Plan manager and support coordinator: who does what
A line-by-line division of the two funded roles, so nothing sits in the gap between them — and so a participant is not told twice that something is someone else's job.
Free to use, nothing gated. Last reviewed 13 August 2026.
What this resource is
What it is: a 21-row matrix across 8 areas of work, allocating each task to the plan manager, the support coordinator, the participant, or both.
Who it is for: support coordinators, plan nominees and providers who need a shared reference for role boundaries at the start of a working relationship.
The problem it solves: tasks fall between the two roles — an unexplained invoice, a utilisation pattern nobody acted on, a provider waiting on a decision — because neither party assumed ownership.
How it is used: agree it once at the start of a plan, then use it to route the specific question rather than debating role boundaries in the moment.
What it does not determine: it does not set what the NDIA funds in either role, and it does not describe every plan manager. Rows describing our process reflect Forward Planning Plus; other plan managers may divide the work differently.
The matrix
Plan management is a financial administration function: receiving invoices, checking them, claiming from the NDIA, paying providers and reporting the budget position. Support coordination is a capacity building function: connecting supports, sequencing them and building the participant's ability to manage their own arrangements. Most friction sits on the boundary between the two.
Plan setup
Register the participant for plan management and confirm the funding arrangement
Plan manager
Requires the plan dates, the participant's NDIS number and recorded consent.
Sequence the plan into a plan of action with the participant
Support coordinator
Which supports start first, in what order, and which providers are approached.
Providers
Identify, approach and select providers
Support coordinator
A plan manager processes invoices from whichever providers the participant engages; it does not select them.
Negotiate and hold the service agreement
Participant or nominee
The agreement is between the participant and the provider. A coordinator commonly assists; a plan manager is not a party to it.
Check charged rates against current NDIS price limits
Shared
A plan manager checks the rate on the invoice presented. A coordinator can prevent the problem by confirming the rate before delivery starts.
Invoices and claiming
Receive provider invoices and check the required detail
Plan manager
Invoices go to the plan manager, not to the coordinator.
Query an incorrect or incomplete invoice with the provider
Plan manager
The coordinator is informed where a pattern of invoice problems affects the participant's supports.
Claim from the NDIA and pay the provider
Plan manager
Valid, correctly submitted invoices are processed within 1–2 business days at Forward Planning Plus.
Decide whether a support the participant did not expect should be paid
Shared
The plan manager raises it; the participant decides. A coordinator is often the person who clarifies what was agreed.
Budget monitoring
Produce budget statements showing spend and remaining balance
Plan manager
Forward Planning Plus provides a budget versus actual view by support category.
Interpret utilisation and adjust the support schedule
Support coordinator
Deciding what to change in response to a pace problem is a coordination decision, informed by the plan manager's figures.
Flag a utilisation pattern that needs attention
Shared
A plan manager can see spend early; a coordinator can see the reason. Both are needed for the picture to be useful.
Track funding period boundaries and released amounts
Shared
The plan document is the authority. Both roles work to the same dates.
Plan reassessment
Assemble evidence and prepare a progress report
Support coordinator
A plan manager can supply the utilisation figures the report relies on.
Provide the utilisation history for the reassessment
Plan manager
Request it early enough to be included, rather than in the week of the meeting.
Plan changes
Request a plan variation or reassessment from the NDIA
Participant or nominee
The participant or their nominee makes the request; a coordinator commonly prepares and supports it.
Transfer plan management to another provider
Shared
The participant chooses. Both providers handle the handover of records and outstanding invoices.
Safeguards
Handle a complaint about a provider's conduct or support quality
Shared
Each provider has its own complaints process, and a participant can complain directly to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission at any time.
Respond to a risk to the participant's safety or continuity of support
Support coordinator
Coordination function. A plan manager escalates what it sees in the financial record.
Records
Retain financial records for the participant's funding
Plan manager
Records of claims, invoices and payments sit with the plan manager.
Hold and act within the participant's consent
Shared
Consent is specific to each information exchange. Both roles record their own.
Copy it into a working agreement
Paste into a team wiki, an induction pack, or the first email of a new working relationship.
Want a plan manager who works to this division?
The rows marked as our process are how Forward Planning Plus operates: invoices, claiming, statements and escalation sit with us, so coordination time stays on coordination.
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