What Is Support at Home? A Plain-Language Guide

If you've started looking into aged care support in Australia, you've probably run into the term "Support at Home" and wondered how it's different from the Home Care Package you might already know about, or have heard a family member mention. It's a fair question - the name changed, and so did some of what's underneath it.

In short: Support at Home is the Australian Government program that provides funded, coordinated in-home aged care services to eligible older people. It replaced the Home Care Packages Program and the Short-Term Restorative Care Programme from 1 November 2025, under the Aged Care Act 2024. Access starts with an assessment through My Aged Care, not a direct application to a provider.

What Support at Home actually is

Support at Home is designed to help older Australians stay living independently at home for longer, by funding a defined list of services, equipment and home modifications matched to an individual's assessed care needs. It sits alongside other parts of the aged care system - the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) for lower-level support, and residential aged care for people who need it - rather than replacing all of them.

It isn't a single fixed package. What you're approved for depends on an assessment of your specific needs, and can include ongoing services as well as shorter-term support for a particular situation.

The three pathways

Support at Home covers more than one kind of need:

• Ongoing services. Regular, funded support for everyday needs and independence - things like personal care, domestic assistance, transport, and allied health, drawn from the program's defined service list.

• The Restorative Care Pathway. Short-term, time-limited support (coordinated nursing and/or allied health) aimed at helping someone regain function and independence after a decline, rather than ongoing help.

• The Assistive Technology and Home Modifications scheme. Upfront funding for equipment, products or home changes - a rail, a ramp, bathroom modifications - that make a home safer or easier to live in.

There's also an End-of-Life Pathway, providing additional short-term support for people in the last three months of life who want to remain at home.

How you actually access it

Support at Home isn't something you sign up for directly with a provider. It starts with an assessment:

1. Apply for an assessment through My Aged Care (by phone or online), or be referred by a GP or hospital.

2. Have an assessment, which looks at your care needs, goals and circumstances.

3. Get a support plan, developed with the assessor, that sets out what you're approved for under the Support at Home service list and, for ongoing services, which funding classification applies.

4. Choose a provider to deliver the approved services - this is where independent support workers and provider organisations come in, once your plan is in place.

No two assessments produce the same plan, because the whole point of the program is to match funded support to the person's actual needs rather than a one-size-fits-all package.

How it relates to what you might already know

If you've previously looked into aged care and came across "Home Care Package," "CHSP" or "ACAT," here's how those map across:

• Home Care Package (HCP) was the previous program for ongoing in-home support. Support at Home has replaced it for new participants; if someone was already receiving a Home Care Package, different transition arrangements apply (more on that below).

• CHSP remains a separate, generally lower-level entry-point program - it hasn't been folded into Support at Home.

• ACAT assessment is now generally referred to as a comprehensive assessment, arranged through My Aged Care, and is the same starting point described above.

If you're already receiving a Home Care Package

If you were already receiving, or already assessed as eligible for, a Home Care Package before Support at Home started, transition arrangements apply rather than starting again from a new assessment. Home Care Package levels explained (and what replaced them) covers exactly what changed for existing recipients, including the transitioned funding classifications and contribution protections, in full detail.

FAQ

Do I need to reapply if I'm already getting home care support? If you were already receiving or approved for a Home Care Package before Support at Home began, your existing arrangement generally transitions across without a fresh assessment - see Home Care Package levels explained for the detail. A new assessment is the starting point for anyone applying from scratch.

Is Support at Home only for people with high needs? No. It's structured around an assessed level of need, from lower to higher, rather than being reserved for one end of that range. The Restorative Care and Assistive Technology pathways specifically exist for shorter-term or equipment-only needs.

Can I choose who provides my services under Support at Home? Yes - once your support plan is approved, you choose the provider or providers who deliver it, within what your plan covers.

Does Support at Home cover NDIS participants? No - Support at Home is an aged care program for older Australians. NDIS participants access disability supports through the NDIS separately.

Where this fits once you have a plan

Understanding Support at Home is the first step; deciding who actually delivers your approved services is the next one. If you're weighing up an independent support worker against a larger agency, independent support worker vs agency walks through that decision. And if you want a neutral list of questions to ask before choosing any platform or provider, questions to ask before choosing a home support platform covers that ground.

CareVicinity is an Australia-wide care marketplace connecting people with independent support workers who can deliver Support at Home-funded services. Availability of specific services and workers may vary by location.