NDIS goals
NDIS goals are the outcomes a participant wants to achieve, recorded in their NDIS plan as the participant's statement of goals and aspirations. The participant prepares the statement, and the NDIA must be satisfied that each funded support will help the participant pursue those goals. Goals can be changed at any time.
Also called: NDIS plan goals, statement of goals and aspirations, participant goals, NDIS goal setting
Key takeaways
- Every NDIS plan must include a statement of goals and aspirations prepared by the participant.
- A funded support must help the participant pursue their goals, as one of the reasonable and necessary criteria in section 34 of the NDIS Act.
- A participant can give the NDIA a changed statement of goals at any time, and must receive the varied plan within 7 days.
- Changing goals doesn't change funding by itself; a plan variation or reassessment may also be needed.
- Providers support goals and record progress against them in notes and reports used at reassessment.
What are NDIS goals?
NDIS goals are the things a participant wants to achieve, written into their NDIS plan in their own words as the participant's statement of goals and aspirations. The NDIS Act requires every plan to include this statement, and the NDIA must consider it when deciding which supports to fund. Goals don't set a dollar amount on their own, but supports must help the participant pursue them.
Under the NDIS Act (sections 33 and 32D), the statement is prepared by the participant and covers two things:
- The participant's goals, objectives and aspirations.
- The context of their life: living arrangements, informal and community supports, and social and economic participation.
The statement doesn't have to be written by the participant. If they share it another way, such as by talking it through, the NDIA must record it in writing. The Act also notes that the NDIA might help a participant clarify their goals.
How goals are used in NDIS planning
Goals matter because of the reasonable and necessary test. Before funding a support, the NDIA must be satisfied that it meets every criterion in section 34 of the Act, and one of them is that the support will assist the participant to pursue the goals, objectives and aspirations in their statement. The others include that the support relates to the participant's disability, represents value for money, and is likely to be effective and beneficial.
In practice, that means:
- Goals shape the plan conversation. The planner or local area coordinator asks what the participant wants to do and what gets in the way.
- Supports are linked to goals. A request for therapy, support work or equipment is stronger when it clearly helps with a stated goal.
- Progress is reported against goals. Providers' reports and progress notes give the NDIA evidence at the next reassessment.
- Goals don't guarantee funding. A goal alone isn't enough; the support must also meet the other criteria.
Under new framework plans, which start rolling out from 1 April 2027, every plan still includes the statement of goals and aspirations, and the support needs assessment asks about the participant's goals as well as their daily support needs (support needs assessment fact sheet).
NDIS goals examples
Good goals are specific to the person and describe an outcome rather than a service. The table shows fictional examples across common life areas, with a weaker version for comparison.
| Life area | Stronger goal (fictional) | Weaker version |
|---|---|---|
| Daily living | "I want to cook three simple meals a week for myself." | "Get help with meals." |
| Home | "I want to move out of my parents' home and live with friends within two years." | "Find housing." |
| Health and wellbeing | "I want to walk to the shops without needing to stop and rest." | "Physio." |
| Learning | "I want to finish my TAFE certificate in horticulture." | "Study." |
| Work | "I want a part-time job in retail." | "Employment support." |
| Social and community | "I want to join a local football club and go to training each week." | "Community access." |
| Relationships | "I want to catch the bus to visit my brother on my own." | "Transport." |
The weaker versions name a support type. The stronger versions say what will be different in the person's life, which makes it easier to show which supports help and to measure progress.
- Use the participant's own words
- Describe what will be different in their life, not a support type
- Make it specific enough to tell when it has been reached
- Link it to a life area such as daily living, home, work or community
- Break bigger goals into steps that supports can work on
- Keep the list short so each goal can be linked to supports
Changing your NDIS goals
Goals can change at any time. Under section 47 of the NDIS Act, a participant may give the NDIA a changed version of their statement of goals and aspirations whenever they like. The plan is then taken to be varied to include the new statement, and the NDIA must give the participant a copy of the varied plan within 7 days.
The NDIA can't rewrite your goals for you: the Act's general power to vary a plan expressly excludes the statement of goals and aspirations. But changing your goals doesn't automatically change your funding. If new goals need different supports, you can also:
- Ask for a plan variation — the NDIA must decide, or tell you it needs more time, within 21 days of receiving the request.
