Positive Behaviour Support in the NDIS: A Complete Guide
- Julian Vilsten
- 3 days ago
- 9 min read
Positive Behaviour Support in the NDIS: A Complete Guide
Written by Julian Vilsten, Clinical Neuropsychologist and Specialist Behaviour Support Practitioner. Last updated: March 2026
Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) is an evidence-based approach used with people with disability who have behaviours of concern. It looks at the whole person: their quality of life, their unmet support needs, and the factors that contribute to behaviours of concern. When those broader needs are understood and addressed, many behaviours change as a natural consequence. PBS also works on behaviour directly, but never in isolation from the person's life. Under the NDIS, it is one of the most commonly funded Capacity Building supports, and one of the most commonly misunderstood.
This guide covers what PBS actually is, how it works in practice, who can provide it, and how it is funded in an NDIS plan. Whether you are a support coordinator deciding if PBS is right for a participant, a family member trying to make sense of a referral recommendation, or someone who has been told PBS might help and wants to understand what that means, this is the place to start.
What is Positive Behaviour Support?
PBS works by understanding the whole person: their support needs, their environment, the relationships around them, and what their behaviours are communicating. When those things are understood and addressed, people tend to do better. Independence grows. Relationships improve. Quality of life improves. Behaviours of concern often reduce as a result of that broader work, and PBS also addresses them directly.
The central question is always: what is this behaviour communicating? Behaviours of concern are not random. They are responses to something, usually something in the person's environment, their relationships, or their unmet needs. When that something is identified, it can be addressed directly.
In practice, this means identifying patterns in when and why behaviours occur, changing environmental factors that contribute to distress or escalation, and building communication and coping skills that give the person other ways to meet their needs. The people supporting the participant every day need to understand the plan and implement it consistently. Without that, nothing changes.
Who is PBS for?
Under the NDIS, PBS is available to participants whose behaviours of concern have a significant impact on their daily life or the lives of those around them. This typically includes:
Autistic individuals, particularly those with higher support needs
People with intellectual disability
People with acquired brain injury
People with dual diagnosis, such as intellectual disability and a co-occurring mental health condition
Behaviours of concern can include self-injury, aggression, property damage, absconding, and persistent refusal or avoidance that creates significant risk or disruption to daily functioning. The presence of any of these does not automatically mean PBS is needed. The question a behaviour support practitioner will ask is whether the behaviour is significantly affecting the person's quality of life or safety, and whether there is an underlying reason that can be identified and addressed.
PBS is particularly well suited to people with complex presentations where the reasons behind behaviours are not immediately apparent. That is where thorough assessment makes the biggest difference.
What does a behaviour support assessment involve?
Before a Behaviour Support Plan can be developed, an assessment is needed. This is often called a Functional Behaviour Assessment (FBA), and it is the foundation of everything that follows.
The purpose of the assessment is to understand the function of the behaviour: what need it is meeting, what triggers it, and what maintains it over time. Without this, any strategies in a plan are essentially guesswork.
A thorough assessment typically involves:
Interviews with the participant, their family, and key support people
Direct observation of the participant in their everyday environments
Review of existing documentation, reports, and NDIS plans
Structured data collection, often including behaviour tracking over a defined period
Where relevant, psychological or neuropsychological assessment to understand the person's cognitive profile and how it relates to the behaviours being observed
The assessment process takes time, and that is by design. It is not a one-off event but something that happens over time, often across multiple visits and settings. Understanding why a behaviour occurs requires seeing it in context, gathering information from the people who know the participant well, and building a picture that reflects the person's life rather than a snapshot. For complex presentations, this process can be substantial.
Functional assessment findings are not always written up as a separate formal report. Sometimes the assessment and the Behaviour Support Plan are developed together, with the assessment informing the plan as it is built. The format depends on the complexity of the presentation and what the participant and their team actually need.
What is a Behaviour Support Plan?
