Knowledge Articles on disability evidence and eligibility.
Dear National Disability Insurance Agency,
I am requesting access under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), to the following documents and information:
[ START SCOPE OF REQUEST ]
1. Knowledge Article “Log an activity or internal note” (Link: https://ndia.my.salesforce.com/articles/..., obtained from FOI 23.24-1405)
2. Knowledge Article “Understand eligibility reassessment referral requirements” (Link: https://ndia.my.salesforce.com/articles/..., obtained from FOI 23.24-1405)
3. Knowledge Article “What evidence of disability is required?” (Link: https://ndia.my.salesforce.com/articles/..., obtained from FOI 23.24-1405)
4. Knowledge Article “ Understand disability requirements” (Link: https://ndia.my.salesforce.com/articles/..., obtained from FOI 23.24-1405)
5. Knowledge Article “Check treating professional details” (Link: https://ndia.my.salesforce.com/articles/..., obtained from FOI 23.24-1405)
6. All “Knowledge Article - Check evidence for a decision” documents related to assessing eligibility.
Note: Please provide the most recent version of each document, regardless of whether it is a draft or approved version.
[ END SCOPE OF REQUEST ]
I look forward to your response.
Many thanks,
Emily Lacey
Thank you for your email to the National Disability Insurance Agency
(NDIA) Freedom of Information (FOI) team.
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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
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2. https://www.ndis.gov.au/about-us/policie...
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3. https://www.ndis.gov.au/about-us/policie...
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6. https://data.ndis.gov.au/
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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 Emily Lacey,
Freedom of Information Request: Acknowledgement
Thank you for your request of 21 September 2024, made under the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), for copies of documents held by the
National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).
Scope of your Request
You have requested access to:
“ …1. Knowledge Article “Log an activity or internal note” (Link:
[1]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...,
obtained from FOI 23.24-1405)
2. Knowledge Article “Understand eligibility reassessment referral
requirements” (Link:
[2]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...,
obtained from FOI 23.24-1405)
3. Knowledge Article “What evidence of disability is required?” (Link:
[3]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...,
obtained from FOI 23.24-1405)
4. Knowledge Article “ Understand disability requirements” (Link:
[4]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...,
obtained from FOI 23.24-1405)
5. Knowledge Article “Check treating professional details” (Link:
[5]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...,
obtained from FOI 23.24-1405)
6. All “Knowledge Article - Check evidence for a decision” documents
related to assessing eligibility.
Note: Please provide the most recent version of each document, regardless
of whether it is a draft or approved version…”
Irrelevant Information
Section 22 of the FOI Act allows an Agency to redact information from
documents if that information would reasonably be regarded as irrelevant
to a request for access.
Given the nature of your request, it does not seem that NDIA staff
members’ surnames and contact details would be relevant to you. Can you
please send me a reply email confirming that such details are irrelevant
to your request for access?
Processing Timeframes
In accordance with section 15(5)(b) of the FOI Act, a 30-day statutory
period for processing your request commenced from the 22 September 2024.
This 30-day period expires on 21 October 2024.
The 30-day period can be extended in a number of ways, including with your
agreement.
Unfortunately, it may take us a little longer than 30 days to process FOI
requests. I am therefore seeking your agreement to a 15-day extension of
time under section 15AA of the FOI Act. If you agree to this extension,
the new due date for us to decide on your request will be 05 November
2024.
If you do not agree and we are unable to process your request within the
30-day period expiring on 21 October 2024, we will be deemed to have
refused your request and you will not have a right to seek internal review
of that decision. You will, however, retain your right to external review
by the Australian Information Commissioner.
Please let us know if you agree by Tuesday 08 October 2024.
Disclosure Log
Subject to certain exceptions, documents released under the FOI Act will
be published on the NDIA’s disclosure log located on our website.
If you have any concerns about the publication of the documents you have
requested, please contact me.
Next steps
Your request will be allocated to an authorised FOI decision-maker. The
decision-maker may need to contact you to discuss a range of matters,
including refining the scope of your request.
We will contact you using the email address you have provided. Please
advise if you would prefer us to use an alternative means of contact.
In the meantime, if you have any questions or need help, please contact us
at [6][NDIA request email].
Regards
Megan
Freedom of Information Officer
Complaints Management & FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E [7][NDIA request email]
[8]NDIA logo
[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 Megan,
I agree for the surnames and contact details of any staff to be redacted.
Regarding an extension of time:
I do not give my consent for a 15 day extension. I understand that refusing an extension will remove my ability to apply for an internal review, but as stated by the OAIC, the expiry of the timeframe gives the applicant the right to apply for IC review of a deemed decision – it does not remove the agency’s obligation to process the request and provide the requested documents to the applicant as soon as possible.
The decision deadline remains 21 October 2024. With today's date being the 4th, this still allows you 18 days to process this request on time. I hope you are able to use this processing time productively. The agency is welcome to request an extension of time directly from the Information Commissioner if they believe it is justifiable.
Kind regards,
Emily Lacey
Dear Megan,
I didn’t receive a response after declining the 30 day extension. Can you please confirm whether this has been received and actioned appropriately? I just note that there is only 1 week left now of the initial 30 day period.
Kind regards,
Emily Lacey
Hi Emily,
Thank you for your email, I acknowledge your previous correspondence
declining our request for a 15-day extension of time under section 15AA of
the FOI Act.
Unfortunately, as mentioned in our previous email, it may take us longer
than 30 days to process your request.
We apologise for the delay; your request will soon be allocated to an
authorised FOI decision-maker.
