Questions people actually ask

Straight answers. Where something depends on your situation, I say so rather than pretending otherwise.

Do I need a Cert III or any qualification?

No — not for everyday support. It's the first thing people ask and the biggest reason good people stop before they start. Personal care and anything clinical need training and, in some cases, registration. Everyday support — household help, meals, shopping, transport, company — doesn't. What you do need is an ABN, insurance, a police check and a current first aid certificate.

What does it actually pay?

The funded rates are published and they're good: $60.10 an hour for house cleaning and other household activities, $59.01 for house or yard maintenance, and $73.58 for community and social participation on a weekday — more on evenings, weekends and public holidays. Be clear about what those numbers are: they're the billing rates, gross, and insurance, tax and your own costs come out of them. See the full rate card.

Is this only for NDIS work?

No. There's NDIS work with self-managed or plan-managed participants, private clients who simply pay you directly, and the aged care side. Which routes are open to you depends on whether you register as an NDIS provider or work as an unregistered sole trader — and there are real differences between those, which the course covers properly.

How much does it cost to get started?

Less than people expect, and far less than a franchise. An ABN is free. The real costs are insurance, a police check and a first aid course. The free training walks through the setup in plain order.

How many hours a week is this?

Most people doing this well work somewhere between ten and twenty-three hours a week, part-time, fitted around family. It's a business you scale when it suits you, not a full-time job you step into.

Do I need to be young or strong?

No. You need to be reasonably mobile and honest about what your body does easily and what it doesn't. Some of the work is physical — vacuuming, gardening, carrying shopping, lifting a walker into the boot — and part of doing it well is choosing work that suits you and handing on what doesn't.

Is this a recognised qualification or accredited training?

No, and it doesn't pretend to be. This is a business course for people starting their own everyday-support business — not vocational training, and not a Cert III or any other qualification. If you want the qualification, that's a TAFE or RTO pathway and we'll tell you so.

Can I fit this around my family?

That's the entire point. The business is built around school hours, term times and the days you have childcare — not the other way round.

Will you get me clients?

No, and nobody honest will promise that. What the course gives you is the local marketing playbook — the community groups, the plan managers, the free meet-and-greet, and what to say. The work of finding the first client is yours, and it's smaller than you think in a small town.

I'm not good with computers. Is that a problem?

No. Invoicing, notes and a simple diary are all it takes to start, and the course shows the cheap, simple tools rather than an expensive system you don't need yet.

Still wondering something? The free training answers most of it — start there, or ring me on 0494 800 799.