The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission (NDIS Commission) is an agency subject to the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act). We are required to comply with the IPS requirements. This plan describes how we do this, as required by subsection 8(1) of the FOI Act.
Purpose of the IPS agency plan
The purpose of NDIS Commission's agency plan is to:
- ensure that we comply with subsection 8(1) of the FOI Act;
- help us to plan and develop our IPS entries; and
- show what information we publish (IPS holdings) and how we publish it.
Our IPS objectives
Our IPS objectives are to:
- ensure proper management of our IPS entries;
- identify and publish all information required to be published under subsection 8(2) of the FOI Act;
- ensure satisfactory conformance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (Version 2) (WCAG 2.0); and
- adopt best practice initiatives in implementing, administering and reviewing our IPS holdings and contribution to the IPS.
Establishing and administering our IPS
The NDIS Commission commenced operations on:
- 1 July 2018 in NSW and SA
- 1 July 2019 in Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, the ACT and the Northern Territory
- 1 December 2020 in Western Australia.
Our Executive Leadership Team is responsible for ensuring:
- that information the FOI Act requires us to publish is available on our website
- the accuracy, currency and integrity of published information relevant to our responsibilities
- that appropriate resources are dedicated to complying with our IPS obligations.
Our General Counsel supports and advises the Executive Leadership Team about:
- our IPS responsibilities; and
- the publication of information as part of the IPS.
Publication of IPS information
Where practicable, IPS information is available for downloading directly from the NDIS Commission’s website. Alternatively, IPS holdings are available for downloading from linked websites or through direct requests via a nominated contact officer.
When we may charge for accessing IPS documents
We may charge a person for accessing an IPS document which is impracticable to publish online. Any charges will be consistent with the Freedom of Information (Charges) Regulations 2019. The charges will be an amount that does not exceed the actual costs incurred by us for specific reproduction or other specific incidental costs.
IPS entries architecture
We publish IPS information on our website so it's available to the public.
Our website has an Information Publication Scheme section which contains this Plan and links to information about the Commission and our role.
Our website has a search function at the top right hand corner so the public can search for IPS information.
The IPS section of the website is highlighted by the use of the IPS icon recommended by the Information Commissioner. This icon helps the public quickly locate our IPS information.
It's important that IPS information is accessible to all members of the public. Our website has several accessibility features. More information is available on the Accessibility page.
Information required to be published
We publish information about the following subjects on the Information Publication Scheme section of our website.
About the scheme
This is a background summary of the IPS.
IPS Agency Plan
The plan is on this page and complies with paragraph 8(2)(a) of the FOI Act.
About the Commission
The Who we are page has links to information about our structure and the statutory appointment of the NDIS Commissioner, complying with paragraphs 8(2)(b) and (d) of the FOI Act.
The page also has links to:
- our governance information
- job vacancies
- documents and web pages about our responsibilities including legislation, rules and guidelines.
Corporate documents
The Corporate reports page has links to web pages about our:
- contract listing and annual reports
- corporate plan
- guidance documents
Disclosure Log
The FOI Disclosure Log page has a link to our Disclosure Log complying with paragraph 8(2)(g) of the FOI Act.
How we otherwise comply with the IPS requirements
The NDIS Commission further complies with IPS requirements through:
- having regard to relevant guidelines issued by the Information Commissioner under section 93A of the FOI Act; and
- co-operating with Information Commissioner reviews of the IPS.