A carer impact statement does not need to follow a formal NDIS template. When writing one, describe the unpaid care you provide, how the person’s disability affects daily life, and what support may be needed. You can write it as a letter or organise it with headings and bullet points.

It can be difficult to put caring responsibilities into words, especially when daily tasks have become routine. Specific examples help explain what you do and how caring affects you and your family.

This guide covers what to include in a carer impact statement: the support you provide each day, its effect on your capacity to keep caring, and how to share your account with NDIS planning teams and health professionals. It also offers practical ways to organise your notes so the statement reflects your experience clearly and at your own pace.

What Is an NDIS carer statement?

An NDIS carer statement describes the unpaid care a person receives and how disability affects daily life. If you’re learning how to write a carer impact statement, focus on the support the person needs, what you do, and how the caring role affects you. You can write it as a letter or organise it with headings and bullet points. The Scheme does not require a carer statement or provide a formal template.

A parent, guardian, partner, sibling, other family member or close friend who provides regular support can write a statement. A support coordinator or provider with direct knowledge of the person’s support needs may also contribute. You can include it with an access request or plan review, but it does not guarantee a particular decision.

1. Introduce yourself and your role. State your relationship to the person and explain the unpaid support you provide. For a child, describe care beyond the parenting usually provided to a child of a similar age without disability. For example, explain how you help with a particular routine, rather than describing general family responsibilities.
2. Describe the disability’s practical effects. Explain how the person’s disability affects daily functioning and what assistance they need. Use an example from an ordinary routine, such as needing prompts or hands-on help to get dressed. Then state what you do and what happens when that assistance is unavailable. Specific examples show more than a broad claim like “needs help with everything”.
3. Work through the day’s support needs. Describe the care you provide from the morning routine through to bedtime, including night-time support when relevant. A care diary covering a 24-hour period or a week can help you capture tasks and related administration. Keep the focus on support needs beyond ordinary parenting for a similar-aged child, and record what changes when care is not available.
4. Group examples under relevant support areas. Use headings such as daily living, home, health and wellbeing, learning, social and community participation, employment, relationships and life choices. Include only areas that apply. For example, under community participation, describe the assistance needed to attend an activity and take part once there.
5. Connect your account to the funding request. Planners consider how disability affects participation in daily life. For an access request, explain the ongoing effects you observe. For a plan review, describe current support needs and any changes. Your account is different from a participant’s Statement of Lived Experience, which is usually written by the participant.
6. Review the statement for clarity. These steps can help you understand how to write a carer impact statement in a clear, personal way. Check that each example explains the support needed and your response. Ask someone who knows your caring role to review it for missing tasks. More than one person can submit an individual statement about the same participant, describing their own support and perspective.

Considering other caring responsibilities and personal circumstances

1. Set out who depends on your care. Describe your family circumstances and the people who share your caring role. For example, note if you are a single parent, care for another child, or support an older family member as well. Explain who helps, what they do, and when that help is available. If another household member has their own support needs, describe how these affect the time you can give each person.
2. Explain the effect on your health and energy. Give practical examples of how caring affects your physical or emotional wellbeing. You might describe interrupted sleep when the person needs help overnight, or explain how repeated lifting affects your body. Mention any health issue or disability of your own if you choose, and describe how it affects the care you can provide. Focus on what happens in daily life, rather than using a broad label alone.
3. Describe changes to work and study. Explain how appointments, supervision or unexpected support needs affect your ability to find or keep employment, attend study, or manage work hours. For example, describe needing to leave work when a school calls, or being unable to accept shifts because care arrangements are uncertain. Include the practical effect on your routine and the choices you have had to make.
4. Show what caring means for family and community life. Give examples of activities you or other family members miss, change or attend with extra support. You could explain that a sibling cannot join an after-school activity because no adult is available, or that family visits require planning around the participant’s support needs. Describe the impact without blaming the person receiving care. Include what helps the family take part in community life.
5. Consider whether the arrangement can continue. Describe the level of care you provide now and what may change if your circumstances shift. For example, explain how caring could be affected by a parent returning to work, another family member becoming unwell, or the participant reaching adulthood. State what support is currently in place and what happens if it is unavailable. Be specific about the tasks that would be difficult to sustain.
6. Write about the future in practical terms. Identify signs that your caring capacity may change, such as reduced sleep, a change in your health, or fewer people able to help. Explain what adjustments could make the arrangement more sustainable, such as additional assistance with a regular task or planned time for another family member. You can also mention when you may need to step back, including if age or health makes ongoing care harder. These details help show how the caring role affects both your present life and future choices.

