How to Get Referrals From Support Coordinators as an Independent NDIS Provider (2026)
Updated 14 September 2026.
Before you read further, here’s the good news: you do not necessarily need a paid marketing budget to be considered by support coordinators. This guide is about support coordinator referrals specifically, what coordinators check before they refer someone to you, and how to make that easier, not the wider marketing question. Participants always make the final decision about who supports them; a coordinator’s job is to help them find and weigh up suitable options. For the broader marketing side, see our other guide, how to get more NDIS clients.
Quick answer: Being considered by support coordinators usually comes down to two practical things: being easy to check, and easy to book. Keep your NDIS Worker Screening Check, ABN, insurance and rate in one note. If you’re unregistered, generally only self-managed and plan-managed participants can use you. Reply the same day, and sign a service agreement early.
What does a support coordinator actually do?
In simple terms, a support coordinator helps a participant put their NDIS plan into action. The NDIS describes the role as helping the participant “use your plan effectively”, including helping them find, weigh up and connect with providers who suit their needs, understand provider pricing, and explore new providers when things change.
Importantly, the participant (or their nominee) always makes the final decision about who they work with. An NDIS support coordinator’s job is to make that decision easier and better informed, not to make it for them, and not to commit them to a provider without their agreement.
| Level | Name |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | Support Connection |
| Level 2 | Support Coordination |
| Level 3 | Specialist Support Coordination |
Source: NDIS, What is a support coordinator, current as of 1 July 2026.
Support coordinators can be registered or unregistered providers, as the NDIS notes. Either way, their guide describes their role as helping participants “connect with NDIS providers”. The participant still chooses who they go with.
Why do support coordinators refer to independent providers?
The scale of the NDIS market gives some useful context, even though it doesn’t prove why any individual coordinator refers to any individual provider. As at 30 June 2026, there were 782,013 active participants and 280,258 active providers. Of those providers, 210,956 received plan-managed payments and 10,842 received NDIA-managed payments. Noting these categories can overlap, since many providers work across more than one funding type, so the figures alone don’t show how often coordinators choose independent providers specifically.
What the numbers do confirm is that plan-managed and self-managed participants make up the large majority of the market, and both groups can choose to use unregistered (independent) providers. That’s the practical reason independent providers have a genuine path to referrals, not because the statistics themselves push coordinators in that direction.
Source: NDIS National Dashboard and Quarterly Report Q4 2025-26, as at 30 June 2026.
Whether you can be used also depends on how a participant’s funding is managed. There are three ways:
- Self-managed: the participant, or their nominee, pays providers and claims from the NDIS themselves.
- Plan-managed: a registered plan manager pays providers on the participant’s behalf.
- NDIA-managed: the NDIA pays registered providers directly. You may also see this called “agency-managed”. This article uses “NDIA-managed” throughout.
| Funding type | Can use an unregistered provider? |
|---|---|
| Self-managed | Yes. |
| Plan-managed | Yes. “you can choose providers who are registered or unregistered.” |
| NDIA-managed | No. “you can’t use unregistered providers for NDIS support you have NDIA-managed funding for.” |
Source: NDIS, What is plan-managed funding (9 June 2026) and What is NDIA-managed funding (3 June 2026).
If you’re unregistered, you can’t be used for the NDIA-managed part of a participant’s plan, however good the fit, and current and upcoming registration and enrolment reforms may affect this further for some provider categories over the next few years (more on this below). Coordinators check this early, so put “self-managed and plan-managed” on your profile and in every note you send.
What do support coordinators check before they refer you?
Here’s what support coordinators typically look for in a provider before they’ll refer someone to you: are you real, cleared to work, appropriately covered, and priced within reach? Most of this sits on a public register. The table below is designed to be quick to scan. It shows what they check, why it matters, what to have ready, and where they can confirm it.
