Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA).
If you’re trying to understand what SDA is, whether you might be eligible or how to apply, you’re in the right place.
First things first. What is SDA?
Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) is housing designed to make everyday life safer, more accessible and more independent for people with significant disability and support needs.
SDA homes can include specialised features that make it easier for people to move around, use their home independently and receive the support they need safely.
For eligible NDIS participants, SDA funding contributes towards the cost of living in a purpose-built SDA property. The funding is paid by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) to the registered SDA provider.
SDA is the home. SIL is the support.
The acronyms can get confusing, so this distinction is worth knowing.
SDA
Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) is funding for the specialist housing itself.Explore SDA homes
SIL
Supported Independent Living (SIL) is support with everyday tasks and daily living.Learn more about SIL
Some people may have funding for both SDA and SIL in their NDIS plan. They are funded separately, giving participants flexibility in how their housing and support are provided.
Could SDA be right for you?
SDA is intended for a relatively small number of NDIS participants who have extreme functional impairment or very high support needs.
To receive SDA funding, you’ll need to demonstrate that SDA meets the NDIS funding criteria and is an appropriate home and living solution for your individual circumstances.
This includes showing how SDA can support your NDIS goals and deliver longer-term benefits such as greater independence, quality of life and wellbeing.
Not sure whether that sounds like you?
You don’t need to work it out alone. Your Support Coordinator, Occupational Therapist and other members of your support team can help you understand your options and gather the evidence you may need.
Not all SDA homes are designed the same way.
There are four SDA design categories. The category included in your approved SDA funding will depend on your individual needs. In simple terms, they’re different ways of designing a home around different needs.
Improved Liveability
Homes designed to make them easier and more comfortable to live in for people with sensory, intellectual or cognitive impairment.
Fully Accessible
Homes with a high level of physical accessibility, designed for people with significant physical impairment.
High Physical Support
Highly accessible homes that include features for people with significant physical impairment and very high support needs. Depending on the property, these can include assistive technology, ceiling-hoist provisions and provision for onsite overnight assistance.
Robust
Homes designed with greater resilience and additional safety features for people who may have complex behaviours that place themselves, other people or property at risk.
The funding bit.
SDA funding helps cover the cost of the specialist accommodation itself. It doesn’t cover your everyday living expenses or the support you receive in the home.
If you live in SDA, you’ll generally still make a reasonable rent contribution and pay everyday living costs such as utilities and groceries.
Depending on the circumstances of your NDIS plan, participants typically pay a reasonable rent contribution comprising 25% of the Disability Support Pension and 100% of any Commonwealth Rent Assistance they receive.
How do I apply for SDA funding?
Your support network can help you work through some important questions:
- Where would you like to live?
- What kind of home would work for you?
- How would you like to be supported?
- Would you like to live alone or with other people?
- What evidence will you need to support your application?
A Support Coordinator or Specialist Support Coordinator can help you navigate the process, while an Occupational Therapist (OT) can assess your housing needs and provide important supporting evidence.
An Occupational Therapist can assess your circumstances and prepare evidence about your housing and support needs. This is known as a Housing Assessment Report, which helps demonstrate whether SDA is appropriate and what kind of home may best meet your needs.
Other supporting evidence may include reports or statements from your GP, physiotherapist, speech pathologist or other allied health professionals.
Your Support Coordinator or Occupational Therapist may also help document your current living situation, your needs and what you require from a future home.
Once your evidence is ready, it can be submitted to the NDIA for consideration as part of your home and living request.
A Support Coordinator or Specialist Support Coordinator can help you with this process.
If you don’t have a Support Coordinator or Specialist Support Coordinator, you can still start the process yourself. The NDIS provides a Home and Living supporting evidence form to help you explain your current living situation, your support needs and the type of home and living arrangement you’re seeking. You can submit this to the NDIA along with supporting reports and other relevant evidence.
Visit the NDIS website for the Home and Living supporting evidence formApproved for SDA? Here’s what happens next.
Once SDA funding has been approved and included in your NDIS plan, you can start looking for properties that match your approved funding, design category, needs and preferences.
CareChoice’s Housing & Transition Support team can help you explore:
Homes available now
Current SDA vacancies that may suit your approved funding and needs.
Upcoming homes
Properties that are under development or becoming available soon.
Specific builds and other opportunities
If the right property isn’t currently available, CareChoice can work with its SDA housing partners to explore other possibilities.
Transition support
If you’re moving from hospital, rehabilitation or another living arrangement, CareChoice can help coordinate the move and the supports you’ll need around it.
FAQs
Ready to see what’s out there?
Explore current and upcoming SDA homes across Victoria, or talk to us if you can’t see the right one.