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Support at Home, made simple — with a team you come to know

Getting started with aged care support can feel like a lot — forms, assessments, funding, waiting. Here’s how it works, in plain language, and exactly where we come in to help.

You don’t need your funding sorted before you call us. Talk to us at any point — before your assessment, while you’re waiting, or once your funding comes through. There’s no cost and no obligation.

(07) 3517 0808 Phone lines are open during office hours (9am–5pm, Mon–Fri), and we will get back to you by the next business day.

Three simple phases, and we’re with you through them

Support at Home has an official process with a number of steps. The good news: you don’t need to memorise it, and the steps often happen alongside each other rather than one neat line. We’ll help you make sense of where you are and what happens next. It comes down to three simple phases.

Before you’re funded

Getting assessed and approved for funding. This part runs through My Aged Care — and you can lean on us from the very start to understand it.

Getting started with us

Your funding comes through, you choose us, and together we set up your support the way you want it.

Ongoing support

The day-to-day. A consistent team who know you, a care partner in your corner, and support that keeps up as things change.

Want the official version? See the Government’s Support at Home steps
The official process runs through My Aged Care and has several steps: register and request an assessment, complete the assessment, receive an approval and funding decision, wait for funding to become available (by priority), choose a registered provider and sign an agreement, then start and review your support.
  1. Register / request assessment with My Aged Care
  2. Assessment
  3. Approval and funding decision
  4. Funding becomes available (by priority)
  5. Choose a provider and sign an agreement (within 56 days)
  6. Start and review support
Full detail at myagedcare.gov.au.

Before you’re funded

This part happens with My Aged Care and Services Australia. Here’s what to expect, and how we help even before you’re a client.

Apply for an assessment

Everything starts with a free aged care assessment, arranged through My Aged Care. You can request one yourself, or your GP or hospital can help.
You can call My Aged Care on 1800 200 422 or apply at myagedcare.gov.au. They’ll arrange for an assessor to talk with you about how you’re managing at home. If you’re not sure whether to apply, or what to say, call us first — we’ll talk it through with you. No cost, no obligation.

Have your assessment

An assessor visits, usually at home, and works out what support would help. You can have family with you.
The assessor looks at what you’re managing well, what’s become harder, and what support would make a difference. Be honest about the hard days, not just the good ones — the plan can only reflect what they hear. An interpreter can be arranged if you need one. We’re happy to help you prepare for this conversation.

Get your funding decision

You’ll get a letter telling you what you’ve been approved for. Sometimes there’s a wait before funding becomes available — we’ll tell you straight what to expect.
Approval and funding can be two separate moments. Once you’re approved, you may wait a little while for your funding to become available, depending on how urgent your needs are. If the wait is longer, some people are offered part of their funding early so support can start sooner. If you’ve been approved for short-term recovery after a hospital stay, funding is available straight away. Around this time, Services Australia works out your contribution — what you pay toward your services. We can talk you through any of this while you wait.

Getting started with us

Once your funding comes through, this is where we step in properly. No jargon, no run-around — we set things up with you, at your pace.

Choose us and set things up

When your funding is ready, you choose your provider. Pick us, and we’ll sit down with you and set everything up together.
When your funding becomes available you’ll get a letter confirming it. There’s one thing to know: you have 56 days to choose a provider and sign an agreement, or the funding can be withdrawn. If you need more time, My Aged Care can give you a 28-day extension — ask before the 56 days end. When you call us, you’ll talk to experienced care staff. We’ll be straight with you about what we’re good at, and honest if someone else might suit you better.

We build your support around you

We agree what support looks like, who’ll be coming, and when — and we put it in writing so there are no surprises.
Together we agree a plan: what help you get, how often, and what “good” looks like for you. We go through your agreement and your budget with you in plain language, including the part of your budget that pays for your care partner to coordinate everything. Then we introduce the people who’ll be supporting you — ideally the same familiar faces, not a different stranger each week.

What ongoing support feels like

Ongoing support is the day to day — a consistent team who know you, a care partner coordinating your support, and care that adjusts as life changes.

You’re looked after by people who know you

We work hard to send the same familiar faces, so the people in your home already know how you like things done.

If something changes, tell us once

Tell the support worker in your home, and it reaches your care partner. Your care partner is a real person who knows your situation and is your point of contact when you need one.

The people in your home are trained for real life

Our support workers are trained to support people living with dementia, help with medication, and stay calm and steady when things get difficult — what is often called de-escalation. New workers learn on the job with experienced staff alongside them before they support you on their own.

