information about harmful supports, therapy or early intervention for autistic NDIS participants
Dear National Disability Insurance Agency,
The NDIA, as Respondent in numerous requests for decision reviews made to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT), has claimed in its statements that some support, therapy or early intervention types for young autistic NDIS participants (in the age range 0 to 14 years) either may cause harm or trauma, or be harmful. For example, the NDIA made such claims in the Respondent's
* Statements of Facts, Issues and Contentions at paragraph 52 in DRXK v NDIA (2023/0077) wrote "the Respondent is concerned that high level intervention may be harmful for this Applicant" in relation to the Applicant's request for funding for EIBI/ABA.
* Closing Submissions in QLYQ v NDIA (2021/9898).
The NDIS has shown reluctance at least to fund some support, therapy, and/or early intervention types that clinicians and experts advice are "evidence-based" and "reasonable and necessary". Some NDIA staff claim there is risk of trauma or harm associated with those supports.
Please provide all information:
1. in statements to the AAT, in either an ADR or hearing process, that a support, therapy, or early intervention type requested by the Applicant may either cause harm or trauma, or should be considered harmful for an autistic child or children,
and
2. held by the NDIA that relates to whether or not any support, therapy, or early intervention type may either cause harm or trauma, or should be considered harmful for an autistic child or children generally,
Note: in relation to 1. above, a list of the claims that the NDIA made to the Tribunal or in its ADR process is required with a case identifier. The request is not for information that identifies any Applicants.
Yours faithfully,
Bob Buckley
Thank you for your email to the National Disability Insurance Agency
(NDIA) Freedom of Information (FOI) team.
Please note: due to a high volume of requests, our ability to respond to
you in a timely manner may be affected. We will action your request as
soon as possible and will endeavour to process your matter within the
legislative deadlines. We may need to seek your agreement to an extension
of time. We appreciate your understanding if this is required.
Participant Information
Did you know the NDIA has other ways to access the documents and
information that we hold?
Participants, Guardians and Nominees can obtain copies of some participant
information through our National Contact Centre (NCC). For more
information about what’s available through the NCC, please contact 1800
800 110.
Please visit our [1]Access to Information webpage to find out more about
accessing information through:
* The [2]Participant Information Access (PIA) scheme
* The [3]Information Publication Scheme (IPS)
* The [4]myplace portal for participants
* The [5]myplace portal for providers
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You can also request data and statistics. Please visit our [6]Data and
insights webpage page for further information.
If you are able to obtain your information from a source listed above, you
can withdraw your FOI request by emailing [7][NDIA request email]
Further Information
Information about how to make an FOI request can be found on our website:
[8]Freedom of Information
Should you have a query unrelated to FOI, please contact the Agency by
email at [9][email address] or via webchat at [10]ndis.gov.au.
Alternatively, you can also contact us by phoning 1800 800 110.
Kind regards
Freedom of Information Team
Complaints Management & FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E [11][NDIA request email]
The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.
References
Visible links
1. https://www.ndis.gov.au/about-us/policie...
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2. https://www.ndis.gov.au/about-us/policie...
https://www.ndis.gov.au/about-us/policie...
3. https://www.ndis.gov.au/about-us/policie...
https://www.ndis.gov.au/about-us/policie...
4. https://www.ndis.gov.au/participants/usi...
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5. https://www.ndis.gov.au/providers/workin...
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6. https://data.ndis.gov.au/
https://data.ndis.gov.au/
7. mailto:[NDIA request email]
mailto:[NDIA request email]
8. https://www.ndis.gov.au/about-us/policie...
https://www.ndis.gov.au/about-us/policie...
9. mailto:[email address]
mailto:[email address]
10. https://www.ndis.gov.au/
https://www.ndis.gov.au/
11. mailto:[NDIA request email]
Dear Bob Buckley
Thank you for your request of 2 August 2024, made under the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), for access to documents held by the
National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).
Scope of your request
You have requested access to:
The NDIA, as Respondent in numerous requests for decision reviews made to
the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT), has claimed in its statements
that some support, therapy or early intervention types for young autistic
NDIS participants (in the age range 0 to 14 years) either may cause harm
or trauma, or be harmful. For example, the NDIA made such claims in the
Respondent's
* Statements of Facts, Issues and Contentions at paragraph 52 in DRXK v N
DIA (2023/0077) wrote "the Respondent is concerned that high level
intervention may be harmful for this Applicant" in relation to the
Applicant's request for funding for EIBI/ABA.