| What they check | Why it matters to them | What to have ready | Where they can confirm it |
|---|---|---|---|
| NDIS Worker Screening Check | Registered providers must ensure key personnel, and workers in risk-assessed roles, hold a current clearance, not every worker at a registered provider automatically needs one. Requirements can depend on the role, the type of support, and the state or territory the check is issued in. Unregistered providers aren’t required to hold one, but coordinators or participants may still ask. | Your check number and expiry date, if you hold one. In NSW, the NDIS Worker Check costs $112 and is valid for 5 years. | Service NSW NDIS Worker Check. Participants and nominees can request access to the NDIS Worker Screening Database. |
| ABN | Shows you’re a real sole trader and whether you charge GST. | Your ABN, active, in the name on your ID. | ABN Lookup shows if an ABN is active or cancelled, and its GST status. |
| Working With Children Check (for child-related work) | If your role involves direct, often unsupervised contact with a participant under 18, you’ll generally need a current WWCC. This isn’t automatic just because a participant happens to be under 18. It depends on the nature of the work, and the check is a state or territory requirement rather than an NDIS-specific one. | Your WWCC number and expiry. In NSW it costs $112 for paid workers, lasts 5 years, and holders are continuously monitored. | Service NSW Working With Children Check. |
| Registration or professional membership (allied health) | Qualification and registration requirements vary by profession. Occupational therapists, physiotherapists, podiatrists and psychologists must be registered with Ahpra to practise. Speech pathologists and dietitians aren’t Ahpra-regulated. The recognised credentials are membership/certification with Speech Pathology Australia or Dietitians Australia (Accredited Practising Dietitian) instead. | Your Ahpra registration number, or your relevant professional body membership or certification details. | Ahpra Register of practitioners; the relevant professional body for speech pathologists and dietitians. |
| Qualifications or experience (self-reported on Solotude) | Shows you can do support work. It isn’t a universal NDIS legal qualification requirement, and allied health professions instead rely on the registration/membership above. | A Certificate III in Individual Support or higher, or at least 12 months of documented support work experience. | Your training provider or your references. On Solotude, list it on your profile, where it shows as self-reported. See the Solotude FAQ. |
| Insurance certificates of currency | Coordinators and participants commonly ask to see current insurance, even though it isn’t a universal statutory NDIS requirement for every provider. It’s good practice to have ready where relevant or when requested. | Professional indemnity and public liability certificates of currency, with current dates. | Your insurer issues them. On Solotude, insurance is self-reported, so have your certificates ready when a coordinator asks. See the Verification Policy. |
| Your rate against the 2026-27 price limit (where one applies) | Registered providers can’t charge more than the relevant NDIS price limit for an item; unregistered providers can choose to charge above or below it. The often-quoted $73.58 figure is the 2026-27 national price limit for one specific line item, standard weekday daytime self-care support (01_011_0107_1_1), not a universal rate for every service. | Your hourly rate for each item you deliver, checked against the relevant line item in the pricing schedule. | NDIS Pricing Arrangements 2026-27; NDIS, What is a provider. |
| Availability by day and suburb | They need someone who can take the shift, where the participant lives. | Your days, times, and the suburbs you cover. | Your Solotude profile shows availability by day and time, and the suburbs and areas you cover. |
| Response time | Coordinators often contact more than one provider for the same shift. A prompt, clear response makes it easier for a coordinator to present your service as a suitable option. | A same-day reply habit. | Only by contacting you. On Solotude you’re notified when a job is posted in your profession and service area. |
Sources: linked in each row. Price limit: NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits 2026-27, v1.2, 22 July 2026. Screening: NDIS Commission worker-screening guidance for registered providers.
There’s no need to fix everything today. Start with the one row where you’d stumble if a coordinator contacts you right now. If you’re not sure which rows apply to you, read our guide on which checks an independent support worker needs.
What should you send a support coordinator?
When you reach out to a support coordinator, send one short capability note, a plain paragraph covering who you are, where you work, and when you’re free. Include the funding types you take, the checks you hold, and your rate. Keep it under about 90 words so it’s easy to read between calls and easy to forward as-is.
The example below is fictional and for illustration only. It is not a real provider, participant or testimonial:
Hi Sam,
I’m Priya Nair, an independent support worker and sole trader (ABN active). I cover Parramatta, Granville, Auburn and Lidcombe. I’m free Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, 8am to 4pm. I take self-managed and plan-managed participants. My NDIS Worker Check and Working With Children Check expire March 2030. My public liability and professional indemnity insurance are current. My rate is $70 an hour, weekday daytime. I have over three years’ experience supporting adults with intellectual disability, and hold a Certificate III in Individual Support.
Priya, 04XX XXX XXX.
Paste it as text, not as a file, and link to your profile so a coordinator can check it. Update the expiry dates the day they change.
How do you reach support coordinators without causing an inconvenience?
Most support coordinators are busy and get a lot of cold messages. Go where they already are and make their job easier. The approaches below tend to land. They’re short, name an area, and meet a need the coordinator currently has. Try one or two, not all five.
- LinkedIn: search “support coordinator” plus your suburb. Follow them, add a useful comment on their posts now and then, and send a note once.
- Local networks: ask providers you already know which coordinators they work with. Simply ask for a name, not a favour to contact them on your behalf.
- Job posts: coordinators post jobs saying what support they need, where, and when. When you see one in your area, reply the same day with your note.
- One follow-up: if you hear nothing, follow up once, about a week later. A second silence usually means it’s not the right fit right now. There’s no need to chase further.
