The Department of Education (the Department), which includes all Victorian government schools, provides educational programs to Victorian government school students.  At Armstrong Creek School many students have access to NDIS funding. The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) provides individualised support for eligible participants, associated with the functional impact of the disability on their activities of daily living. The therapies funded by the NDIS are related to the student’s functional whole-of-life support needs, and not for educational purposes.

As a school we are responsible for supporting students and their learning which includes making adjustments and accommodations where necessary that relate primarily to their educational attainment. However, we also highly value and recognise that the input from external allied health professionals can help complement holistic student planning and we endeavour to support this in ways where it is safe and practical to do so. Child safety, legal and privacy obligations mean there are many key considerations that must be made prior to school staff engaging with any external allied health professional.

The NDIS funds supports that are associated with the functional impact of the student’s disability on their activities of daily living (those not primarily relating to education attainment). These include personal care and support, transport to and from school, and specialist transition supports to and from school to further education, training or employment for educational purposes. 

The NDIS provides choice and control for children with disability and their parents/carers on how disability services and supports are delivered.

As a result, school principals may receive requests from parents/carers to allow external allied health professional or NDIS funded therapists to:

• observe a student in the classroom or in the school environment
• attend a Care Team Meeting  

At Armstrong Creek School we recognise that the input from external allied health professionals in these ways can help complement holistic student planning and we endeavour to support this to the degree where it is safe and practical to do so.

Please refer to our External Allied Health Policy and Guidelines : ACS External Allied Health Policy

Process:

Documentation required: 

All documents to be emailed to armstrong.creek.school@education.vic.gov.au titled 'Attention: Nicole Griffin and the Wellbeing Team"

1. Parent \ Carer Consent Form 
2. Non-DE Professionals Visit Request Form
3. Licensing Agreement
4. Information Sharing Deed
5. Copy of Therapist Company PI and PL Insurance
6. Copy of Therapist  Individual PI and PL Insurance
7. Copy of Therapist current Working With Children Check

All documents to be received prior to the request being submitted to the Wellbeing and Referral team for consideration.

If the request is approved, external allied health professionals can then use the Booking Request Link to request a visit with the student: ACS External Allied Health Professionals Booking Request