* Closing Submissions in QLYQ v NDIA (2021/9898).
The NDIS has shown reluctance at least to fund some support, therapy,
and/or early intervention types that clinicians and experts advice are
"evidence-based" and "reasonable and necessary". Some NDIA staff claim
there is risk of trauma or harm associated with those supports.
Please provide all information:
1. in statements to the AAT, in either an ADR or hearing process, that a
support, therapy, or early intervention type requested by the Applicant
may either cause harm or trauma, or should be considered harmful for an
autistic child or children, and 2. held by the NDIA that relates to
whether or not any support, therapy, or early intervention type may either
cause harm or trauma, or should be considered harmful for an autistic
child or children generally,
Note: in relation to 1. above, a list of the claims that the NDIA made to
the Tribunal or in its ADR process is required with a case identifier.
The request is not for information that identifies any Applicants.”
Processing timeframes
A 30-day statutory period for processing your request commenced from 3
August 2024, in accordance with section 15(5)(b) of the FOI Act. Therefore
the due date for a decision on access is 1 September 2024. However, as
this date had fallen on the weekend, the next available date for you to
receive your decision is Monday 2 September 2024.
This period may be extended if we need to consult with third parties or
for other reasons. We will advise you if this happens.
Irrelevant information
Section 22 of the FOI Act permits us to provide FOI applicants with access
to edited copies of documents with irrelevant material deleted. Can you
please contact us at [1][NDIA request email] to advise whether the surnames and
contact details of NDIA staff are irrelevent to your request?
Charges
We may apply a processing charge to your request and will advise you as
soon as practicable if a charge is payable.
Disclosure Log
Information released under the FOI Act may be published on our disclosure
log,
located on our website at .
If you have any concerns about the publication of information you have
requested, please contact us at [2][NDIA request email].
Further help
Please contact us at [3][NDIA request email] if you have any questions or need
help.
We will contact you using the email address you provided. Please advise if
you would prefer us to use an alternative means of contact.
Warmest regards,
Wendy (WNN633)
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Governance, Risk & Legal - Complaints Management & FOI
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E: [4][NDIA request email]
[5]Title: NDIS delivered by the National Disability Insurance Agency
[6]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic
The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.
[7]Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags graphic
Dear foi,
you asked "Can you please contact us at [1][NDIA request email] to advise whether the surnames and
contact details of NDIA staff are irrelevent to your request?"
No, I don't need to know the surnames or contact details.
Yours sincerely,
Bob Buckley
Dear Bob Buckley
Thank you for your request for information.
I advise that I have initiated internal line area consultations, however I
have yet to receive a response.
I am therefore writing to seek your agreement to a 20-day extension of
time under section 15AA of the FOI Act. If you agree to this extension,
the new due date for us to make a decision on your request will be 22
September 2024.
Can you please let me know whether you agree to this extension by 1 ^
September 2024.
I apologise that it is taking longer than expected to process your request
and appreciate your patience.
Kind regards
Wendy (WNN633)
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Complaints Management and FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E: [1][NDIA request email]
[2]Title: NDIS delivered by the National Disability Insurance Agency
[3]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic
The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.
[4]Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags graphic
Dear Wendy (WNN633)
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
As it would be completely pointless to do otherwise, I agree to a 20-day extension until 22/9/2024.
Yours sincerely,
Yours sincerely,
Bob Buckley
Dear Bob
Hope this email finds you well.
As I am still consulting with the relevant line area on your request.
I ask for your agreement to a 10-day extension of time under section 15AA
of the FOI Act. Making the new due date 2 October 2024.
Therefore, can you please you respond on or before 23 September 2024.
Warmest regards,
Wendy (WNN633)
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Complaints Management and FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E: [1][NDIA request email]
[2]Title: NDIS delivered by the National Disability Insurance Agency
[3]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic
The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.
[4]Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags graphic
Dear foi,
I note your latest request. You say you are asking for a 10-day extension ... but that is on top of the 20-day extension you already took. As I said before "it would be completely pointless to do otherwise", I agree to a further 10-day extension.
Have you seen this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6O7gHI5... ?
Yours sincerely,
Bob Buckley
Dear Bob
Thank you for your request for information.