- Ask for a plan reassessment if your support needs have changed significantly — the NDIA has 90 days to decide whether to reassess.
| What you want to change | How | Timeframe in the NDIS Act |
|---|---|---|
| Your goals only | Give the NDIA a changed statement of goals and aspirations | Plan treated as varied; copy within 7 days |
| Supports or funding, small change | Request a plan variation | Decision, or notice that more time is needed, within 21 days |
| Supports after a significant change in needs | Request a plan reassessment | Decision on whether to reassess within 90 days |
Who can help set and review goals
The statement belongs to the participant, but they don't have to write it alone. People who commonly help include a local area coordinator or NDIA planner during the planning conversation, a support coordinator when goals change mid-plan, family members, a nominee, an advocate, and providers who know the person's day-to-day life. Where a participant needs help to make decisions, supported decision-making means helping them work out and express their own goals rather than choosing goals for them.
Some participants find it easier to separate goals by timeframe:
- Short-term goals that can realistically be reached within the current plan, such as learning one bus route.
- Longer-term goals or aspirations that may take several plans, such as moving out of home or finding steady work.
The Act doesn't require goals to be split this way, but doing so helps show which supports are needed now and which may be needed later.
Goals at plan reassessment
When a plan is due to be reassessed, the NDIA looks at how the current plan has worked. Evidence that ties supports to goals makes that conversation easier. Useful evidence includes provider progress summaries, therapy reports showing what changed, the participant's own view of what worked and what didn't, and any goals that were reached or dropped and why. Bring an updated goals statement to the reassessment if your goals have moved on.
What providers should do with participant goals
Providers don't set NDIS goals, but they help participants work towards them and produce much of the evidence that shows progress. The NDIA's record-keeping guidance describes case notes as outlining activities and how they relate to the support item and the participant's goals. For registered providers, the NDIS Practice Standards expect support plans to reflect the participant's goals and progress towards them to be reviewed with the participant.
- 1Record the goal in the participant's wordsCopy it from the participant's plan and confirm it with them.
- 2Break it into observable stepsAgree small steps workers can see happen on a shift.
- 3Link notes to the goalRecord the step worked on and the level of support needed.
- 4Summarise progress regularlyReview trends with the participant and adjust the support plan.
- 5Share evidence before reassessmentGive the participant a progress summary they can use with the NDIA.
Linking each progress note to the goal it worked on, the step reached and the level of support needed turns daily records into evidence for the next plan. The free NDIS progress note writer produces goal-linked notes in that format.
Common mistakes with NDIS goals
- Writing a support instead of a goal. "More support worker hours" is a means, not an outcome.
- Goals in someone else's words. The statement belongs to the participant; families and providers can help, but shouldn't replace the participant's voice.
- Too many vague goals. A few clear goals are easier to link to supports and track.
- Assuming a goal guarantees funding. The support must also meet the other reasonable and necessary criteria.
- Waiting for a reassessment to update goals. You can give the NDIA a changed statement at any time.
- Every provider note ticking every goal. Only record a goal when the shift genuinely worked on it.
- Every plan includes the goals statement
- Changing supports after goals change
- Supports built around the participant's goals
- Supports must help pursue the goals
- Record progress towards goals
- Often helps participants describe their goals
Example
Illustrative example (fictional). Priya, 22, tells her local area coordinator that her goal is "to get a part-time job and travel to it on my own". That sentence becomes part of her statement of goals and aspirations, along with a note that she lives with her parents and her sister drives her most places.
When the NDIA considers her plan, it funds capacity-building supports that help with the goal: travel training with a support worker and some employment-related support. Her support worker's progress notes record which step of the bus route Priya managed on each shift and how much prompting she needed.
Six months later Priya has a job and decides her new goal is to move into a share house. She gives the NDIA an updated statement of goals, and receives a copy of her varied plan within a week. Because the new goal may need different supports, she also asks her support coordinator about requesting a plan variation.
Frequently asked questions
What are goals in an NDIS plan?
Goals are what a participant wants to achieve, recorded in their plan as the statement of goals and aspirations. The participant prepares it, and it also describes their living arrangements, informal supports and social and economic participation. Funded supports must help them pursue these goals.
