Questions to Ask an In-Home Respite Provider
Before you agree to in-home respite, ask the provider about registration and worker checks, who will come and how they're trained, which days and nights they can cover, what they charge, and what happens if a shift is cancelled. Get the answers in writing in a service agreement.
About the Provider
- Are you registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission?
- Do your workers have NDIS worker screening clearances? For a child, Working with Children checks too?
- Do you cover our suburb, and how far do your workers travel?
- How do I raise a concern or make a complaint?
About the Workers
- Who would come, and can we meet them before the first shift?
- Can we have the same one or two workers each time?
- What training do they have for the care needed, like manual handling, epilepsy, enteral feeding or behaviour support?
- What happens if our regular worker is sick? Who comes instead, and will they be briefed?
- Can the worker drive, and take the person out in our car or theirs?
Need a Break at Home?
We'll connect you with a registered NDIS provider who can send a support worker to your home.
About Shifts and Overnight Support
- Which days and times can you cover regularly?
- Can you do sleepover shifts, and active overnight shifts if we need them?
- What's the shortest shift you'll do?
- How much notice do you need to add an extra shift?
A sleepover is 8 hours or more across midnight, where the worker can sleep when not needed, and includes up to two hours of active support. If nights are busy, ask about active overnight support instead.
About Prices, Travel and Cancellations
- What's your hourly price for weekday, evening, weekend and public holiday shifts, and your sleepover price?
- Are your prices at or below the NDIS maximums?
- Do you charge for travel time or kilometres, and how much?
- What's your cancellation policy? Do you ever waive the fee?
- Will you put all of this in a service agreement?
Under the 2025-26 Pricing Arrangements, travel can only be charged if you agree to it in advance, and a short notice cancellation for support worker shifts is generally less than 7 days' notice. Providers can choose to waive cancellation fees.
What to Tell the Provider
The more they know up front, the better the match.
- The participant's age, how they communicate, and what they enjoy
- Personal care, mobility and any high intensity care
- Behaviours of concern and any behaviour support plan
- Pets, smoking, and anything else about the home a worker should know
- How the plan is managed, and roughly how many hours the budget allows
Questions People Ask
What should be in a respite service agreement?
The supports, days and times, prices, travel charges, cancellation terms, how to raise problems and how to end the agreement. The NDIS recommends one when you start with a new provider.
Should I meet the support worker first?
Yes, if you can. A short meeting at home, with you there, helps the person and the worker get to know each other before you go out.
Is it okay to ask for a different worker?
Yes. It's your choice. Tell the provider what isn't working and ask them to try someone else.
Keep Reading
- Finding a respite providerHow to find an NDIS respite provider who can send a support worker to your home: registration, worker screening, what to check, and how to compare a shortlist.
- Preparing for a first respite shiftHow in-home respite works in practice: getting the person and home ready, what to write down for the support worker, and how to make first shifts go well.
- NDIS respite ratesWhat in-home respite costs on the NDIS in 2026-27: maximum hourly prices for support workers by time of day, the sleepover price, travel and cancellation rules.
- Overnight respiteOvernight respite at home on the NDIS: what a sleepover shift is, when you need an active overnight worker instead, how each is charged, and how to set one up.
- How we choose providersThe checks every provider has to pass before we connect them with anyone.
- How it worksHow we connect you with a respite provider, and what happens to your details.
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