Please find attached correspondence in relation to your request. If you
require this in a different format, please let us know.
Please contact us at [1][NDIA request email] if you have any questions or
require help.
Thank you.
Kind regards
Wendy (WNN633)
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Complaints Management and FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E: [2][NDIA request email]
[3]Title: NDIS delivered by the National Disability Insurance Agency
[4]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic
The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.
[5]Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags graphic
Dear foi,
I am prepared to limit the period of interest to the period since (not including) 2019.
Of course, if you just search for "autism" there will be a large number of documents. But if you search, as you suggest, for the terms "autism" or "autistic" and "aba" or "applied bevaviour" and "harm" or "harmful" or "trauma" ... there will be far fewer documents. And if you check documents for whether "harm" or "trauma" is associated in the document with "ABA" or "applied behaviour" you will quickly reduce the number further.
My interest is in a) the document identifiers and just the parts of the documents that claim therapy or intervention causing harm to autistic people, and b) the evidence supporting those claims.
I made an FoI request because the FoI legislation is legislation, has time frames and review processes. My other data requests made to your Agency had limited success. I prefer to keep this as an FoI request.
Yours sincerely,
Bob Buckley
Dear Bob
Thank you for your email.
I sincerely apologise for the delayed response. I advise that I have had
some time off and was not able to progress your matter until now.
I have reviewed the suggestions to the amended scope made by you in your
reply email on 2 October 2024. At this stage, I am unsure you have
narrowed your scope enough to remove the practical refusal reason.
The purpose of this email is to request you agree to extending the 24AB
Consultation process for a further 7 days. This will give me an
opportunity to consult with the business area to determine if your
revision is feasible, and if not, to seek suggestions that I can come back
to you with.
By agreeing to the extended consultation time, you matter will not be
deemed and your internal review rights will not be impacted.
Can I please ask that you respond with your agreement by 11:59pm 15
October 2024 (today).
Please contact us at [1][NDIA request email] if you have any questions or
require help.
Warmest regards
Wendy (WNN633)
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Complaints Management and FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E: [2][NDIA request email]
[3]Title: NDIS delivered by the National Disability Insurance Agency
[4]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic
The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.
[5]Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags graphic
Dear Bob
I hope this email finds you well.
I am writing to seek your agreement to extend the 24AB consultation
process for an additional 7 days, noting today is the last day of the
extension to the 24AB Consultation process.
I advise that the relevant business area is yet to confirm if the revised
scope is feasible. However, they have committed to provide this advice by
the end of this week.
If you agree to this request for a 7-day extension your matter will not be
deemed, and you will maintain your internal review rights.
Can you please provide a response to this request by 11:59pm 22 October
2024 (today).
Please contact me at [1][NDIA request email] if you have any questions or
require help.
Warmest regards
Wendy (WNN633)
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Complaints Management and FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E: [2][NDIA request email]
[3]Title: NDIS delivered by the National Disability Insurance Agency
[4]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic
The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.
[5]Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags graphic
From: foi <[NDIA request email]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 15, 2024 4:30 PM
To: 'Bob Buckley' <[FOI #11825 email]>
Cc: foi <[NDIA request email]>
Subject: RE: FOI 24/25-0144 – Communication - Request for Consultation
Process [SEC=OFFICIAL]
Dear Bob
Thank you for your email.
I sincerely apologise for the delayed response. I advise that I have had
some time off and was not able to progress your matter until now.
I have reviewed the suggestions to the amended scope made by you in your
reply email on 2 October 2024. At this stage, I am unsure you have
narrowed your scope enough to remove the practical refusal reason.
The purpose of this email is to request you agree to extending the 24AB
Consultation process for a further 7 days. This will give me an
opportunity to consult with the business area to determine if your
revision is feasible, and if not, to seek suggestions that I can come back
to you with.
By agreeing to the extended consultation time, you matter will not be
deemed and your internal review rights will not be impacted.
Can I please ask that you respond with your agreement by 11:59pm 15
October 2024 (today).
Please contact us at [6][NDIA request email] if you have any questions or
require help.
Warmest regards
Wendy (WNN633)
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Complaints Management and FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E: [7][NDIA request email]
[8]Title: NDIS delivered by the National Disability Insurance Agency
[9]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic
The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.
[10]Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags graphic
Dear Bob
I hope this email finds you well.
