Media Release: Response to NDIS Needs Assessment Tools and Process

MEDIA RELEASE – 26 September 2025_updated

Fast Facts – NDIS Needs Assessment & Australian Autism Alliance Response

• Major NDIS change: The I-CAN Support Needs Assessment will become the primary way to determine participant support budgets aged 16+.
• Alliance acknowledges the partnership with the University of Melbourne and Centre for Disability Studies. The tool draws on the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) domains. The tool is part of a broader assessment process, which includes a questionnaire assessing personal and environmental factors, and there will be a staged implementation.
• Alliance stance: We recognise the Government’s move to trial a single tool across multiple disabilities. We are cautious as the I-CAN tool cannot be endorsed for Autistic participants 16 + until rigorous validation shows it can reliably capture the diversity of Autistic support needs.
• Alliance calls for 10 key steps as minimum standards: independent systems validation approach and co-design. This includes independent clinical verification at the start and end of the full process, accredited assessors, participant choice and safety, a guarantee of clear links between assessment results and budgets and co-design with Autistic people and supports. Any tool must be fit for person, as well as fit for purpose.

The Australian Autism: New NDIS Needs Assessment Tool and Process Must Be Validated and Co-Designed to Be “Fit for Person”

The Australian Autism Alliance (Alliance) notes the Government’s announcement of the partnership with the University of Melbourne and Centre for Disability Studies, to trial the I-CAN Support Needs Assessment tool as the tool to measure NDIS participant support needs aged16 and over. The tool draws on International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) domains, and is part of a broader needs assessment process including personal and environmental factors.

The Alliance stresses that endorsement cannot be given until there is rigorous, independent validation that the tool can reliably capture the diversity of Autistic support needs. We are cautious as there is currently no single validated tool in the world that can do so. Validation must apply to the design, testing, and implementation of both the tool and the process. There is also a need for transparency, and co-design with Autistic people, their families and representative organisations. This is to ensure this is not only fit for purpose but also fit for person.

The Alliance acknowledges assurances that lived experience informed the selection through a competitive procurement process and expects this included suitable Autistic representation. With the selection now made, we emphasise the need for more extensive involvement of Autistic people, families and representative organisations in all the next stages with NDIA and the I-CAN team.

We are pleased that the tool is intended to create a simpler, fairer, easier pathway, will be used by trained, accredited assessors and will be modified to be fit for purpose. We also strongly welcome that that the new framework will be introduced in stages and allow participants to provide real-time feedback. This we interpret to mean that the tool will also be rolled out in stages to particular cohorts after design, development, and testing. We particularly note that an assessment process grounded in evidence and lived experience, upholding the values of validity, fairness, and transparency, will be developed. We certainly welcome that this will be done with the disability community.

The Alliance recognises the Government’s intention to use one common tool to improve consistency across disabilities, with future tailoring or modules for specific groups. While I-CAN is stated to have been used with people with complex and mixed disabilities and undergone multiple iterations, its suitability for Autistic people remains unproven.

“This is an important opportunity to get it right,” said Jenny Karavolos, Co-Chair of the Australian Autism Alliance. “A person-centred, rights-based approach to needs assessment could help many Autistic people access the supports they need. But that will only happen if the NDIA takes a genuine systems approach – one that independently verifies the tool and validates the entire process, not just the tool itself. There must also be clear traceability from assessment outcomes through to budgets, so participants have transparency and or professional reports to be included and hold weight.”

“Consistency must never come at the expense of individual needs. Any tool and process must be fit for person as well as fit for purpose” continued Ms Karavolos.

The Alliance highlights several concerns with I-CAN as currently described: it is time-intensive, heavily reliant on assessor skill, and primarily based on self-report. Clinical verification must happen at the start and end of the process to ensure accuracy and fairness. Without strong safeguards, it risks disadvantaging Autistic people, particularly those who cannot complete a three-hour interview or whose support needs are subtle but significant.

“We know from experience that tools like this can work, but only when they are applied with care, transparency and the right expertise,” Ms Karavolos said. “If the Government gets this right, the new assessment process can be fairer, simpler, and more consistent. If not, it risks undermining trust and leaving people worse off.”

The Alliance is calling for these 10 key steps as a minimum standard to validate the tool is appropriate for autism and for a safe, fair rollout:

1. Co-design from the outset with Autistic people, their families and representative organisations.
2. Independent clinical verification of both the tool and the broader process to ensure accuracy, fairness, and clinical validity. This is both before rollout and during implementation.
3. No mandatory application of the tool until the combined system – including personal and environmental questionnaires and targeted assessments – has had a phased pilot and validation so it is fit for person, as well as fit for purpose.
4. Dry runs using diverse personas and a large, diverse Autistic sample (including people with complex communication needs, high masking, high support/dependent, co-occurring conditions and intersectional priorities) before any mandatory use.
5. Accredited assessors with appropriate skills and expertise – trauma-informed, culturally competent, and a deep understanding of autism and other disabilities.
6. Professional reports recognised, from trusted clinicians, are able to be incorporated if needed, and to be given genuine weight in decisions.
7. Final assessment reports verified by participants and/or their supporters before budgets are set.
8. Accessible processes, including for supported decision-making and complex communication needs, participant right to choose/change assessor, bring a trusted person to assessments, safe environment options and protocols with alternatives to home visits.
9. Transparency and traceability between assessment findings and the budget allocated, with safeguards and independent oversight.
10. Ongoing public reporting on lessons from early implementation.

We will continue to engage with government and will provide further comment as the tool and process evolve.

“This is people’s lives and that’s why we are insisting on safeguards now, so we can move forward together and get it right, which we know is important to government too” Ms Karavolos said. “We stand ready to work with government and our community to ensure the new process safeguards Autistic people’s rights, genuinely delivers better outcomes and Autistic people are not left worse off.”

About the Australian Autism Alliance:

We are the national peak body furthering the rights and interests of Autistic people across the life span, their parents and carers, and the autism community in Australia. The members represent a cohesive national network of key organisations with a diverse focus on autism. For more information about Australian Autism Alliance go to: australianautismalliance.org.au  and connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

Media enquiries:

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact: Jenny Karavolos, Australian Autism Alliance, Co-Chair  jenkaravolos@outlook.com | chair@australianautismalliance.org.au

 What is I-CAN?

• Name: Instrument for Classification and Assessment of Support Needs (I-CAN) Version 6
• Developer: University of Melbourne and the Centre for Disability Studies
• Purpose: Measures the type, frequency, and intensity of support a person with disability needs across twelve life domains
• Domains include: Mobility, communication, self-care, interpersonal relationships, mental and physical health, behaviours of concern, learning, and community life
• Format: Structured, three-hour interview with an accredited assessor
• Rollout: Planned for NDIS participants aged 16+ from mid-2026, with targeted assessments for people with complex needs
• Goal: Replace line-by-line planning with a single, more consistent way to calculate participant budgets.