Carer needs and future capacity to provide care

1. Record the practical and emotional care you provide. Separate hands-on tasks from support that is less visible. Practical care may include preparing meals, helping with personal care or attending appointments. Emotional support may involve reassuring the person during distress or helping them manage a change to routine. Describe what you do and how the person responds. These examples show how your support fits into their daily life.
2. Describe support across the person’s day. Consider what happens from waking until sleep, including tasks that interrupt your own rest. If the person needs about two hours of support each morning, explain what fills that time and why assistance is needed. For night-time care, record what wakes you, what help you provide, and whether you can return to sleep. Keep each example factual and specific.
3. Include difficult days as well as typical days. Describe the person’s needs on a day when disability has a greater effect on their routine. Explain what changes in the care you provide, such as more reassurance, help with daily tasks or closer supervision. Add what helps the person settle and what happens if that support is unavailable. A clear example gives context without suggesting every day is the same.
4. Explain what makes your caring role sustainable. Identify the supports, routines and people that help you continue. For example, note whether a family member can take over a task, or whether a regular appointment gives you time to manage another responsibility. Then explain what changes when that help falls through. This shows which parts of the arrangement rely on your unpaid care and which supports help maintain it.
5. Set out how your capacity could change. Describe practical circumstances that may affect your ability to keep providing the same care. These might include your health changing, work commitments developing, or the person’s support needs changing as they grow older. State which tasks you could continue and where you may need assistance. You do not need to predict an exact date. Explain the change that would affect your capacity.
6. Use a simple format, not a perfect template. The NDIS does not require a formal carer statement template. A short section on current care, night-time needs and future capacity can make your account easier to follow. Ask a trusted family member or friend to check whether the examples reflect your caring role. Keep your own voice, and revise anything that does not match your experience.

Sharing the statement with NDIS planners and health professionals

The NDIS does not require a particular carer statement template or formal submission format. Centrelink and state services may have different forms and evidence requirements, so tailor the statement to the application rather than assuming one version will suit every service.

Useful supporting material may include a care diary, weekly timetable and relevant reports from health professionals. These can help link your examples of daily support to the person’s needs.

1. Prepare the statement for its purpose. For an NDIS access request, explain how disability affects everyday activities and what assistance the person needs. For a plan review, describe current support and any changes since the previous plan. Keep the person’s goals and responsibilities in view, and use examples that relate to the decision being discussed.
2. Choose a clear length and tone. A child’s Carer Statement should be kept to one page. Use calm, direct language and factual examples, such as explaining what support is needed to get ready for school. Avoid trying to sound formal or making claims about funding outcomes. The statement should represent your experience in your own words.
3. Send it before the planning meeting. Email a copy to the NDIS planning contact before the meeting, then bring another copy with you. Ask for it to be placed on top of the evidence documents so the carer’s account is easy to locate. Keep a copy for your records, including the date sent and the person who received it.
4. Use the meeting to clarify key examples. Choose a few responsibilities that are difficult to explain in writing. For instance, describe what happens when overnight support is needed or when an appointment changes the family’s routine. You can refer the planner to the relevant page or diary entry, then explain how that example affects daily support needs.
5. Share relevant details with the support team. Give the statement to the participant’s support coordinator, therapists and healthcare providers when it helps them understand the caring arrangement. Discuss the examples with the team so their information reflects the same support needs. Carers Australia’s Carer Checklist can also help you prepare for an NDIS planning meeting.
6. Check the statement before sending it. Avoid vague descriptions such as “needs help all day” without examples. Don’t include unrelated family details, present an occasional event as a daily occurrence, or write as if a particular funding decision is guaranteed. Check names, dates and attachments, then make sure the statement describes your responsibilities accurately.

