You cannot build the future NDIS without social workers

You cannot build the future NDIS without social workers

26 May 2026

The structural reforms announced by the Hon. Mark Butler MP at the National Press Club in April mark the most significant changes to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) since it began.

While action on fraud and system integrity is necessary, the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) is deeply concerned that the scale and speed of the proposed savings will have far-reaching consequences for participants, families, and the workforce that supports them.

Social workers are at the frontline of the NDIS, delivering critical services including functional assessments, early childhood supports, support coordination, psychosocial recovery supports, positive behaviour support, and complex supports for participants with high and complex needs. These are not “extras”, they are essential supports that protect participant safety, wellbeing and long-term outcomes.

The proposed reforms will significantly reshape access to the NDIS and available supports. They risk excluding social workers from assessment pathways and reducing our therapeutic role at a time when participants require more holistic and person-centred support, not less.

Social workers must continue to play a key role in identifying participant needs and delivering those supports.

The AASW is also concerned about proposed cuts to capacity building daily activity supports and social, civic and community participation supports from 1 October 2026. These supports help people to develop skills, stay connected, maintain independence, and fully participate in everyday life.

At the same time, the reforms will tighten access criteria, restrict plan reassessments, reduce plan flexibility, and create new mechanisms that allow funding reductions across broad categories of supports.

What can you do?

The Australian Government introduced the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 on 14 May. The timelines for consultation are extremely tight, and it is critical that government hears directly from the people most affected.

We urge NDIS participants, families, carers, social workers and providers to share their experiences and explain how these proposed changes will impact them.

You can provide feedback to government here before Friday 29 May 2026.

The future sustainability of the NDIS matters, and you cannot build that future without social workers.

Social workers are essential to the future of the NDIS.