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NDIS, Counselling and Creative Arts Therapy: Understanding the Current Pathways
- Shane Warren
- 2 days ago
- 7 min read
GENERAL STATEMENT
For Immediate Release
10th August 2026
An AAMHP Member Practice Update | August 2026 | Please Read the Full Update
For mental health practitioners, the National Disability Insurance Scheme can sometimes feel like a complicated beast. There is the NDIA, the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, registered and unregistered providers, different registration groups, professional requirements and, importantly, an NDIS environment that continues to evolve.
For AAMHP members, however, there is an important point worth understanding: counselling and art therapy are currently recognised by the NDIS as therapy supports, and both Counsellor and Art Therapist are identified within the NDIS Commission's professional requirements associated with Registration Group 0128 – Therapeutic Supports.
That does not mean that holding a counselling or art therapy qualification automatically makes someone eligible to become a registered NDIS therapeutic provider. There are additional professional, practice and regulatory requirements to understand. This member update provides a starting point for practitioners considering whether working within the NDIS might form part of their professional pathway.
Counselling is recognised within NDIS Therapeutic Supports
The current NDIS guidance specifically includes counselling among the types of therapy supports that may be funded where the support meets NDIS funding criteria. The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission also identifies Counsellor as a profession associated with Registration Group 0128 – Therapeutic Supports.
This is particularly relevant for vocationally and tertiary-trained counsellors who may not always recognise the potential role their profession can play within disability and psychosocial disability services.
For registration purposes, however, the Commission does not simply specify that possession of a particular counselling qualification automatically establishes eligibility. Its current professional requirements identify membership with the Australian Counselling Association (ACA), registration with the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia (PACFA) as an accredited PACFA Registrant, or full membership with Certified Practicing Counsellors Australia (CPCA). The practitioner must also have experience in the profession and evidence of involvement in clinical supervision and continuing professional development in accordance with the requirements of the relevant professional body.
This distinction matters.
A Diploma, Bachelor's or Master's qualification in counselling may provide the educational foundation for professional practice, but the qualification should not, by itself, be interpreted as confirmation of eligibility to register as an NDIS provider. Practitioners need to consider whether their qualification and professional standing enable them to meet the professional requirements specified by the NDIS Commission.
For AAMHP members, a useful way of thinking about this is:
Your counselling qualification may provide a pathway into NDIS therapeutic practice, but professional recognition, appropriate experience, clinical supervision, professional development and the relevant NDIS provider requirements also form part of that pathway.
What about art therapists?
Creative arts therapies also have a recognised place within the current NDIS framework.
The NDIA specifically identifies art therapy as an example of a therapy support that may be funded, subject to the support meeting the relevant NDIS funding criteria. The NDIS Commission identifies Art Therapist as a profession associated with Registration Group 0128 – Therapeutic Supports.
For an Art Therapist, the Commission currently specifies Professional Membership with the Australian, New Zealand and Asian Creative Arts Therapy Association (ANZACATA), together with experience in the profession and evidence of clinical supervision and professional development as required by ANZACATA.
Again, the important principle is professional eligibility rather than simply possession of a qualification. Practitioners should ensure that their education, professional membership and ongoing practice requirements meet the standards of the professional body recognised for their discipline.
This is particularly important in creative therapies because there has been considerable public discussion and policy development around art and music therapy within the NDIS. Members should therefore be cautious about relying on older articles, social media commentary or historical information when making decisions about their professional practice.
Being an NDIS provider and being a registered NDIS provider are not the same thing
One of the most confusing aspects of the NDIS is the distinction between providing an NDIS-funded support and being a registered NDIS provider.
Providers can currently operate as either registered or unregistered providers, although the circumstances in which registration is mandatory continue to evolve.
For many supports, participants whose funding is self-managed or plan-managed can currently choose registered or unregistered providers. By contrast, services purchased using NDIA-managed funding must be delivered by registered providers. There are also particular categories of support where registration is mandatory regardless of how the participant's funding is managed.
This means that an appropriately qualified and professionally recognised counsellor or art therapist may potentially provide an eligible NDIS-funded therapeutic support without personally operating a registered NDIS business, depending upon the participant's funding arrangements, the nature of the support and all applicable NDIS requirements.
Another pathway may be employment or contracting with an established provider. For practitioners new to disability services, working within an established organisation can also provide valuable exposure to NDIS systems, interdisciplinary practice, documentation and disability-focused service delivery before considering whether independent provider registration is appropriate.
Practitioners should never assume, however, that because a participant has NDIS funding, any service they ordinarily provide can automatically be charged to that participant's plan. The support itself must be an appropriate NDIS support and align with the participant's funding.
