What is a Local Area Coordinator or LAC?

APM Communities is a partner in the community to the National Disability Insurance Scheme or NDIS in parts of Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia.

As part of this partnership with the NDIS, APM Communities delivers Local Area Coordinator (LAC) services to people with disability aged 7 and above.

LACs are skilled staff who support people with disability including those from Aboriginal, LGBTIQA+ and people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities:

• Understand and access the NDIS: This can include conversations, information sessions or specialised workshops about the scheme.
• Create a plan: For those eligible for an NDIS plan, an LAC will have a conversation to get insight into a person’s situation, current supports available from family, friends, community and disability services, and their goals. This information is used by the LAC to develop an NDIS plan which is sent for approval by a staff delegate at the National Disability Insurance Agency.
• Plan Implementation: Once their plan is approved, an LAC will support an NDIS participant to connect with the community, mainstream and funded services outlined in their NDIS plan to help them achieve their goals. An LAC can also provide help throughout a participant’s plan if they have queries or concerns. APM Communities have created a series of online plan implementation workshops to help participants linked with APM embark on their NDIS journey.
• NDIS plan review: The LAC will work with an existing NDIS participant to make changes to their plan during a plan review if this is required.
• Mainstream and Community Supports: An LAC assists people link with the NDIS and to mainstream and community supports including health, transport, and education.
• Community Access: An LAC works with their local community to make it more inclusive for all people with disability.

Not every person with a disability will be eligible for an NDIS Plan, if you or the person you care for needs help, APM can still support you with information and making a connection to mainstream and community organisations. Supports offered by these organisations are available to all Australians including people with disability.

As part of the NDIS Partners in the Community program, APM Communities help people with disability in several regions in Western Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory to access support.