How to Change Your Support at Home Provider in 7 Steps
Changing providers can feel like a bigger decision than it is — especially when you rely on the people who turn up each week to stay safe and comfortable at home.
You have every right to switch, at any time, for any reason. Your funding doesn't change and your approved level doesn't change. Most transitions take days, not weeks.
Here's how it works, step by step.
Quick guide
Work out what isn't working — be specific, so you don't repeat it.
Talk to your current provider first — ask for a care plan review.
Shortlist two or three local options — availability, consistency, relevant experience.
Ask real questions — how they handle absences, scheduling, communication.
Confirm a start date in writing — this is what prevents a gap in care.
Give notice and agree an exit date — brief and professional is plenty.
Hand the paperwork over — your new team does the administration.
1. Work out what isn't working
Before you look anywhere else, write down what's actually going wrong. Is it communication? A different worker every week? Visits that feel rushed?
Being specific matters, because it stops you from landing somewhere with the same problem. If the issue is unreliable scheduling, you'll know to ask pointed questions about how bookings and cancellations are handled.
It also gives you something to compare against. You're not just leaving something — you're moving towards something that fits better.
2. Talk to your current provider first
It's worth raising your concerns before you go. Ask for a review of your care plan and say plainly what's falling short.
Sometimes a change to visit times, or getting the same worker consistently, is all it takes. If they listen and act, you may not need to move at all.
And if nothing changes, you'll know the decision is right. You gave them a fair chance.
3. Shortlist two or three local options
Look at providers who offer the things your current one is missing. Check availability, worker consistency, and whether they've supported people with needs like yours before.
Ask your GP, community nurse, or other families in your area — local word of mouth is usually more reliable than reviews. A team based in your own community knows the local services and can adjust more quickly when something changes.
Two or three options is enough to compare properly without it becoming another job.
4. Ask real questions
Websites are written to impress. Ring each one on your shortlist and have an actual conversation.
Ask what happens when a worker is sick. Ask whether you'll see the same person each visit. Ask what happens if you need to change a booking, and how they keep family informed.
How they handle that first phone call tells you most of what you need to know. Someone who's clear and unhurried with you now will usually be clear and unhurried later.
5. Confirm a start date in writing
Once you've chosen, ask for a start date in writing. This is the step that protects you from a gap in services, and it's the one people most often skip.
Your start date should line up closely with your exit date from the old provider. When both sides coordinate properly, most transitions take just a few days.
When you switch to Sistability, we manage this handover ourselves — confirming dates on both sides so your support carries on without a break.
6. Give notice and agree an exit date
Tell your current provider you're leaving and agree on an exit date. You don't owe anyone a long explanation.
Something like: "I've decided to move to a different provider. I'd like to agree on an exit date so the transition is smooth." That's genuinely all that's needed.
They then notify Services Australia so your funding can be redirected.
To confirm before publishing: the draft states a 28-day notification window, no exit fees under Support at Home, 60 days for the outgoing provider to reconcile and transfer unspent funds, and 28 days to hand over care records. Check each against the department's changing-providers page and reinstate the figures here.
7. Hand the paperwork over
You don't have to manage the funding transfer or the government paperwork. We handle the administration, including the notifications and requesting your care records.
Your funding redirects from your agreed start date, and unspent funds from your previous provider are reconciled and transferred across.
It's worth keeping half an eye on your statements through the changeover, just so you can see the funding land where it should. But the chasing isn't your job.
What happens to your funding
Your funding belongs to you, not to your provider.
When you switch, your Support at Home classification stays exactly the same, and your government funding continues without interruption. There's no new assessment. Any unspent funds from your previous provider are transferred across.
Your budget follows you. You can move with confidence that your financial position is protected.
When is the right time to switch?
Any time. That said, moving at the start of a new funding quarter gives your new team a full budget to plan services around.
Support at Home funding is allocated quarterly, and carry-over between quarters is capped at $1,000 or 10% of the budget, whichever is greater — so a switch timed near the end of a quarter can leave funds behind.
If you've got significant services booked this quarter, finishing them first may save some confusion. But don't let timing hold you up if things aren't working. How you're being supported matters more than a tidy date.
Switching to Sistability
If you're in the Northern Rivers and you've decided to move, we can help.
We're a certified social enterprise, and our own local team does the work — the same faces each visit, people who learn your routines and notice when something's changed. We organise your services, keep your care plan current, keep track of your budget so it's actually working for you, and stay in regular contact with you and your family.
We handle the changeover end to end: confirming start and exit dates, the notifications, requesting your records, and building a fresh care plan around what you need now.
As a social enterprise, we reinvest at least half our profits into local employment and community outcomes across the Northern Rivers — so the support you receive does something in the community as well as in your home.
How this works
When you choose Sistability, we're your team. We organise your services, manage your care plan, keep track of your budget, and we're who you ring when something needs sorting.
Your Support at Home package is held by Trilogy Care, our registered provider partner. They're the registered provider on your paperwork — they hold your funding and pay the invoices. We do everything else.
In practice, it means you get a local Northern Rivers team who know you by name, backed by an established registered provider. You deal with us.
To get started, ring us on 1300 131 096 — we'll walk you through it and handle the paperwork with you. You won't find Sistability listed separately in My Aged Care's Find a Provider tool, because your package sits with Trilogy Care.
Thinking about a change? Have a no-pressure chat with our local team or ring 1300 131 096.
Common questions
Can I change my Support at Home provider at any time? Yes — at any time, for any reason. No new assessment is required, and your funding and classification level stay the same.
Will I lose my funding if I switch? No. Your funding follows you. Unspent funds from your previous provider are transferred across as part of the changeover.
How long does switching take? Most transitions happen within a few days once a start date is confirmed. The key is agreeing start and exit dates that line up — we coordinate both sides so there's no gap.
Do I have to tell my current provider why I'm leaving? No. A short, professional message saying you've decided to move is enough. Agree an exit date and leave the rest to us.
What should I look for in a new provider? Communication, consistent workers, clear published pricing, and whether they actively coordinate your care or simply process invoices. Ask who your point of contact will be.
Is Sistability a registered Support at Home provider? Your Support at Home package is held by Trilogy Care, our registered provider partner, who manage the funding and pay invoices. Sistability sources, organises and delivers your services and is your main point of contact throughout. You'll deal with our local Northern Rivers team day to day. To start, ring us on 1300 131 096 rather than searching Find a Provider.
Will my care plan transfer? We can request your records and notes from your outgoing provider, then build a fresh care plan with you based on your current goals rather than an old document.