What if I want to become a registered provider myself?
For Counsellors and Art Therapists delivering therapeutic services, the relevant registration group identified by the NDIS Commission is currently:
0128 – Therapeutic Supports.
Registration Group 0128 currently requires a Verification audit. This differs from a Certification audit, which applies to a range of higher-risk or more complex registration groups.
Registration is nevertheless a serious professional and business commitment. Becoming registered involves applying through the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, undergoing the appropriate audit against the relevant NDIS Practice Standards, satisfying the Commission's suitability assessment and maintaining the requirements associated with registration.
For a practitioner exploring this pathway, the journey might therefore look broadly like:
Professional qualification → recognised professional standing → appropriate professional experience → clinical supervision and CPD → NDIS and disability practice capability → appropriate business and practice systems → application and verification audit → NDIS Commission suitability assessment → registration.
Registration should therefore be viewed as more than obtaining an NDIS provider number. It involves accepting continuing responsibilities for quality, safety, governance and compliance.
NDIS therapy is about disability-related function and capacity
There is another important distinction for mental health practitioners considering NDIS work.
NDIS funding is not simply another mechanism for funding ordinary mental health treatment.
The NDIA describes therapy supports as supports that can help participants improve or maintain skills and independence in everyday activities. These can include communication, interpersonal interaction, community living, personal care and psychosocial functioning, including areas such as problem-solving and decision-making.
For counsellors working with people experiencing psychosocial disability, this can create an important area of professional practice, but practitioners need to understand how therapeutic work connects with disability-related functioning and the participant's NDIS goals.
Consider a participant whose psychosocial disability significantly affects emotional regulation, relationships, decision-making and their capacity to participate independently in community life. Appropriate counselling might help the person develop emotional regulation strategies, strengthen communication and interpersonal skills, improve coping and decision-making, and progressively increase their capacity to participate in everyday life.
The therapeutic work therefore has a clear connection to function, capacity, participation and independence.
That is different from assuming that because a participant experiences depression, anxiety or another mental health condition, the NDIS will simply fund psychotherapy to treat that condition. The relationship between health treatment and disability support needs to be understood and respected.
The same principle applies to art therapy. Art therapy recognised as an NDIS therapy support involves professional therapeutic practice directed towards appropriate disability-related outcomes. Providing an enjoyable creative activity or social art group does not automatically turn that activity into NDIS-funded art therapy simply by describing it as therapeutic.
Where should members begin?
If you are considering NDIS work, resist the temptation to begin with the question, “How do I get an NDIS provider number?”
A better starting point is:
Where does my profession fit within the NDIS, and am I currently professionally and practically ready to work in that environment?
Review your qualification and professional membership. Understand the requirements applying to your profession. Consider your experience working with disability and psychosocial disability. Examine your supervision arrangements, continuing professional development, insurance and scope of practice. Learn how NDIS goals, functional outcomes, documentation, safeguarding and participant choice and control affect the way services are delivered.
From there, you can make a more informed decision about whether your best pathway is employment with an established provider, contracting within the sector, working as an appropriately qualified unregistered provider where this is permitted, or pursuing registration in your own right.
The NDIS offers genuine opportunities for appropriately qualified mental health practitioners, including counsellors and creative arts therapists. Those opportunities also carry responsibilities. Good NDIS practice requires more than knowing how to deliver your professional intervention; it requires understanding disability practice, the NDIS environment and the professional and regulatory boundaries within which that intervention is being delivered.
For AAHJP members, that is perhaps the most useful place to begin.
Further Information
Members considering NDIS practice should consult the official NDIS Guide to Becoming a Provider, the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission registration requirements, and the current information concerning Therapy Supports before making decisions about registration or service delivery.
Helpful Resources
If you are considering NDIS engagement at all you should be familiar with these vital resources:
Important information and disclaimer
This member update is provided by AAMHP for general professional information and education only. It does not constitute legal, regulatory, financial or professional registration advice, nor does AAMHP membership of an individual practitioner constitute endorsement or confirmation of that practitioner's eligibility to deliver a particular NDIS support or become a registered NDIS provider.
The information in this article is believed to be accurate as at August 2026 and has been prepared with reference to information published by the National Disability Insurance Agency and the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. The NDIS is currently undergoing significant reform and policy development, and provider registration, funding, pricing, professional requirements and the supports able to be funded may change.
Practitioners are responsible for confirming the requirements applicable to their individual qualifications, professional membership, scope of practice and proposed services. Members should always refer to current information published by the NDIA and NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, together with guidance from their relevant professional association, before commencing or changing NDIS-related practice.
This update has been prepared by Shane Warren, Chair and Susan Sandy, Secretary of AAMHP for information purposes.
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