Purpose and use of a carer impact statement

1. Make unpaid support visible. Use the statement to explain support that may not appear in appointment notes or service records. Describe a specific task, such as helping the person prepare to leave home, and explain what assistance makes possible. This gives the planning team context about the support around the participant in everyday life.
2. Connect disability to participation. Explain how disability affects the person’s ability to take part in daily activities. For example, describe what support helps them attend a community activity and what makes participation difficult without it. A practical way to approach how to write a carer impact statement is to link each observation to a real activity and its effect.
3. Prepare for the application or review purpose. For an NDIS application, focus on the ongoing effects of disability you observe. For a plan review, identify changes since the current plan began, such as a new support need or a routine that now requires more assistance. When deciding how to write a carer impact statement for either purpose, keep the information relevant to the decision being discussed.
4. Show how different information fits together. The participant’s account, health evidence and your observations each offer a different perspective. Your statement can explain what happens between formal appointments and how the person’s needs affect the care you provide. This helps the planning team understand the practical context behind the participant’s support needs.
5. Keep each point specific and useful. Replace broad claims with an example that explains the activity, the assistance required and the result. Instead of saying the person “needs support everywhere”, describe one task and what changes when help is available. Include details that clarify the current situation, rather than asking the statement to predict a particular funding decision.
6. Use it to support a shared understanding. With the participant’s agreement, share relevant information with their support coordinator or health professionals. They can consider your observations alongside their own knowledge of the person’s goals and needs. If you’re considering NDIS support for yourself, Want to be a participant?

A weekly timetable can help outline a person’s schedule for funding purposes. Use it to show how support fits into ordinary routines, rather than presenting needs as isolated events. For each activity, note what the person is trying to do, what assistance you provide and what happens when that assistance is unavailable. Keep the focus on the participant’s experience and the practical effect of support, not on making a case for a particular outcome.

A timetable can also reveal patterns, such as routines made manageable with help, tasks that take extra effort, or activities missed when support is unavailable. Add a brief explanation when the schedule alone does not show why assistance is needed. Check that the details reflect the participant’s current circumstances and that they are comfortable with what you share. This helps explain how support relates to daily participation and the care you provide.

Pursue Ability: Supported Independent Living (SIL)

Pursue Ability can support participants whose everyday living needs call for help to build or maintain independence. If your statement describes ongoing assistance with daily routines or shared living, explore Supported Independent Living as a possible support to discuss with the participant’s coordinator. The statement can help make the person’s needs and the family’s current caring role clearer, while decisions about supports depend on the participant’s NDIS plan.

Support coordination may also help participants understand their plan and organise supports around their goals. If you’d like to discuss Pursue Ability’s services, call 02 7227 6310 or email enquiries@pursueability.com.au.

Choose a next step that fits your situation

Writing about your caring role can help make your experience part of the conversation about the participant’s support. If you’re still considering how to write a carer impact statement, keep the next step manageable: review your notes, decide what you want the planning team to understand, and prepare to share that information in your own words.

If the family is also exploring practical support, Pursue Ability offers Supported Independent Living (SIL), day programs and allied health. Each service addresses different support needs, so consider what relates to the participant’s goals and daily life. Discuss options with the participant and their support team.

For information about support options, you’re welcome to contact Pursue Ability. Want to be a participant? Your experience matters, and you can take the next step when you feel ready.

Frequently asked questions

Does the NDIS provide an official carer statement template?

No. The NDIS does not require a carer statement or provide a formal template. You can check the NDIS website for scheme information, then use a format that is clear for your circumstances. Before sending it, check that the participant’s name and the purpose of the statement are clear, and remove details that do not help explain the caring situation.

Can I update my statement after sending it?

Yes. If you remember a relevant detail or circumstances change, prepare a dated update and explain what it adds to or corrects in your earlier statement. For example, note if a routine has changed since you sent it. Keep a copy of both versions and tell the person handling the application or review that you have provided updated information.

Should I include a change that has not happened yet?

You can describe a possible future change by explaining what may cause it and how it could affect your caring capacity. For example, say that a planned return to work may reduce the time you can give to a particular task. Make clear that this is a possibility, not a change that has already happened, and relate it to the participant’s support needs.

How can I protect private family details?

Include personal information only when it helps explain the caring arrangement or its effects. You can describe a family responsibility without naming someone or sharing irrelevant sensitive details. Before sharing the statement, consider who needs to read it and remove unnecessary identifying information. If you are unsure whether a detail is relevant, discuss it with the participant or their representative.