Most people who meet access for psychosocial disability receive PRC hours rather than Support Coordination. That makes the PRC the person who must combine two things: deep NDIS know‑how and a mental‑health‑informed approach.

If the role stops at “setting goals,” it’s only doing half the job. A PRC should understand the scheme end to end and help translate it into daily life so supports actually work for you.

A PRC isn’t there to make you fit a plan. They make the plan fit your life.

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The Heart of the Role

A PRC works with you to figure out what your version of living well looks like. There’s no one‑size‑fits‑all.

That might include:

• Exploring what makes your days feel stable and safe
• Finding supports and environments that reduce stress and increase comfort
• Helping you navigate services and systems without getting overwhelmed
• Strengthening and maintaining your own network
• Checking that your supports are still the right fit and making changes when needed

It’s not therapy or case management. It’s listening, adapting, and making sure your supports work for you.

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NDIS Know‑How, In Practice

A PRC should be fluent in the NDIS so you don’t have to carry it alone. In practice, that looks like:

• Explaining what’s in and out of scope in plain language, and which budget types can fund what
• Preparing and organising evidence for s48 plan variations and s100 reviews, with clear reasons and timelines
• Coordinating letters and reports from clinicians or services so they speak to reasonable and necessary criteria
• Navigating the portal and paperwork, keeping track of plan dates, service agreements and contact points
• Linking across systems, not just NDIS: public mental health, GP, housing, AOD, community supports
• Advocating in case conferences, and escalating issues when something blocks access or safety
• Planning for risk and crisis, so harder days don’t derail everything

This is the system literacy that makes the mental‑health side possible, not an optional extra.

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Why PRC Can Feel Like “Support Coordination Plus”

Because many people don’t have separate SC hours, a PRC often combines two approaches:

• Practical: connecting you with services, solving issues, keeping the plan moving
• Mental‑health informed: checking how supports fit your life, pacing with your energy, protecting your capacity

When both are present, you’re more likely to feel organised and understood.

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PRC vs Support Coordination

Both roles help you connect with services, but the focus is different.

Support Coordination

Connects you to supports and services

Goal: get your plan working as intended

Often short‑term or task‑focused

Works across all disability types

Psychosocial Recovery Coaching

Looks at how those supports actually fit your life and wellbeing

Goal: make sure supports help you live the way you want

Often longer‑term and relationship‑focused

Specialises in psychosocial disability and recovery principles

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What PRC Work Looks Like When It’s Done Well

A PRC doing the role well will:

• Ask how life feels for you, not just what you’ve done
• Adjust pace and expectations if you need more space or time
• Help you plan for both high‑energy days and low‑energy days
• Share tools and options without pressure to “prove progress”
• Support you to set boundaries and change things when they’re not working
• Explain pathways for plan changes and help you decide if, when and how to use them

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Why This Role Exists

Before PRCs, many people were left juggling services alone with no one connecting the bigger picture. The role exists to bring a mental‑health lens into the scheme and to make the NDIS understandable and usable without burning you out.

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Questions to Reflect On

• Do my supports feel like they actually work for me?
• Do I understand my options and the pathways to change my plan if I need to?
• Can I say what’s not working without worrying I’ll lose the support?
• Is the pace of things matching my needs and energy?

If most of these feel like a yes, your PRC is likely doing the role well.

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Final thought:
A PRC brings NDIS literacy together with a mental‑health‑informed approach. When both are present, supports start to fit, energy returns, and decisions are yours. That’s the point of the role.