Getting Registered as a New Entry Level PBS Practitioner
Rebecca Kim
Introduction
I get a lot of questions about registering as a Behaviour Support Practitioner. There’s information on the NDIS Quality & Safeguards Commission website, of course, however it doesn’t quite answer some of the finer process or situational questions. Sometimes people find out they’ve selected an inappropriate pathway, or even worse, find out about a requirement when their application is already in so they have to scramble to comply before their deadline.
To hopefully help you avoid that, let’s talk about the process and what to expect.
Set Up
Firstly, you’ll need to get all your set up out of the way. Make sure you’re signed up to MyID and have access to the NDIS Applications Portal. This is where you’ll submit your application and check for updates.
Supervision
Once you’re ready to get your application underway, you need to organise yourself a Supervisor. You won’t be able to submit your application without supporting documentation from a PBS Supervisor. If they are a PBS Practitioner (rather than a Psychologist, for example) they must be endorsed as at least Proficient Level within the PBS Capability Framework to supervise. I suggest reaching out as soon as possible to lock in a spot with someone you think will be a good fit. Of course, I would love if that was with us, but only you know who you think you’ll work well with.
Documentation
Next, you’ll select which pathway you’re going to apply through. This is dependent on the experience you already have. There’s only 2 to choose from - New Entry Level and Self-Assessment. Don’t worry if these names don’t mean anything to you; I’m going to cover both of these pathways in articles on this site. The first one I’m going to discuss within this article is the New Entry Level choice.
New Entry Level is the pathway that most of my Supervisees choose. In general, it’s the path you choose when you have a relevant qualification and/or some type of experience within the disability or a similar field. You’ve never been a PBS Practitioner before, but you’re pretty sure you can figure it out with the right support and resources. When you take this pathway, you’re saying, “I don’t know how to be a practitioner yet, but I have enough knowledge and skills to start, and I promise I’m going to continue developing so I can become competent within the next year”.
You’ll need to prepare a few things for this pathway, and you’ll need the support of your Supervisor.
The typical documentation you can prepare on your own:
New Entry Level Practitioner Declaration Form - This can be found on the NDIS Quality & Safeguards Commission website just by searching this document’s name on Google. However, don’t be fooled by the first page, there’s a checklist at the end which you need to complete, sign, and submit.
Certified copies of any relevant Qualifications you have - Make sure this is certified as an original by a JP!
Current Resume showing your relevant experience - No need to include your experience 15 years ago as a Subway Artist
Any other documentation from previous work or study which feels relevant. E.g. Positive Behaviour Support Plan written using a case study from university, etc.
In addition to the above, you’ll need your Supervisor’s signature to submit:
Supervision Agreement - They’ll prepare this for you when you sign up for Supervision with an organisation. Make sure it includes Supervision Learning Goals that you’re going to work towards together, and that it lists Supervision at a frequency which seems appropriate - I recommend weekly or fortnightly for those just starting out. Be mindful that there’s been a recent push to have prospective practitioners who will be the sole BSP at their organisation receive support through the hiring of a Proficient Level or above BSP. If this isn’t possible, you might have to see about increasing your other supports such as Supervision frequency.
Professional Development Plan - A blank template of a plan is sitting in our ‘Store’ page if you’d like some inspiration. I’m going to write a whole separate article on this in the future so keep an eye out!
Submitting Your Application
Once you’ve got everything ready, head back onto the NDIS Applications Portal and start your application!
My general tips for this part are:
Submit as quickly as you can after you have all your documentation ready. The wait times can sometimes be 2 weeks for a response, but I’ve had Supervisees experience waits of 3+ months.
Make sure all the signatures are either electronic or handwritten. They won’t accept any typed signatures.
It’s recommended to submit all your documents as Pdf files.
If you’re taking this pathway, please double check you’ve selected the New Entry Level pathway before you submit as if you’ve accidentally chosen Self-Assessment you’ll have to withdraw it and resubmit.
Don’t list your Supervision organisation as where you’ll be working. If you haven’t yet found a job, you don’t have to write an organisation in as there’s currently no technical requirement to be employed as a PBS Practitioner somewhere before you start.
Make sure you’ve completed your NDIS Worker Screening as you’ll need to provide your number with your application. If you’ve never worked in the disability field before then you might need to seek employment sooner to gain access to this. The Worker Screening website can tell you more.
Do another check through all of your documents and information before you hit that final submit button.
It’s Submitted, Now What?
Check, check, and check again! Most people receive an email notifying them of a change in their application, however it’s not always the case. I’ve had Supervisees who didn’t receive an email, didn’t receive an outcome letter, and some where they couldn’t get into their Application or into their just created PBS Practitioner profile - sometimes it ends up being quite a mess with lots of email exchanges and calls sitting on hold.
You might check and there’s a new notification in there, asking you to do or change something. Don’t panic, this is not uncommon and is usually something minor like a missed signature, inconsistent dates, or corrupted file. On the off chance that it’s something you can’t sort out alone, ask advice from your Supervisor.
Usually after you move into the stage where they’re looking at your Application - ‘Assessment’ - you’re higher up the list and can expect that your outcome might be getting close. If it’s been sitting unchanged for a couple of weeks in this status, it’s worthwhile sending an email to them to check in on the progress.
Be mindful that until you receive your outcome where you’ve been assessed as ‘Suitable’, you won’t be able to start working as a PBS Practitioner. It can be difficult waiting, but much worse to get in trouble with the NDIS Quality & Safeguards Commission before you’ve even started!
Conclusion
The above represents my experience as a Supervisor over the last few years and what I’ve detailed above can change at any time (such is the nature of NDIS). Regardless, I hope this has made the process seem clearer and less intimidating. As always, we’d be more than happy to help you with your application as your Supervisor, and we’ll continue bringing you more information on becoming a PBS Practitioner to help you with getting started.