What are some examples of NDIS goals?
Examples include "I want to cook three simple meals a week", "I want to catch the bus to TAFE on my own", "I want a part-time job in retail" or "I want to join a local football club". Strong goals describe an outcome in the participant's words, not a type of support.
Can I change my NDIS goals?
Yes. Under section 47 of the NDIS Act you can give the NDIA a changed statement of goals and aspirations at any time. Your plan is taken to be varied to include it, and the NDIA must send you a copy of the varied plan within 7 days.
Does changing my NDIS goals change my funding?
Not automatically. Updating your goals varies the goals statement only. If your new goals need different supports, you can ask for a plan variation, or a plan reassessment if your support needs have changed significantly.
Why are goals important in the NDIS?
One of the reasonable and necessary criteria in the NDIS Act is that a support will help the participant pursue the goals in their plan. Clear goals help show why a support is needed and give a way to measure progress at the next reassessment.
Do providers have to work towards NDIS goals?
Providers deliver supports that help participants pursue their goals. The NDIA's record-keeping guidance links case notes to the participant's goals, and registered providers are expected under the NDIS Practice Standards to plan supports around goals and review progress with the participant.
Related terms
- Local Area Coordinator (LAC)A Local Area Coordinator (LAC) is a worker from an NDIA partner organisation who helps people with disability aged 9 to 64 understand and apply for the NDIS, prepare for planning, use their plan and find community and mainstream services. LACs are funded by the NDIA, not a plan, and can't approve funding.
- NDIS planAn NDIS plan is the document the NDIA approves with a participant that sets out their goals and the funding the NDIS will provide for disability supports. It splits the funding into support budgets, says how it is managed and released in funding periods, and says when the plan will be reassessed.
- New framework planA new framework plan is the type of NDIS plan introduced by the 2024 NDIS Act amendments. The NDIA works out a reasonable and necessary budget from a standard support needs assessment and budget method rules, made up mostly of flexible funding plus stated supports. The transition is due to start on 1 April 2027.
- Person-centred practicePerson-centred practice is a way of planning and delivering disability support around what matters to the person: their rights, choices, goals and preferences, rather than the provider's routines. The person directs their support as far as they can. It underpins the NDIS Practice Standards and the NDIS Code of Conduct.
- Plan reassessmentA plan reassessment is the NDIA's review of a participant's whole NDIS plan to decide whether it still meets their disability support needs, ending in a varied plan or a new one. It happens before the plan's reassessment date, or earlier if needs change significantly and for good. It was once called a plan review.
- Plan variationA plan variation is a change the NDIA makes to part of a participant's current NDIS plan without creating a new plan, for reasons the NDIS Act lists: fixing errors, changing plan management, funding periods or the reassessment date, or adding crisis or emergency funding.
- Progress notesProgress notes are the written record of an NDIS support: what was delivered, when and by whom, what the participant did and said, how they are progressing towards their goals and what happens next. Workers write them each shift, and providers rely on them as evidence of delivery.
- Reasonable and necessaryReasonable and necessary is the legal test in section 34 of the NDIS Act that the NDIA uses to decide which supports to fund in a participant's plan. A support must meet every criterion, including helping with goals, value for money, being effective and beneficial, and being most appropriately funded by the NDIS.
- Support coordinationSupport coordination is NDIS capacity building funding for a coordinator who helps a participant understand and use their plan, connect with providers and community services, and build skills to manage supports. It has three levels: support connection, coordination of supports and specialist support coordination.
Go deeper
Sources
- legislation.gov.au/C2013A00020/latest/text
- ndis.gov.au/providers/working-provider/reporting-and-recording-keeping/what-are-record-keeping-requirements
- legislation.gov.au/F2018N00041/latest/text
- consultations.health.gov.au/disability-and-carers-group/nfp-ndis-supports/user_uploads/ndis-new-framework-planning---support-needs-assessment---fact-sheet_final-2.pdf
General information, not legal, clinical or financial advice. NDIS rules change — check the official source before you act.
Suppora editorial team
NDIS operations and compliance writers
The Suppora editorial team writes practical guides for NDIS providers, checked against the NDIS Commission, NDIA and Fair Work sources cited on each page.
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