s meeting genuine needs.
Can I change my ADL support provider if I'm not happy with them?
Absolutely. One of the core principles of the NDIS is choice and control. If your support provider isn’t meeting your needs, you can change to a different provider at any time — you don’t need NDIA approval. Give reasonable notice to your current provider (check your service agreement for cancellation terms) and start sourcing quotes from other providers. Your plan manager can help facilitate this transition and ensure your invoices are updated correctly.
How is ADL different from the support categories I see in my NDIS plan statement?
Your NDIS plan statement lists funding across different NDIS budget categories. Assistance with Daily Life is one specific category under Core Supports. When you look at your plan, you’ll see Core Supports broken into four categories: Assistance with Daily Life, Consumables, Transport, and Assistance with Social and Community Participation. Your plan statement shows how much funding you have in each category, though remember Core funding is generally flexible between these categories (except for stated supports).