- A current profile: anyone who searches your suburb should be able to see your current free days so they can contact you.
How do you keep a referral once you have it?
Keep it by being boring in the best way. Sign a service agreement, reply within the day, flag any change to your availability, and invoice cleanly. Coordinators tend to refer again to providers who don’t create extra work for them.
- Service agreement first. Put it in writing before the first shift. See our guide on what to put in an NDIS service agreement.
- Reply within the day. Even if the answer is “I’ll confirm tomorrow.”
- Tell them when things change. New days off, a new suburb, a full book. They should hear it from you first.
- Stay in the agreed channel. Follow the participant’s consent, communication preferences and agreed communication channels, and protect their privacy.
- Invoice cleanly. From 1 December 2026, claims must be made within 90 days of the support being delivered. Down from 2 years, per the Department of Health provider FAQ. Timely, accurate invoicing helps whoever is responsible for submitting the claim (you, a plan manager, or the NDIA) meet that window.
What’s changing for support coordination in 2026 and 2028?
Support coordination itself isn’t changing this year. On 7 September 2026, the Department of Health opened consultation on a proposed new commissioned NDIS Support Coordination and Connection service. Subject to that consultation, it’s intended to start 1 July 2028 and would “replace the way NDIS participants currently receive support coordination services”, but only early ideas exist so far, and the final design, scope and operational detail are still being worked through. Consultation closes 2 October 2026.
What it means for you: coordinators aren’t going anywhere this year. The ones referring today are the ones worth knowing. If you want a say in the reform, the consultation is open now.
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| 1 December 2026 | Claims must be made within 90 days of service delivery. |
| 1 February 2027 | Unspent funds from the previous plan won’t roll over. |
| 1 July 2027 | Expanded mandatory registration rollout begins. |
| 1 July 2028 | New support coordination and connection commissioned service is proposed to begin (design not yet finalised). |
Source: NDIS news, 7 September 2026 and the consultation page; Department of Health reform timeline, July 2026. The 1 July 2028 date and service design reflect the current proposal under consultation and may change.
Where does Solotude fit in?
Solotude is a directory and connection platform, not a booking or payment platform. It doesn’t arrange, supervise or guarantee referrals. Support coordinators can search and post jobs on Solotude for free. Your profile shows your suburbs, your availability by day and time, your professions and your rates: it’s one place to present your profile, display your availability, and make the initial connection. What happens after that, service agreements, bookings and payments, is between you and the participant.
The Verified badge has a plain meaning: “It means a member of the Solotude team has checked the provider’s identity, ABN and NDIS Commission compliance record, plus Ahpra or NDIS registration where their profession requires it.” As a provider, you pay a flat weekly subscription and keep 100% of what you earn. See Solotude pricing.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to be a registered NDIS provider to get support coordinator referrals?
No. Self-managed and plan-managed participants can hire unregistered providers, per the NDIS. NDIA-managed participants generally can’t. Some supports, such as behaviour support and SDA, need a registered provider regardless of how the funding is managed.
Can a support coordinator refer an NDIA-managed participant to me?
Generally, no. Unregistered providers can’t deliver supports paid from NDIA-managed funding, because that funding type requires a registered provider. The NDIS says “you can’t use unregistered providers for NDIS support you have NDIA-managed funding for.” Confirm how a participant’s funding is managed on your first call.
Should I pay a support coordinator for referrals?
No. You should never offer a support coordinator a referral commission, payment, gift or any other financial incentive. This raises a conflict-of-interest concern under NDIS provider obligations, and coordinators are expected to recommend what suits the participant, not the provider paying the most. Be wary of anyone who asks, and treat it as a red flag.
How often should I follow up?
Once, about a week after your first note. If they don’t reply after that, let it be. Keep your profile current so they can find you when a need comes up.
What if a coordinator asks for a discount below my rate?
You set your rate. Solotude doesn’t set rates or take a cut. Unregistered providers “can choose to charge above or below the price limits,” per the NDIS. Decide your floor before the call, say it plainly, and check your own numbers with your adviser.
Where do coordinators find independent providers?
Mostly through directories, word of mouth, and their own networks. On Solotude, coordinators search for free and post jobs. Your profile shows your professions, the suburbs you cover, when you’re free by day and time, and your rates.
Ready to be a provider support coordinators can actually consider for support coordinator referrals? Solotude gives you one place to present your profile, show your availability, and make the initial connection with coordinators and participants across Greater Sydney, you keep 100% of what you earn. Solotude doesn’t guarantee referrals and doesn’t handle bookings or payments; being easy to check and easy to book is still on you.
Got questions? Contact us via solotude.com.au/contact.