NDIS SIL vs SDA: What Is the Difference?
Supported Independent Living (SIL) and Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) are two different NDIS supports that are easy to confuse. SIL funds the support, SDA funds the home. Here is how they work together.
SIL and SDA are two different things
Supported Independent Living (SIL) and Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) are two of the most commonly confused NDIS supports. The simplest way to remember the difference is this: SIL funds the support, and SDA funds the home. They are separate types of funding, and having one does not automatically mean you have the other.
What is Supported Independent Living (SIL)?
SIL is funding for help with everyday tasks in a shared or individual living arrangement. It pays for the support workers who assist with things like personal care, cooking, cleaning and medication, often with support available up to 24 hours a day. SIL is funded from your Core Supports budget and is usually included for participants with higher or more complex support needs.
SIL does not pay your rent, board, food or utilities. Those everyday living costs are paid from your own income, the same as they would be for anyone renting or living in their own home.
What is Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA)?
SDA is funding for housing designed for people with an extreme functional impairment or very high support needs. SDA dwellings are purpose-built or modified with accessibility and safety features that ordinary housing does not provide. Only a small proportion of NDIS participants are eligible, and SDA funding must be included in your plan.
There are four SDA design categories: Improved Liveability, Fully Accessible, Robust, and High Physical Support. Each offers different accessibility features to match different levels of need.
How SIL and SDA work together
Some participants receive both SIL and SDA: the SDA funding pays for an accessible home, and the SIL funding pays for the support workers who help them live in it. Other participants have SIL without SDA, living in mainstream rental or family housing with funded support. And some have SDA without SIL.
Because they are assessed separately, it is worth being clear with your planner or support coordinator about both your support needs and your housing needs so the right combination is considered.
How to find SIL and SDA providers
AusCareGuide lists registered NDIS providers offering both Supported Independent Living and Specialist Disability Accommodation across Australia. A support coordinator can also help you match SDA housing with the SIL support you need.
Find NDIS Providers near you
Browse our directory of registered ndis providers across Australia, sourced from official government registers.
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