I am writing to seek your agreement to extend the 24AB consultation
process for a further 7 days, noting today is the last day of the
extension to the 24AB Consultation process.
In my previous email, I advised that the pending advice from the relevant
business area was anticipated to be received by 25 October 2024. However,
I have only recently been provided the advice and require more time to
deliberate and enquire on the feasibility of your scope.
I acknowledge that I had committed to providing you with a response on
your scope by today and sincerely apologise for not being able to do so.
Can I please ask that you provide a response to this request for extension
by 11:59pm 29 October 2024 (today).
If you agree to this request for a 7-day extension your matter will not be
deemed, and you will maintain your internal review rights.
Please contact me at [1][NDIA request email] if you have any questions or
require help.
Warmest regards
Wendy (WNN633)
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Complaints Management and FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E: [2][NDIA request email]
[3]Title: NDIS delivered by the National Disability Insurance Agency
[4]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic
The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.
[5]Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags graphic
Dear foi,
I agree to a further 7-day extension. Please note that means I have granted 64-days of extension in this matter.
Yours sincerely,
Bob Buckley
Dear Bob
Thank you for your request for information.
Please find attached correspondence in relation to your request. If you
require this in a different format, please let us know.
Please contact us at [1][NDIA request email] if you have any questions or
require help.
Thank you.
Kind regards
Wendy (WNN633)
Senior Freedom of Information Officer
Complaints Management and FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E: [2][NDIA request email]
[3]Title: NDIS delivered by the National Disability Insurance Agency
[4]LGBTIQA+ rainbow graphic
The NDIA acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout
Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We
pay our respects to them and their cultures and to Elders past, present
and emerging.
[5]Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags graphic
Renee left an annotation ()
Hey Bob, the decision can be contested as failing to account for practical solutions, such as releasing the information incrementally or identifying specific subsets of documents to fulfill the request without causing a significant diversion of resources.
Here's why this refusal may not hold under scrutiny:
1. Incremental Disclosure:
The NDIA could reasonably offer to process the request in smaller batches, providing the requester with access to manageable portions of documents over time, as required under FOI principles.
2. Lack of Evidence of Significant Diversion:
While the NDIA cited a large volume of documents, it did not clearly demonstrate why incremental processing or narrowing the scope further would still result in an unreasonable diversion of resources.
3. Section 24AA of the FOI Act:
This provision allows refusal only if it’s genuinely impossible to process the request due to resource diversion. If the agency can mitigate the burden with strategies like staggered processing, it cannot justifiably rely on this provision.
4. Insufficient Engagement in Consultation:
While the NDIA engaged in consultations, it seems they were unwilling to explore creative solutions like providing a prioritized list of claims or key case documents.
5. Public Interest Test:
The subject of the request—potential harm to autistic children from therapies—clearly aligns with the public interest, strengthening the case for disclosure.
You can challenge this decision. Here's how:
Request Internal Review: Highlight that the refusal decision fails to explore reasonable alternatives, such as staggered or prioritized processing.
Apply to the OAIC: Lodge a review with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC), emphasizing the public interest and manageable alternatives.
Use the emails I sent you a while back as a template
Bob Buckley left an annotation ()
There are only 20 matters in the AAT that mention autism and ABA. The amount of material that would need review for part 1 of the request clearly is not a problem. A scan of the evidence that the NDIA provided as evidence in those 20 cases would not be especially arduous.
It is very clear that the NDIA avoided answering this FoI. It seems that they do not wish to address the underlying challenge on an evidential basis.
Renee left an annotation ()
It's what I did to get mine across the line, the long one i sent to you. 15,000 pages sent in increments. They cannot refuse if the request is reasonable. They tried the "reduce scope, I refused. Then we compromised on them sending weekly batches. I'd you want me to send you a copy as template let me know.
David Wright left an annotation ()
When you were origially told the scope of your request was too large, you advised the agancy that the period of your request could be limited in scope to a date range from 2019.
The basis of the agency's refusal is that 'After a series of communications with AAB regarding this revised scope, they have advised that the request remains unmanageable and would still involve a substantial and unreasonable diversion of the Agency’s resources".
A more productive apporach by the NDIA might have been to actually tell you what date range would have made the scope 'manageable'. Rather than just refusing your request.
Do you need to keep making repated FOI requests with different date ranges to hopefully 'guess' the right one?