What is Core Supports?

Core Supports is the NDIS budget category funding everyday assistance: personal care, help with household tasks, community participation, transport, and consumables. It is the most flexible category — funding generally moves freely between most Core support items — and it is where the majority of a typical participant’s plan sits.

Core has four sub-categories: Assistance with Daily Life, Transport, Consumables, and Assistance with Social and Community Participation. Flexibility between them is broad but not unlimited — Transport in particular is often stated as a fixed periodic amount.

For most support-delivery providers, nearly all revenue is Core. Knowing which sub-category a shift claims against is what keeps a participant from running out of funding halfway through a plan period.

Related terms

Capacity BuildingCapacity Building is the NDIS budget category funding supports that build a participant’s skills and independence rather than assisting with daily tasks. It covers therapy, employment supports, improved living arrangements, and support coordination. Unlike Core, funding is allocated to specific sub-categories and cannot be moved between them.Capital SupportsCapital Supports is the NDIS budget category funding one-off, higher-cost items: assistive technology, home and vehicle modifications, and Specialist Disability Accommodation. Funding is tied to specific approved items, usually requires a quote and often an allied health assessment, and cannot be spent on anything else.Support item numberA support item number is the code identifying a specific NDIS support for claiming, in the form 01_011_0107_1_1. It encodes the support category, the item, and the registration group. Every claimed line must carry a valid item number that matches the support actually delivered and sits within the participant’s funded budget.NDIS Price GuideThe NDIS Price Guide, published with the Support Catalogue, sets the maximum prices registered providers may charge for each support item. It is updated at least annually, usually effective 1 July, and defines item numbers, unit types, price limits by state grouping, and the rules for cancellations, travel and non-face-to-face time.

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