Your NDIS planning meeting is where your plan takes shape — the goals, the supports and the budgets that follow all flow from this conversation. Turning up prepared is the single biggest thing you can do to end up with a plan that actually fits your life.

What the planning meeting is for

The meeting is where you and the NDIA (or your planning partner) discuss your situation, your goals and the supports you need to pursue them. The plan that results is built around what you communicate here — so being clear and specific matters.

Come with your goals

The plan is goal-driven, so think about your goals in advance — short and longer term, across daily living, independence, community, work or study, and health. Frame them concretely: not "be more independent" but "be able to travel to work independently" or "build the skills to live in my own place." Specific goals justify specific supports.

Evidence and reports help

Bring supporting evidence: recent reports from therapists or specialists, assessments, and anything that documents your needs and what supports work for you. Well-evidenced needs are far easier to fund than needs you simply describe on the day.

Think about all your supports

Map out a typical day and week and where you need support — the routine stuff as well as the occasional. People often under-ask because they forget the supports they''ve normalised. Consider daily living, community participation, therapies, equipment, and capacity-building supports like support coordination.

Questions to ask

  • How will my goals translate into funding?
  • Which budget will each support sit in?
  • How will my plan be managed (self, plan or agency-managed)?
  • What happens if my needs change during the plan?
  • When and how is the plan reviewed?

After the meeting

When your plan arrives, read it carefully against what you discussed. If something''s missing or a support landed in the wrong budget, you can seek a review — but a well-prepared meeting means fewer surprises to fix.

The bottom line

Preparation is everything: come with specific goals, supporting evidence, a full picture of your weekly supports, and questions ready. The planning meeting shapes your funding for the whole plan period, so the time you put in beforehand pays off in a plan that genuinely fits.

This is general information, not NDIS planning advice — for support with your plan, speak to the NDIA, a planner or a support coordinator.