A Behaviour Support Plan (BSP) is a written document that describes the strategies and adjustments needed to support a participant. Under the NDIS, registered behaviour support practitioners are required to develop plans that meet the standards set by the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission.
Not all Behaviour Support Plans look the same. Where a participant has restrictive practices in place, the NDIS requires either an interim or a comprehensive Behaviour Support Plan. These have specific requirements: they must document assessment findings, outline the function of the behaviour, describe how restrictive practices will be reduced over time, and meet a higher bar for detail and authorisation. For participants without restrictive practices, a plan may be shorter and more focused, built around what will actually be useful to the support team in that person's specific situation.
Regardless of format, the mark of a useful Behaviour Support Plan is that the people supporting the participant every day can understand and implement it. A long, thorough document that sits in a drawer changes nothing. Strategies need to be realistic, written in plain language, and matched to the capacity of the support team around the participant.
Plans also need to be reviewed regularly. As the participant's skills develop and circumstances change, the plan should change with them.
What about restrictive practices?
If a participant's Behaviour Support Plan includes any restrictive practices, additional requirements apply under the NDIS. A restrictive practice is any support that restricts the rights or freedom of movement of a person with disability. This includes physical restraint, chemical restraint (medication used to influence behaviour), mechanical restraint, seclusion, and environmental restraint.
Restrictive practices are regulated under the NDIS because of the significant risk they carry. They can only be included in an authorised Behaviour Support Plan developed by a registered behaviour support practitioner. The plan must demonstrate that the restrictive practice is a last resort, that less restrictive alternatives have been tried or considered, and that there is a clear plan to reduce and eventually eliminate the practice.
For a detailed breakdown of each type and what authorisation involves, see: The 5 Types of Restrictive Practices in the NDIS
How is PBS funded in an NDIS plan?
PBS is funded under Capacity Building, specifically the Improved Daily Living support category. It is not funded from Core supports and cannot be drawn from a participant's Core budget.
Core vs. Capacity Building: why it matters
NDIS plans are divided into budget categories. Core supports fund day-to-day assistance: support workers, personal care, community participation. Capacity Building supports fund services designed to build skills and independence over time. PBS sits in Capacity Building because the aim is not just to manage behaviours as they arise, but to understand their causes and build lasting change.
This distinction matters practically: a plan that includes Core funding but no Capacity Building funding for Improved Relationships cannot pay for behaviour support. If a participant needs PBS and their plan does not include this, it needs to be raised at the next plan review.
Improved Daily Living vs. Improved Relationships
Within Capacity Building, two line items are frequently confused. Behaviour support sits under Improved Relationships. Improved Daily Living funds other allied health services such as psychology, speech pathology, and occupational therapy. Getting this wrong at plan review means the funding is placed in the wrong line item and cannot be used for PBS services.
The Reasonable and Necessary test
All NDIS funding must meet the Reasonable and Necessary criteria set by the NDIA. To satisfy this test, the support must be related to the participant's disability, represent value for money, be likely to be effective, and not duplicate something that mainstream health services should provide. When requesting PBS funding, documentation that connects the behaviour support need directly to the participant's disability and their stated NDIS goals gives the request its strongest foundation.
The amount of funding needed varies significantly depending on the complexity of the participant's presentation. A participant with significant behaviours of concern who requires thorough assessment, a comprehensive plan, and ongoing implementation support will need substantially more funding than someone who needs a focused assessment and a brief plan.
When requesting PBS funding at a plan review, supporting documentation from a behaviour support practitioner and other allied health services describing the scope of work required, linking it clearly to the participant's goals, strengthens the request considerably.
For current pricing rates, see: NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits Explained
Who provides PBS under the NDIS?
Under the NDIS, behaviour support must be delivered by a registered behaviour support practitioner. Practitioners are assessed against the NDIS Behaviour Support Capability Framework, which describes four levels of capability: Core, Proficient, Advanced, and Specialist.
The capability level matters. A Specialist Behaviour Support Practitioner has the highest level of assessed capability in the framework and is qualified to work with the most complex presentations. Not all organisations offering PBS services have practitioners operating at this level.
