Ready to move out of home and experience more independence? All supported accommodation aims to support people with disability in their journey to independence, but Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) can truly change someone’s life overnight. This article explores how SDA supports people with disability to increase their independent living skills and experience greater choice and control.
What is Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA)?
Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) refers to purpose-built housing that has been designed to meet the unique needs of people with disability. Funded by the NDIS, SDA homes can take the form of an apartment, house or unit, and include special features that support a person with disability to live more independently, such as bespoke floorplans, wider doorways and assistive technology.
Who is eligible for SDA?
NDIS participants who could be eligible for SDA housing are those who meet specific criteria with very high support needs and/or extreme functional impairment.
This is not a black and white set of parameters, but you should consider the following if you’re thinking about exploring whether SDA is right for you:
- You need more support than what your informal support system is currently providing
- You have explored other avenues like home modifications and found them to be insufficient for your needs
- You have challenging behaviours that can put others at risk, or would be better supported through living with less people
How do you apply?
The process of applying for SDA funding can be complex and lengthy, but if you undertake a pre-planning meeting with an NDIS provider, like Activ, you’ll be ready and have all the required documentation that you need before your NDIS planning meeting.
This meeting can be your initial planning meeting, or a plan review meeting if you already have an NDIS plan. At this meeting you will need to demonstrate that you require the previously mentioned level of support. Your plan then needs to have a housing goal included so that you can explore your eligibility for SDA housing.
Collaboration needs to happen between your support coordinator and an occupational therapist, to develop an SDA-focused functional capacity assessment (FCA), which informs a report, written by specialist support coordinators, meeting the guidelines for SDA as set out by the NDIA. At Activ, we have a number of established relationships with specialist support coordination organisations, who are experts in developing these reports.
Once developed, the report is submitted to the NDIA’s SDA Panel for approval. Once the panel approves your housing plan, your support coordinator will connect you with an SDA and support services provider, like Activ.
How does SDA support independence?
We know that one of the biggest goals we all work towards at some stage in life, is moving out of the family home.
Modern and customisable, SDA homes have bespoke floor plans to suit the needs of people with disability, including things like wider door frames and wheelchair accessible bathrooms, and are fitted with assistive technology, enabling you to independently complete daily living tasks within your home.
SDA houses can offer you greater choice and control of where, how and who you live with, and will open doors for you to achieve greater independence at home.
Finding an SDA provider
If you’ve decided that supported accommodation in Perth suits your requirements, then you might be ready to explore SDA housing. There are many moving parts that need to come together before being approved for SDA housing.
At Activ, WA’s largest disability services provider, we have a range of disability accommodation in WA, and we can support you along your SDA journey.
At the moment, we have several listings for Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) in Perth – contact us to find out more!