How to Write an NDIS SIL (Supported Independent Living) Report
Supported Independent Living (SIL) is one of the most heavily scrutinised areas of NDIS funding, because it is high-cost and ongoing. A SIL report has to make a rigorous case: that the person needs this level of support, that it is disability-related, and that the hours are justified.
This guide covers the elements planners expect in a SIL report and how to reason about support hours.
Contents
Establish eligibility clearly
A SIL report should demonstrate that support needs are disability-related and not general living costs, that the level of support is required, and that other options have been considered. Work through the person’s capacity across daily living, safety, and decision-making.
Build a safety and risk picture
SIL exists largely to manage risk. Document risks across domains (personal safety, medical, behavioural, environmental) with concrete examples and the level of support each requires. A vague risk statement will not carry a SIL recommendation.
Justify support hours with reasoning, not assertion
The hardest part of a SIL report is the hours. Break the day into activities (personal care, domestic tasks, community access, overnight support) and reason about the assistance each requires and how often. NDIS benchmarks exist for common patterns, but your report must show why this person needs what you recommend.
Address the dwelling and shared supports
Where relevant, describe the living arrangement, whether support is shared with other residents, and how that affects the hours attributed to this participant. Shared supports change the value-for-money picture planners assess.
Connect everything to goals and reasonable and necessary
As with any NDIS report, each element must trace to the participant’s goals and satisfy Section 34. Independence, participation, and safety should run through the whole document.
Carearoo drafts SIL reports with the eligibility, risk analysis, and support-hour structure planners expect, in your own template, so you refine clinical reasoning rather than assembling structure from scratch.
Frequently asked questions
What makes a SIL report strong?
A clear disability link, a concrete risk picture, and support hours justified activity-by-activity rather than asserted as a total. Planners approve reasoning, not round numbers.
How are SIL support hours calculated?
By reasoning through the participant’s day (personal care, domestic, community, and overnight needs) and the assistance each requires, adjusted for any shared supports in the dwelling.
How this guide was written
Carearoo researches and drafts its guides with AI assistance, working from the primary sources linked in the text, and a person checks every fact against those sources before it is published. Last checked 1 July 2026.
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