The decision-maker may need to contact you to discuss a range of matters.
In the meantime, if you have any questions or need help, please contact us
at [1][email address].
Kind Regards
Megan
Freedom of Information Officer
Complaints Management & FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E [2][NDIA request email]
[3]NDIA logo
[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 Megan,
Again, I hate to tell you something you already know, but this request is 8 days overdue and the agency has now had 38 days to process it. Do you please have an update on when I can expect the documents?
Kind regards,
Emily Lacey
Hi Emily,
Thank you for your email, I apologise for the delay.
Your request has now been assigned to an authorised decision maker and the
Internal Consultation process has commenced.
Unfortunately, I cannot advise you of a date this request will be
completed, however, we endeavour to have this request finalised as soon as
practically possible.
Kind Regards
Megan
Freedom of Information Officer
Governance, Risk & Legal - Complaints Management and FOI
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E [1][email address]
[2]NDIA logo
[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
This request is 19 days overdue and the agency has had 49 days total to process it. Please provide the documents as is required by law.
Hi Emily,
I apologise for the delay in processing your request.
Please note we have now completed the Internal Consultation process and
your application is now in the final stages of processing.
We endeavour to have your request finalised as soon as practically
possible.
Kind Regards
Megan
Freedom of Information Officer
Complaints Management & FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E [1][email address]
[2]NDIA logo
[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 Megan,
I hope you are well. Have you been able to complete this request yet? It's been almost 3 weeks since you said internal consultation had been completed, and the request is now 37 days overdue.
Kind regards,
Emily Lacey
Dear Emily,
Thank you for your email, I apologise for the delay in processing your
request.
I can confirm that this request is in the final stage of processing, we
hope to have this information to you early next week at the latest.
Kind Regards
Megan
Freedom of Information Officer
Governance, Risk & Legal - Complaints Management and FOI
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E [1][email address]
[2]NDIA logo
[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 Megan,
Thank you for the update, fingers crossed I hear from you again soon :)
Kind regards,
Emily Lacey
Dear Emily Lacey
Thank you for your request for information.
Please find attached correspondence and documents in relation to your
request. If you require these 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
Kate (KIM627)
Senior FOI Officer
Complaints Management & FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E [2][NDIA request email]
[3]NDIA logo
[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 Kate,
Thank you for providing the documents.
I'm hoping to pass on some feedback for consideration. It seems that the way the internal documents are being exported has changed recently, and the "version control information" for a document is no longer being included in the copy you release?
It's helpful that the cover page is now showing when the document was exported (this is a welcome addition), but information like the date the document was published, the version number, the version status, and notes about major changes are all really vital parts of being able to understand and contextualise or track the documents.
The version information is (at least from my perspective) an inherent a part of the documents being requested. Internally for staff, that version information is visible when viewing and reading an article in the system, and I think it should continue to be included as part of a document's release without the applicant having to specifically request it in their FOI. If that really isn't possible, are you able to please provide guidance on how an applicant can best include a request for those details in their FOI?
I look forward to your response.
Many thanks,
Emily Lacey
Dear Emily Lacey
Thank you for your feedback.
Consultation has occurred with the relevant business area of the agency
who have responsibility for this suite of documentation.
From this point forwards documents exported from internal systems will
include information to indicate version numbers and dates.
Please contact us at [1][NDIA request email] if you have any questions or
require help.
Thank you.
Kind regards
Kate (KIM627)
Senior FOI Officer
Complaints Management & FOI Branch
General Counsel Division
National Disability Insurance Agency
E [2][NDIA request email]
[3]NDIA logo
[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 Kate,
Thank you for following that up, it's very much appreciated.
I hope you have a good week :)
Many thanks,
Emily Lacey
Emily Lacey left an annotation ()
Thanks Cat, that's very sweet of you to say.
I've put in a request for the version information associated with these documents, plus a few of the other recent requests I've seen with the same issue: https://www.righttoknow.org.au/request/a... Hopefully I didn't miss any, but more requests with the same issue might come through soon anyway if they were collected prior to this convo and just not released yet. We shall see.
Ben Fairless left an annotation ()
This is a fantastic example of an agency taking on board valid feedback and working with applicants to make the process easier for both the agency and for the applicant!
I’m not sure if it’s on the radar of the NDIA but it would be even more awesome if they released these documents as operational information. Services Australia (https://operational.servicesaustralia.go...) is probably the leader in this respect, although I believe there can be some improvement from them as well.
Ben Fairless left an annotation ()
Forgive me, I should’ve checked this before beforehand… the NDIA already has a portal like this!
https://ourguidelines.ndis.gov.au/
Emily Lacey left an annotation ()
Hey Ben – Thanks for taking the time to share the tip! I wish the NDIA was set up to share stuff the way Services Australia does! As far as government agencies go, they definitely fall on the less transparent side of the spectrum haha.
The NDIA have been updating their publicly available Operational Guidelines over the last year to be more consistent and something that the internal staff are referred to consult when looking for information too.
But for the most part, they have the very vague public facing stuff, and then all of the actually useful information about their operations has been in private internal documents. They also often say one thing in the public OGs and then another thing in the internal articles, which is obviously an issue haha.
Cat left an annotation ()
Just wanted to acknowledge how important this and how much I appreciate Emily requesting this change, and Kate for following it up on the NDIA's end. We have so rarely seen systemic feedback actioned when this is all it takes to build goodwill and collaboration. I encourage the NDIA to respond this way more often, because it makes a world of difference to participants, supporters and advocates trying to navigate this system.