Clarifications on Purchasing Rules for Flexible Funding
Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People is providing clarifications to support disabled people, tāngata whaikaha Māori and whānau to apply the Purchasing Rules for flexible funding supports.
You can also view a video message with NZSL from Paula Tesoriero on the Clarifications.
Alternate Formats have been commissioned recently, and will be made available when ready
The clarifications have been informed by the feedback received from our community and providers.
Whaikaha recognises we have a lot to learn from the way we made our announcement on 18 March 2024.
We acknowledge the changes have been distressing and caused confusion for the community, and for the service providers who support disabled people.
We are committed to our partnership approach and the transformation of the disability support system.
The clarifications, are:
i) ride and driver services can be used to support a disabled person to access services or engage with the community, where this is a reasonable and cost-effective option
ii) the following items can be purchased for a disabled person to assist self management, on a one-off basis within a flexible funding allocation period:
- Electronic tablet devices
- Noise cancelling headphones
- Sensory toys, fidget spinners etc
- Weighted blankets
iii) household support arrangements in place through Choice in Community Living or a personal budget can continue, where these arrangements are an alternative to residential care that enables people to live in the community
iv) existing support arrangements can continue where:
- the disabled person has committed to employment, a course of study, therapy, or a timebound programme; and
- they have relied on the availability of flexibility under the previous Purchase Rules to support them to participate in those commitments; and
- that commitment was made before 18 March 2024.
Whaikaha recognises that every person and every situation is different. If you have specific questions about how these changes relate to you, please contact your Needs Assessment and Service Co-ordination service (NASC)/Host or Enabling Good Lives site in the first instance, this information has been shared with them.
Whaikaha is committed to working with disabled people, tāngata whaikaha Māori and whānau to develop longer term settings that are aligned to the Enabling Good Lives vision and principles, UNCRPD and Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Key links:
Video message from Paula Tesoriero
View a video message from Chief Executive Paula Tesoriero on the Clarifications to the Purchase Rules with NZSL.
Captions are available and you can find a transcript below the video. You can also download the transcript as a word document (DOCX 50KB).
Video transcript
Kia ora koutou, I'm Paula Tesoriero the Chief Executive of Whaikaha, the Ministry of Disabled People. My sign name is this, which represents two bicycle pedals moving in a forward direction.
I wanted to do this video to tell you about some extra information we are providing on the Purchasing Rules, while we wait for the documents to be provided to you in New Zealand Sign Language, Easy Read, large print, audio, and Braille.
There's much more information that you can find on our website. Many of you will know about the changes that were made in March to our Purchasing Rules. The Purchasing Rules tell you what disability support you can buy with certain types of funding.
We know that the changes to the rules were confusing and we've had many questions about them. So we have added more information about four different parts of the Purchasing Rules.
The extra information that we have added is about:
• using transport in your community,
• items you can buy with your funding,
• and some of the support arrangements you already have in place.
Firstly, on transport. If you are a disabled person and you need a ride to take you to an appointment or to go out in your community, you can use rideshare services to take you there.
Those services could be companies like Driving Miss Daisy or any rideshare service that can take you where you need to go.
It is important to ask that the transport is accessible and you are safe.
Secondly, some of the other information that we have provided in the rules means that individualised funding, respite, or carer support can be used to buy specific items that a disabled person might need.
So you can now buy the following items:
• an electronic tablet or noise cancelling headphones.
• Sensory toys like fidget spinners
• and weighted blankets.
Please talk with your Enabling Good Lives connector or individualised funding Host about how often you can purchase these items.
And finally, if before the 18th of March, you were using your flexible funding to work or had enrolled in study or booked therapy sessions over a period of time you can continue to do that as long as it was booked before March the 18th.
We hope that this additional information around the Purchasing Rules provides some more reassurance about what you can do with your funding.
If you have any questions or concerns about your own situation and how the Purchasing Rules apply to you, please speak to whomever your primary support person is. This might be your individualised funding Host, your Needs Assessment Service Coordinator, or someone you trust.
And just a reminder, there is more information on our website which you can access via www.whaikaha.govt.nz. Ngā mihi nui, kia koutou katoa.