For more complex referrals, a psychologist providing behaviour support can be worth considering. The value this brings will depend on the specific background and skill set of the practitioner rather than the qualification alone.
When is PBS the right referral?
PBS is worth considering when a participant has behaviours of concern that are having a significant impact on their daily life, relationships, or safety; when existing strategies have not produced lasting change; when behaviours appear linked to unmet needs, communication differences, or environmental factors that have not been fully assessed; or when there are restrictive practices in place that require authorisation and a reduction plan.
It is worth noting that NDIS funding for PBS is linked to the presence of behaviours of concern. Where there is no identifiable behaviour of concern, a participant is unlikely to meet the threshold for PBS funding. If the primary need is psychological or therapeutic rather than behaviour-related, psychology funded under Improved Relationships may be the more appropriate referral.
PBS and psychology often work together. For participants with complex presentations, both may be warranted. A psychologist brings specific skills in the psychiatric and mental health space, while PBS focuses on the environmental and support factors driving behaviour. Where both services are involved, coordination between practitioners matters.
If you are unsure whether PBS is the right next step for a participant, a brief conversation with a registered practitioner will usually clarify this quickly.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between PBS and psychology?
Both are NDIS-funded services, but they address different needs. Under the NDIS, psychology focuses on skill building and development, including in the psychiatric and mental health space. It is not a treatment service in the traditional clinical sense; the NDIS funds capacity building, not ongoing treatment. PBS focuses specifically on behaviours of concern: understanding what drives them, changing the environment and supports around the person, and building skills that reduce the need for those behaviours.
The two often work alongside each other. For participants with complex presentations, both may be needed, and the services tend to complement rather than duplicate each other. Where there is no identifiable behaviour of concern, psychology under Improved Daily Living is typically the appropriate referral rather than PBS.
Does PBS work for adults?
Yes. PBS is not limited to children or young people. Under the NDIS, a significant proportion of participants receiving behaviour support are adults. The approach adapts to the person's age, living situation, and goals regardless of life stage.
How long does behaviour support take?
There is no standard timeframe. Length depends on the complexity of the presentation, how long assessment takes, how consistently the plan is implemented, and how the participant responds over time. For complex presentations, behaviour support is typically an ongoing relationship rather than a time-limited service.
Can PBS funding be included in my participant's next NDIS plan?
Yes. Behaviour support is funded under Capacity Building (Improved Daily Living) and can be requested at plan review. Documentation from a behaviour support practitioner linking the need to the participant's goals strengthens the funding request. Practitioners can provide a report specifically to support this at a plan review.
What is the difference between a behaviour support practitioner and a support worker?
A behaviour support practitioner assesses the reasons behind behaviours of concern, develops the Behaviour Support Plan, and provides training and guidance to the support team. Support workers implement the strategies in the plan during day-to-day support. These are distinct roles funded from different parts of the NDIS plan. The practitioner cannot be funded from Core supports.
Do I need a referral to access PBS?
Not formally. Families or participants can approach a behaviour support provider directly. In practice, most referrals come through NDIS Support Coordinators or allied health professionals already involved in the participant's care. If you are unsure whether PBS is appropriate, a brief conversation with a registered practitioner can clarify this without any commitment.
What is the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission's role in behaviour support?
The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission oversees behaviour support under the NDIS. It maintains the registration requirements for behaviour support practitioners, sets the standards that Behaviour Support Plans must meet, and regulates the use of restrictive practices. Registered behaviour support practitioners are required to report to the Commission and submit authorised plans for any restrictive practices. This oversight exists to protect the rights of participants.
About the author
Julian Vilsten is a Clinical Neuropsychologist, Specialist Behaviour Support Practitioner, and the Director of Outcomes Lab. He has over 15 years of experience in mental health and disability services. Outcomes Lab provides NDIS psychology, neuropsychological assessment, and positive behaviour support services in Melbourne, VIC and Port Lincoln, SA.
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