The NDIS Code of Conduct

What the Code is

The NDIS Code of Conduct is a set of behaviour standards created under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (Code of Conduct) Rules 2018 official source (opens in a new tab) . It specifies how providers and workers must behave when delivering supports and services to NDIS participants. The Code exists to promote safe and ethical practice across the scheme and to give participants confidence that the people working with them are held to a consistent standard.

The Code complements the NDIS Practice Standards, which set out what good service delivery looks like at an organisational level. Where the Practice Standards address systems and processes, the Code addresses the individual conduct of every person delivering supports.

Who it applies to

The Code applies to all NDIS providers and their workers, regardless of whether the provider is registered or unregistered official source (opens in a new tab) . This means that a sole trader support worker operating as an unregistered provider is bound by the Code in the same way as a large registered organisation.

The term “worker” is broad. It includes employees, contractors, subcontractors, volunteers, and students on placement who deliver NDIS supports. Providers are responsible for ensuring their workers understand and comply with the Code, and for taking action when a worker’s conduct falls short.

The elements of the Code

The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission publishes the Code of Conduct elements as follows official source (opens in a new tab) . Workers and providers must:

1. Act with respect for individual rights to freedom of expression, self-determination, and decision-making in accordance with applicable laws and conventions. This means supporting participants to make their own choices, respecting their autonomy, and not overriding a participant’s decisions except where required by law to prevent harm.

2. Respect the privacy of people with disability. Providers and workers must handle personal and sensitive information appropriately, only sharing it with consent or as permitted by law, and maintaining confidentiality in all communications.

3. Provide supports and services in a safe and competent manner with care and skill. Workers must have the knowledge and competence to deliver the supports they are engaged to provide, and must work within their skills and qualifications.

4. Act with integrity, honesty, and transparency. This includes being truthful in all dealings with participants, families, and the NDIA, and declaring any conflicts of interest.

5. Promptly take steps to raise and act on concerns about matters that might have an impact on the quality and safety of supports provided to people with disability. Workers must not stay silent when they identify a risk to a participant’s safety or wellbeing, whether the risk comes from their own practice, a colleague, or the environment.

6. Take all reasonable steps to prevent and respond to all forms of violence against, and exploitation, neglect, and abuse of, people with disability. This element includes recognising the signs of harm, acting to stop it, and reporting it through the appropriate channels.

7. Take all reasonable steps to prevent and respond to sexual misconduct. Providers and workers must maintain appropriate boundaries at all times and must report concerns about sexual misconduct involving a participant.

What it means in practice

Day to day, the Code shapes how workers engage with participants in every interaction. Greeting a participant by their preferred name, supporting them to make decisions about their own routine, keeping their personal information private, and reporting a safety concern without delay: each of these is an expression of a Code element in practice.

For providers, the Code creates organisational obligations. Providers must induct workers into the Code, have clear processes for raising and responding to concerns, and maintain records that demonstrate compliance. When a complaint is made, the Commission may ask the provider to show how it has embedded the Code into its operations.

The Code also shapes recruitment. A worker who has had a previous finding against them under the Code, or whose conduct raises a concern, may not pass worker screening. This is one reason providers should check screening status before a worker begins delivering supports.

Reporting a concern

Anyone can report a concern about a provider or worker to the NDIS Commission, including participants, families, carers, and other providers official source (opens in a new tab) . Reports can be made online, by phone, or in writing. The Commission will assess the concern and decide on the appropriate response, which can range from providing guidance to the provider through to formal investigation and compliance action.

Providers themselves have a duty to report certain events to the Commission under the reportable incidents framework. These include events involving serious injury to a participant, alleged or suspected abuse or neglect, and the death of a participant while receiving supports. Reporting obligations sit alongside, not instead of, any obligations to contact emergency services or the police when a participant is in danger.

If a worker has concerns about the conduct of a colleague or their employer, they can report directly to the Commission without going through their employer first. Whistle-blower protections apply in certain circumstances.