The planning meeting is one of the most important events in an NDIS participant's life. What gets agreed in that meeting shapes your funding for the next 12 months or longer. Going in unprepared is a common and costly mistake — and it's avoidable.
This applies to both first-time participants and people preparing for plan review meetings. The dynamics are similar. You sit with a planner or LAC, you talk through your situation, they ask questions, you answer, and a plan is built. The quality of your answers determines the quality of your plan.
Here's how to walk in ready.
What the planning meeting is
The meeting takes 60 to 90 minutes, sometimes longer for complex cases. The planner asks questions about:
Who you are and what your daily life looks like.
What your disability is and how it affects you.
What supports you currently have (formal and informal).
What goals you have for the next year and beyond.
What supports you think you need.
Based on the conversation and the evidence, the planner drafts a plan. The plan goes through approval (usually by NDIA delegates) and is sent to you. The funding in the plan reflects what was discussed.
The planner is not your enemy. They're not trying to deny you support. But they are working within budget pressures and policies, and they will sometimes accept the lower of two reasonable interpretations of your needs. Which is why preparation matters.
Who can come with you
Bring someone. Two heads are better than one in this kind of meeting.
Possible people:
A family member who knows your situation well.
A close friend or partner.
Your support coordinator, if you have one.
A formal advocate from a disability advocacy organisation (ADA Australia, QAI in Queensland).
A treating allied health professional (your OT, psychologist, or GP) — though they're rarely free to attend in person.
Pick someone who can speak up if you're getting talked over, prompt you on things you might forget, and witness what was agreed.
If you're nervous about the meeting, having someone there changes the dynamic in your favour.
Documents to bring
Bring evidence in physical or digital form:
Letters from health professionals describing your disability and its functional impact. The more recent and specific, the better.
Reports from any allied health professionals you've seen — OTs, physios, psychologists, speech pathologists, social workers.
Hospital discharge summaries if you've had recent admissions.
Specialist reports.
Documentation of incidents that show your support needs (e.g. falls, medication errors, behaviour incidents requiring response, hospitalisations).
A statement from your plan manager (if you've had a previous plan) showing how you've used your funding.
A list of current supports (paid and unpaid), including any community programs, allied health, support workers, family members.
You don't need to read every document at the meeting. Having them on hand lets you reference specifics when needed.
Documents to prepare in advance
A few things to write down before the meeting:
A "typical day" narrative. Walk through a typical day from when you wake up to when you go to sleep. Describe what happens, where you need help, what's hard, what takes time, what goes wrong without support. This is the single most useful document for a planning meeting. It gives the planner a concrete picture of your daily life.
A list of your goals. Both short-term (within the plan period) and long-term. Goals should be specific — "increase community participation by attending two activities per week" beats "be more involved in community."
A list of supports you want. Be specific about hours per week, what activities, what equipment, what therapy. "I need an additional 8 hours per week of personal care for evening showering and meal prep" beats "I need more support."
A list of things that aren't working. If you've had a previous plan, what wasn't enough? What didn't work? Where were the gaps? This is harder than the things-I-want list because it requires honesty about your struggles.
Questions to ask the planner. Things you want to clarify about the process, the funding, what's possible, what's not.
Type or write these out before the meeting. You'll be tired and stressed during the meeting itself; having things written down prevents you from forgetting.
What questions to expect
Planners use loose scripts. Common questions:
What does a typical day look like for you?
What are your goals for the next year?
What supports do you currently have? What's working? What's not?
What's the impact of your disability on your daily life?
How do you manage personal care, household tasks, mobility, communication?
What informal supports do you have — family, friends, community?
How do you imagine your life changing if you had more support?
These are conversation starters. Your job is to give detailed, specific answers. "I struggle with cooking" is too vague. "I can't operate the stove safely because I forget I've turned it on, and I can't use a knife without supervision because of my balance" is useful.
How to talk about your needs
The most common mistake at planning meetings is underplaying needs. People are conditioned to be resilient, capable, undemanding. They worry about seeming "needy" or being judged.
Drop that. The planner needs to understand the reality of your daily life. If your reality involves struggling, say so.
Specific framings that work:
"On a bad day, here's what happens..." — gives the planner the picture of when things are hardest.
"I don't think I'm asking for too much, but I can't manage X without help" — sets a tone of reasonable need.
"My family does Y now, but it's not sustainable because Z" — addresses informal support honestly.
"What I want for the next year is..." — anchors the conversation around your goals.
Don't say:
"I'm fine, I just need a bit of help" (when you're actually struggling significantly).
"I don't want to be a burden."
"My family doesn't mind helping" (when they actually do mind, or when it's not sustainable).
"Anything you can give me would be great" (this signals you don't know what you need, and the planner will likely give you less).
What to ask for
Be specific. "I need approximately 10 hours per week of community participation support including weekend activities" is better than "I want more community involvement."
Common things to ask for:
Specific hours of personal care, household support, community participation, transport.
Capacity Building funding for therapies (specify which type, frequency, duration).
Support coordination, especially if your situation is complex.
Plan management, if you don't currently have it.
Specific equipment or assistive technology (with quotes if possible).
Specialist supports if relevant (specialised support coordination, behaviour support).
Don't be afraid to ask for things that aren't being offered. Planners don't volunteer everything — they respond to what you bring up.
What to do after the meeting
The meeting ends. You wait. Plan approval can take weeks to a few months.
While you wait:
Write down what was discussed, what was agreed, what you asked for. Memory fades fast.
If you forgot to mention something important, contact your LAC or planner with the additional information. It's not too late if the plan hasn't been approved yet.
Tell your existing supports about the meeting outcome (or expected outcome).
When the plan arrives, read it carefully. Compare against what you discussed. If anything's wrong or missing, raise it immediately.
If the plan has less funding than you expected, you have three months to request internal review.
Frequently asked questions
Should I prepare a written submission?
A short written summary — your typical day, your goals, what you need — is helpful. Don't write a long document; planners won't read it.
What if the planner rushes me?
Slow them down. Say you have specific things you need to cover. The meeting is for you, not for the planner's schedule.
Can I record the meeting?
In most cases, yes — but it's good practice to ask. Recording helps if you need to refer back later.
What if I disagree with what the planner suggests?
Say so at the meeting. Disagreements at the meeting can be discussed and worked through. Disagreements raised after the plan is finalised require formal review.
If you have a planning meeting coming up and want help preparing, contact Seareal. We can talk through what you'll need and how to structure your case.