Helensvale · Gold Coast
Home and living
Looking into specialist disability housing, or already have SDA funding and need the right support in place? We’re a registered SDA provider on the Gold Coast, and we’d rather start with a conversation than a brochure.
Where you're up to
People come to us at very different points in this. Any of these sound familiar?
Something needs to change at home and you've been told to look into SDA. You're not sure where to start.
The evidence is in, assessment is underway, and you need support in place in the meantime.
The housing side is sorted. Now you need people you trust delivering the support inside it.
How we help
SDA is the building. We’re the people who support you inside it, and alongside you while you work out whether it’s the right path.
Personal care, help around the house and overnight support, in SDA housing or anywhere else you live.
The SDA pathway takes months. We can put support in place today rather than leaving you waiting.
We'll tell you honestly where we can help, and where you'd be better off talking to someone else.
Talk it through
Tell us what’s happening and we’ll help you work out the next step. No forms before we’ve spoken, and an honest answer about whether we’re the right fit.
The short answer
Specialist Disability Accommodation, usually shortened to SDA, is purpose-built or specially modified housing funded through the NDIS. It pays for the home itself, not the support that happens inside it.
That’s the distinction most people find confusing, and it matters because the two are funded separately. SDA covers things like wider doorways, ceiling hoists, reinforced walls or backup power. The daily support someone receives in that home comes from a different part of their plan entirely.
SDA is assessed by the NDIA as part of your broader home and living supports. If you’re not sure whether it applies to your situation, that’s a completely normal place to be, and it’s worth talking through rather than guessing at.
The difference
These two get used interchangeably and they’re genuinely different things. We cover the support side in detail on our SIL page.
Better physical access and design, for people with sensory, intellectual or cognitive disability.
Built for people with significant physical support needs, including full mobility access.
Sturdier construction and safety features, where behaviour needs extra consideration.
The highest level of design and equipment, for very high physical support needs.
Design categories
Every SDA home is built or certified to one of four categories. Which one fits is worked out through assessment rather than chosen from a list.
Funding
SDA sits in the Capital part of a plan and is paid directly to the provider of the home rather than to you. It covers the dwelling, not everyday living costs.
You still contribute towards your accommodation, the way anyone pays rent. That’s worked out as a set portion of the Disability Support Pension plus any rent assistance you receive. It’s capped, and it comes from your pension rather than your NDIS budget.
Support delivered inside the home is funded separately again, usually through SIL. Most people with SDA also have SIL, though the two are assessed independently of each other.
The amounts are reviewed and reindexed regularly, so rather than quote figures that date quickly, we’d rather walk you through what applies to your situation.
Getting started
No forms to fill in before we’ve spoken, and no obligation at the end of it.
You tell us what's happening. We ask questions and listen, rather than pitch at you.
If we can help, we'll say how. If you need someone else, we'll point you somewhere useful.
An introduction before anything starts, so the first day isn't the first time you've met.
FAQs
SDA is the housing, funded from Capital and paid to the provider of the home. SIL is the support delivered inside it, funded from Core. Most people with SDA also have SIL, but they’re separate decisions with separate funding.
No. They’re assessed independently. Some people have SDA without SIL, using a different support arrangement instead, and plenty of people have SIL without ever needing SDA.
SDA is assessed by the NDIA as part of your home and living supports, and it’s designed for people whose housing needs can’t be met by a standard home. The NDIS website sets out the criteria they use. If you’re not sure, we’re happy to talk it through.
It’s worked out through assessment, usually involving an occupational therapist, rather than something you choose yourself. The category reflects what your home actually needs to include.
It varies, but it’s realistic to expect many months from first raising it to moving into a home. Evidence gathering and finding the right property both take time, and that’s normal rather than a sign something has gone wrong.
Yes. You contribute towards your accommodation, worked out from the Disability Support Pension and any rent assistance you receive. It’s capped, and it comes from your pension rather than your NDIS budget.
Yes, and that’s most of what we do. Personal care, help at home, community access and SIL are all available whether or not SDA is part of your situation. You don’t need a housing decision to get support in place.
Here to help
Whether SDA turns out to be part of your future or not, we can help you get support in place now. We work across the Gold Coast and we’ll be straight with you about where we fit in.
Support coordinator? Send a referral and we’ll be in touch.
Loving Hearts Care Group is a registered NDIS provider, ABN 99 674 548 862, registered for Specialist Disability Accommodation. Our registration is listed as Approved on the NDIS Provider Register.
