Medium term accommodation (MTA) in Logan and Brisbane

Medium term accommodation (MTA) is NDIS funding for somewhere to live when you have a long-term home lined up but can't move in yet, because your disability supports aren't ready. The NDIS usually funds it for up to 90 days. Trailblazer offers MTA rooms in our two supported homes on Logan Reserve Road, Waterford West, for people across Logan, Ipswich, Brisbane and Redland Bay.

MTA pays for the room. It does not pay for your support, so the care you need while you stay with us comes from the other supports in your plan, such as SIL or personal care.

Who medium term accommodation is for

MTA is a bridge. It's for people who know where they're going but can't get there yet. Common situations:

• You've been offered a place in Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) and the vacancy isn't ready for another few weeks.
• Your own home is having modifications done, such as a bathroom refit, and you can't use it until the work is finished.
• You're waiting for equipment like a ceiling hoist to be installed in your new home.
• You've been offered a room in a SIL or ILO home and are waiting for someone to move out.
• You're ready to leave hospital, but the place you were living no longer suits your needs.

It isn't emergency housing or crisis accommodation. The NDIS guideline is clear that you need a home to move into afterwards. If you're homeless or at risk, your state housing service is the first call, and we can point you in the right direction.

What the NDIS says about MTA

These are the NDIA's rules, not ours. We've summarised them from the NDIS medium term accommodation guideline, which was rechecked when this page was written.

To be eligible, you must meet all three of these criteria:

1. You have a long-term home you'll move into after MTA.
2. You can't move into that home yet because your disability supports aren't ready.
3. You can't stay where you're living now while you wait.

You'll usually need evidence for each one, such as a letter offering you a place, a tenancy offer, or proof that home modifications are under way. The NDIA also asks for the date you expect to move, generally within 90 days.

The 90 days can be extended in limited situations, where there's evidence you need longer because of your disability support needs. MTA is a one-off support. It isn't a standalone item either, and the NDIA only adds it to a plan alongside your other home and living supports.

MTA funding covers the cost of the accommodation only. It doesn't cover food, internet or electricity, and it doesn't cover personal care. Those come from your own money or from other supports in your plan.

We'll go through exactly what you'll pay for before your stay starts, so there are no surprises.

Leaving hospital into MTA

The rules are a little different if you're being discharged from hospital. You can have MTA added to your plan if you're eligible for SDA, SIL, ILO or home modifications, and you don't need a confirmed long-term home yet. The point is to help you leave hospital sooner while your long-term home is found.

For someone in our area, that might mean a stay at Logan Hospital, the Princess Alexandra Hospital or another Brisbane hospital, followed by a wait for SDA or a SIL vacancy. We don't have formal arrangements with any hospital. What we do have is a registered nurse who reviews referrals with clinical needs. Exavier Rikonda, our founder, has been a Registered Nurse for 14 years, so if the person leaving hospital has a catheter, a PEG tube or a wound that needs dressing, the referral is reviewed by someone who knows that care.

If you're a discharge planner or social worker, send the referral as early as you can, even before a date is set. We reply within 12 to 24 hours. The professional referral form lets you attach clinical notes and record consent.

What we don't do

We don't provide SDA, so we can't offer you an SDA place at the end of your MTA stay. We also don't provide support coordination or plan management. Your support coordinator is usually the person who pulls the MTA evidence together, and we're happy to work with them.

No provider can approve NDIS funding, including MTA. Only the NDIA decides what goes in your plan. If a provider tells you they can get your funding approved, be careful. How we manage risk, incidents and complaints is set out on our quality and safeguarding page.