Our reference: FOI 24/25-0952
GPO Box 700
Canberra ACT 2601
1800 800 110
13 May 2025
ndis.gov.au
Gemma Jones
By email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx Dear Gemma Jones
Freedom of Information request — Notification of Decision
Thank you for your correspondence of 3 February 2025, in which you requested access to
documents held by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), under the
Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).
The purpose of this letter is to provide you with a decision on your request.
Scope of your request
You have requested access to the following documents:
“I am requesting access under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act) to the
following documents:
•
Any documents that define or provide guidance on the key indicators for
determining the provision of Registered Nursing Care to participants, rather than
the delegation of care to high-intensity support workers.
•
The TAB internal guidelines for determining eligibility and need for Registered
Nursing Care under the NDIS.
•
The Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) relevant to the assessment and
determination of Registered Nursing Care for participants…”
For ease of reference, I have numbered the parts of your scope as follows:
1. Any documents that define or provide guidance on the key indicators for determining
the provision of Registered Nursing Care to participants, rather than the delegation of
care to high-intensity support workers.
1
2. The TAB internal guidelines for determining eligibility and need for Registered
Nursing Care under the NDIS.
3. The Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) relevant to the assessment and
determination of Registered Nursing Care for participants
Processing period
The FOI Act provides 30 calendar days for the processing of an FOI request after it is
received. As your valid FOI request was received on 3 February 2025, the original due date
for your request was 5 March 2025.
On 17 February 2025, we requested your agreement to a 30-day extension of time under
section 15AA of the FOI Act. However, we did not receive a response from you.
We have been experiencing processing delays and were not able to provide you with our
decision by the due date. Consequently, we are deemed to have refused your application
under section 15AC of the FOI Act. I sincerely apologise for the delay in releasing this
decision to you and thank you for your patience while we progressed your application.
We have continued processing your request. In the interests of not causing any further
delays, I have decided not to apply for an extension to the processing period from the Office
of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) under section 15AC of the FOI Act.
Therefore, internal review of this decision is not an option. However, you retain the right to
request an external review with the OAIC. Please see
Attachment B for more information
about your rights of review.
Decision on access to documents
I am authorised to make decisions under section 23(1) of the FOI Act. My decision on your
request and the reasons for my decision are set out below.
The documents were identified by consulting with relevant staff in NDIA’s Service Guidance
Branch and Technical Advice and Practice Improvement Branch (TAPIB) who conducted
searches of NDIA’s systems, using all reasonable search terms to identify documents
relevant to the scope of this request.
Part 1 of your request seeks access to the following:
“…1. Any documents that define or provide guidance on the key indicators for
determining the provision of Registered Nursing Care to participants, rather than the
2
delegation of care to high-intensity support workers…”
Upon review, I have identified 2 documents that fall within the scope of this part of your
request.
I have decided to grant access to these 2 documents in full.
Please note that while I have provided PDF versions of Documents 1 and 2, these
documents are also publicly accessible and can be retrieved via the following links:
•
Our Guidelines – Disability-related health supports
•
Our Guidelines – Wound and pressure care supports
In reaching my decision, I took the following into account:
• your correspondence outlining the scope of your request
• the nature and content of the information falling within the scope of your request
• the FOI Act
• the FOI Guidelines published under section 93A of the FOI Act and
• consultation with relevant NDIA staff.
The FOI Act states that, in making a decision on a request, I must consider the FOI
Guidelines issued by the Information Commissioner pursuant to section 93A of the FOI Act.
According to the FOI Guidelines, the FOI Act serves as the legislative foundation for open
government, facilitating and promoting public access to information. I believe that providing
access to these documents aligns with the objects of the FOI Act, such as fostering better-
informed decision-making and enhancing analysis, discussion, commentary, and review of
information held by the government.
Reasons for decision
Refuse a request for access (section 24A)
Under the FOI Act, a person has a right to be given access to documents of an agency.
However, the right of access is subject to limitations, including grounds for refusal of access.
Section 24A of the FOI Act provides that an agency may refuse a request for access to a
document if all reasonable steps have been taken to find the document and the agency is
satisfied that the document cannot be found or does not exist.
3
Parts 2 and 3 of your request seek access to the following:
“…2. The TAB internal guidelines for determining eligibility and need for Registered
Nursing Care under the NDIS.
3. The Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) relevant to the assessment and
determination of Registered Nursing Care for participants…”
We conducted search consultations with the Technical Advice and Practice Improvement
Branch (TAPIB) for these parts of your request and these searches returned 6 documents.
Having considered the scope and the context around these parts of your request, specifically
the assessment or determining eligibility and need for Registered Nursing Care for
participants, I have reviewed the documents and determined that these six documents do
not specifically meet the criteria of your request. Therefore, I have concluded that these
documents fall outside the scope.
I am therefore satisfied that sufficient searches were performed, and all reasonable steps
have been taken to locate documents within the scope of these parts of your request. I
conclude that the documents cannot be found or do not exist. I have, therefore, decided to
refuse access to the information in accordance with section 24A(1)(b) of the FOI Act.
Rights of review
Your rights to seek a review of my decision, or lodge a complaint, are set out at
Attachment A.
Should you have any enquiries concerning this matter, please do not hesitate to contact me
by email at
xxx@xxxx.xxx.xx.
Yours sincerely
Ramya (RMO260)
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Information Release, Privacy and Legal Operations Branch
Reviews and Information Release Division
4
Attachment A
Schedule of Documents for FOI 24/25-1218
Document
Page
Description
Access Decision
number
number
Our Guidelines – Disability-related health supports – Version 6.0
FULL ACCESS
1
1-17
Date approved: 5 December 2024
Our Guidelines – Wound and pressure care supports – Version 5.0
FULL ACCESS
2
18-25
Date approved: 15 November 2024
1
Attachment B
Your review rights
As this matter was a deemed refusal, internal review of this decision is not an option.
However, if you have concern with any aspect of this decision, please contact the NDIA FOI
team by email
xxx@xxxx.xxx.xx or by post:
Freedom of Information Section
Information Release, Privacy and Legal Operations Branch
Reviews and Information Release Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
GPO Box 700
CANBERRA ACT 2601
Review by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
The FOI Act gives you the right to apply to the Office of the Australian Information
Commissioner (OAIC) to seek a review of this decision.
If you wish to have the decision reviewed by the OAIC, you may apply for the review, in
writing, or by using the online merits review form available on the OAIC’s website at
www.oaic.gov.au, within 60 days of receipt of this letter.
Applications for review can be lodged with the OAIC in the following ways:
Online:
www.oaic.gov.au
Post:
GPO Box 5218, Sydney NSW 2001
Email:
xxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx
Phone:
1300 363 992 (local call charge)
Complaints to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner or the
Commonwealth Ombudsman
You may complain to either the Commonwealth Ombudsman or the OAIC about actions
taken by the NDIA in relation to your request. The Ombudsman will consult with the OAIC
before investigating a complaint about the handling of an FOI request.
1
Your complaint to the OAIC can be directed to the contact details identified above. Your
complaint to the Ombudsman can be directed to:
Phone:
1300 362 072 (local call charge)
Email:
xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Your complaint should be in writing and should set out the grounds on which it is considered
that the actions taken in relation to the request should be investigated.
2