Support that keeps up as life changes

Needs change — a fall, a hospital stay, a partner’s health, a harder stretch with dementia. You don’t have to wait for a scheduled review to get help. Tell us what’s changed and we’ll work with you to adjust your support. When it helps, we’ll coordinate with your GP, hospital, specialists and other services so you’re not the one holding it all together.

Someone keeps an eye on the bigger picture

Your care partner stays in regular contact and reviews how things are going, so support is adjusted before small things become big ones. At least once a year we step back with you and look at whether your support is still right — and if your needs have grown, we help you ask for a reassessment.

(If you remember the old Home Care Package days, a care partner is what you might have called a care manager.)

Referring a patient or client?

This page is written for older people and their families. If you’re a discharge planner, GP, assessor or community clinician, our For Referrers page has what you need — our capability statement, referral form, response times and direct line to our clinical lead.

Go to For Referrers →

Where to next

Worried about a parent or partner

Memory changes, more falls, not coping like before? Start here — you don’t need a diagnosis to ask for help. Start here →

Getting someone home from hospital

Is someone in hospital now, and you’re worried about how they’ll cope at home? There’s short-term support designed to help them recover safely at home — and it’s best set up before they’re discharged. Here’s how it works. Start here →

Support for you, the carer

Looking after someone is hard. There’s help for you too, not just the person you care for. Start here →

What will it cost me?

See how Support at Home costs work and what your contribution might look like — in plain numbers. Start here →

Frequently asked questions

Money & cost

What will Support at Home actually cost me?
Clinical care — like nursing and personal care — is fully funded by the government, so you pay nothing for it. For everyday and independence services, you may contribute an amount based on an income assessment. Pensioners generally pay little or nothing; self-funded retirees usually contribute more. We can walk you through your likely costs.
What is the 10% care management fee?
Each quarter, 10% of your budget is set aside to fund care management — the coordination, check-ins and planning your care partner does. It isn’t an extra charge on top of your funding; it comes out of the budget the government allocates you.
What does “no worse off” mean for me?
“No worse off” is a government guarantee for people who were already in aged care before the changes. If you were assessed on or before 12 September 2024, your contribution arrangements are protected. If this might apply to you, check your assessment date — we can help you work out where you stand.
Who decides how much funding I get?
The government decides, not us. Your funding level comes from your aged care assessment and the priority the assessor assigns. We can’t change or speed up that decision — but once you have it, we help you make the most of it.

Waiting & funding

How long does it take to get Support at Home funding?
After your assessment you’re given a priority category — Urgent, High, Medium or Standard — and how long you wait depends on it. Some people wait weeks, others longer. Short-term recovery is funded immediately, with no wait.
I’ve been approved — so why am I not funded yet?
Being approved means the government agrees you need support. Funding becoming available is a separate step, managed through the Support at Home Priority System based on your priority and approval date. If the wait is long, some people receive interim funding — around 60% of their budget — so support can start sooner.
What happens if Mum gets worse while we’re waiting?
Tell your assessor or My Aged Care — if her needs have increased, she can be reassessed, which may change her priority. You don’t have to just wait and hope. Call us too; we can help you understand the options and get support started as soon as funding allows.
Can I talk to a provider before my funding is approved?
Yes. You don’t need approved funding to talk to us. Call any time — before your assessment, while you’re waiting, or once funding comes through. There’s no cost and no obligation, and it usually makes the next steps far less stressful.

Getting started & choosing

How do I choose a good Support at Home provider?
Ask how they handle changes, whether you’ll see the same workers, how your care partner stays in touch, and what their prices are. A good provider answers plainly without making you feel you’re asking too much. You can choose any registered provider, and you can change later if the fit isn’t right.
What happens if I miss the 56-day deadline after my funding letter?
Once funding is allocated you have 56 days to choose a provider and sign an agreement, or it can be withdrawn. If you need more time, My Aged Care can usually grant a 28-day extension — ask before the 56 days end.
Can I change provider if it’s not working out?
Yes. You’re free to change Support at Home provider if the fit isn’t right. We’d always rather you tell us what’s wrong so we can fix it — but the choice is always yours, and it stays yours.

Living with support

What is a care partner?
Your care partner is a named person on our team who knows your situation, coordinates your support, and is your point of contact when something changes. If you remember Home Care Packages, it’s similar to what used to be called a care manager.

Start the conversation

Wherever you are — not started, still waiting, or ready to go — we can help. Leave your details and we’ll call you back.

We answer enquiries by the next business day.

Thanks — referrals are a bit different.

We have a dedicated page for hospital discharge planners, GPs, assessors and other professional referrers. It has the structured referral form, the PDF, our clinical intake line, and a direct line to our Clinical Lead.

Go to For Referrers → Not a health or care professional? Change your answer above to go back to the enquiry form.
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