NDIS providers operate in a sector with price limits set by someone else, payroll governed by a demanding award, and a regulator that expects clean records. We work with registered and unregistered providers, support coordinators and community support organisations across Brisbane and Queensland on compliance, margin, cash flow and growth.
Sulett from Pebble Community Support said: "Pebble Community has been receiving exceptional service from Acquire Strategic over the past few years." Years is the key word.
02NDIS revenue depends on claiming correctly and promptly.
03Most NDIS support workers are covered by the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services award, which is one of the more complex awards in Australia.
04Registered providers go through NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission audits, and auditors look at financial management, record keeping and governance alongside service quality.
Sulett from Pebble Community Support said: "Pebble Community has been receiving exceptional service from Acquire Strategic over the past few years." Years is the key word. NDIS businesses change constantly as the scheme's pricing, rules and audit expectations shift, and the accounting relationship needs to keep pace.
The NDIS is unusual because providers do not set their own prices. The NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits cap what can be charged for most supports, and those limits are updated by the agency, usually around the start of each financial year. Margin therefore comes from how efficiently services are delivered and how accurately they are claimed, not from pricing power.
We help providers see their real margin by service type, understand the cost of a support hour once travel, non-billable time, supervision and leave are included, and make decisions about which services to grow and which to stop.
NDIS revenue depends on claiming correctly and promptly. Agency-managed, plan-managed and self-managed participants each pay differently, and errors or delays in claims turn directly into cash flow problems. Unclaimed or rejected supports are a common hidden leak.
We set up bookkeeping on Xero that reconciles claims against payments by participant and funding type, so unpaid or short-paid claims are visible quickly. Combined with a rolling cash flow forecast that reflects the real payment timing, this lets providers pay staff on time without running on an overdraft.
Growth in this sector is often sudden. A new referral partner or a successful audit can double participant numbers in months, and wages rise immediately while claims take longer. Our virtual CFO service helps providers plan for that growth with budgets, forecasts and monthly reporting.
Most NDIS support workers are covered by the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services award, which is one of the more complex awards in Australia. Broken shifts, sleepovers, minimum engagement periods, travel time, allowances and classification levels all affect pay, and underpayment claims are a real risk for providers that get it wrong.
We set up payroll with Single Touch Payroll reporting and award interpretation that suits a rostered workforce, and we review contractor arrangements closely. Support workers engaged as contractors through platforms or ABNs may still be employees for superannuation and Fair Work purposes under the current rules. Getting this right protects both the workers and the business.
Portable long service leave in Queensland's community services sector adds another obligation, with levies and reporting that need to be built into the payroll process.
Registered providers go through NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission audits, and auditors look at financial management, record keeping and governance alongside service quality. Clean accounts, documented processes and clear separation between participant funds and business funds all help.
We help providers prepare the financial side of registration and audits, keep the records in order through the year, and set up governance that suits the entity, whether that is a company, a not-for-profit association or a trust. For providers considering registration for the first time, we help model whether the compliance cost is justified by the services it would allow.
Many providers start as sole traders or small companies and grow faster than their structure. We review entity set-ups for asset protection, tax outcomes and the ability to bring in partners, and we design group structures for providers running several service lines or locations.
Mergers between providers and sales to larger organisations are increasing as the sector matures. We provide valuations, due diligence and deal structuring for providers on either side of those transactions, with Greg Blackaby's acquisitions experience behind the advice. A provider with clean claims data, compliant payroll and documented processes is a far more attractive business to buy or merge with.
“Lauren has been absolutely fantastic in guiding us through the set-up of our Pty Ltd business.”
Many NDIS supports are GST-free under the ATO's current rules when they are provided to a participant under a plan and meet the relevant conditions. Some services and supplies are not. Getting the treatment right matters for both claiming and BAS reporting. We review each service line and set up the bookkeeping so GST is applied correctly.
Most support workers are covered by the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services award, often called SCHADS, which has detailed rules on broken shifts, sleepovers, minimum engagements, travel and classifications. Some roles fall under other awards. We set up payroll with the correct award interpretation and review it when the award or your rosters change.
Yes. Many community support organisations are incorporated associations or companies limited by guarantee with their own reporting, governance and tax concession considerations. We prepare accounts, manage payroll compliance and provide the financial reporting boards need. The underlying NDIS claiming, margin and cash flow issues are the same whether the provider is for-profit or not.
Price limits make revenue per hour predictable, so profit depends on cost. We calculate the true cost of a delivered support hour including wages, on-costs, travel, non-billable time, supervision and leave, and compare it with the price limit for each service type. This shows which services carry the business and which are being subsidised by the others.
Yes. We help with structure, ATO and ASIC registrations, Xero set-up with claim reconciliation, payroll under the SCHADS award, and a cash flow forecast built around NDIS payment timing. If you are deciding whether to register with the NDIS Commission, we can model the compliance cost against the additional services it would allow you to deliver.
