You've got Supported Independent Living (SIL) funding approved, or you're close to it. Now comes the part nobody really prepares you for: choosing an actual provider.

Most families go into this conversation with no framework at all. They ask a few general questions, take whatever brochures are handed to them, and hope for the best. If you're navigating SIL and SDA (Specialist Disability Accommodation) decisions at the same time, it can feel like a lot to manage at once.

This post gives you 30 specific questions, organised into five categories, that you can use as a real interview tool. If you're still getting across what SIL covers, our introduction to Supported Independent Living is a good place to start first. Your support coordinator can also help you prepare and accompany you to provider meetings. Many families find it valuable to bring a support person to these interviews.

Paramount provides SDA housing, not SIL. But we've worked alongside families navigating both decisions, and we want you to have the right tools for the SIL side of the conversation too.

Why Choosing Your SIL Provider Is a Decision Worth Taking Seriously

A SIL provider shapes your family member's daily life. This isn't a passive vendor relationship where you can quietly switch suppliers if things aren't working. Changing SIL providers mid-arrangement is disruptive and stressful. It happens, but prevention is better.

The quality gap between a good supported independent living provider and a mediocre one is significant. Some providers treat your NDIS plan as a ceiling they're managing to. The better ones treat it as a starting point.

You have the right to choose, and you have the right to change. But the families we've seen navigate this well all have one thing in common: they came to provider interviews with specific questions. They didn't accept vague answers about "person-centred care" and "flexible support." They pushed for specifics. You should too.

Category 1: Registration, Compliance and Credentials

These are the non-negotiables. Before you ask anything else, confirm the basics.

Under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), all SIL providers should be registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. From 1 July 2026, mandatory registration with higher quality standards and independent audits will apply to all providers under the NDIS Commission's reform hub. That announcement raises the floor for the whole sector, but these questions are worth asking regardless of when you're reading this.

1. Are you registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission?
2. What is your registration group number? (Ask for this so you can verify independently.)
3. Have you had any compliance or quality audits in the last 12 months? What were the outcomes?
4. Do you carry appropriate insurance, including public liability and professional indemnity?
5. What worker screening checks do you require for all staff?
6. How long have you been registered as an NDIS SIL provider?
7. Are you familiar with the Victorian Residential Tenancies Act as it applies to supported living arrangements?
8. How do you handle compliance with the NDIS Practice Standards?

A provider who can't answer questions 1 through 4 clearly is not ready for your business. Registration details are publicly verifiable, so there's no reason for a legitimate provider to be vague about them.

Category 2: Support Planning and Personalisation

The best SIL providers treat your plan as a starting point, not a ceiling. What you're listening for in this section is whether they genuinely involve participants in planning, or whether they're fitting people into an existing roster.

What should you look for in a supported independent living provider? The honest answer is personalised, goals-focused support with real review cycles, not just a set-and-forget roster of care. The questions below are designed to surface whether a provider thinks that way.

1. How do you develop a support plan with a new participant? Who is involved in that process?
2. How is my family involved in support planning if we want to be?
3. How do you measure whether support is actually helping me achieve my goals?
4. How often do you review and update my support plan?
5. Can you give me an example of how you've adapted support for a participant whose needs changed over time?
6. How do you support skill development and growing independence, rather than just completing tasks on my behalf?
7. What happens to my support plan if my NDIS plan changes or my funding is reviewed?

If a provider gives you a vague answer to question 13, that's worth noting. Real experience shows up in specific stories. The inability to describe a real example often means the experience isn't there.

Category 3: Staffing, Rostering and Consistency

Staff consistency is one of the most important factors in SIL. It's also one of the hardest to assess before you've started. Asking these questions feels uncomfortable to many families. Ask them anyway.

High staff turnover is a red flag. It usually points to something in how the organisation treats its workers. And in SIL, that flows directly to your family member. Someone who needs to build trust and routine with their support workers is directly affected when those workers keep changing.

1. How many support workers will I work with on a regular basis?
2. What is your staff turnover rate?
3. Will I have the opportunity to meet my primary support workers before I start?
4. How do you handle callouts, sick leave and emergency cover?
5. What is your process for matching support workers to participants?
6. Can I request a change of support worker if I'm not comfortable? How does that work in practice?
7. How do you handle after-hours or overnight support, and who is the on-call contact?

On question 17: a good SIL provider won't be offended by this question. If a provider is defensive about it, that tells you something. On question 18: meeting your support workers before you start isn't a luxury. Many families don't ask for this and later wish they had.

Category 4: Communication, Complaints and Rights

Your rights as an NDIS participant include the right to raise concerns and the right to change providers. The NDIS guidance on Supported Independent Living sets out the rights and protections you're entitled to under the NDIS Code of Conduct. A good SIL provider knows this guidance and actively supports you to use it, rather than treating complaints as an inconvenience.

Can you change your SIL provider? Yes. Question 26 covers the practical reality of that. Knowing the answer before you start gives you important context.

1. How do I raise a concern or make a complaint? What is your formal complaints process?
2. What happens if I'm unhappy with my support? Can you walk me through how you've resolved a complaint before?
3. How do you communicate with families? How often and through what channels?
4. What is your notice period if I want to change providers?
5. How do you ensure participant voices and preferences are genuinely respected day-to-day, not just on paper?

On question 24: "We always sort things out" is not an answer. You're looking for a specific process, with steps, timeframes, and accountability. On question 27: watch for the difference between a policy document and actual practice. Ask for an example.

Category 5: Practical Logistics

These questions are unglamorous. They also matter enormously once you're actually living with the arrangement. Service agreements, transport coordination, and provider boundaries aren't exciting topics, but getting clear answers before you sign avoids significant friction later.

1. How do you handle transport to community activities, medical appointments and social events?
2. What is included in my service agreement, and are there costs or limits I should be aware of before signing?
3. If I also have SDA housing, how do you coordinate with my SDA provider? Are there any restrictions or preferences I should know about?

Question 30 matters if you're considering SDA housing alongside your SIL arrangement. SDA and SIL are separate funding lines and separate decisions. You can, and often should, use different providers for each. For more on how SDA and SIL work together, our comparison guide covers the distinction in detail. Your SIL provider should have no issue coordinating with an independent SDA provider. If they do, that's worth understanding before you commit.

Red Flags: When to Walk Away

Sometimes the interview itself gives you the answer. These are specific warning signs worth taking seriously.

The provider can't answer basic questions about registration or insurance. They're pushing you to sign a service agreement before you've met any support workers. Answers about complaints are vague: "We always work things out," with no actual process described. Staff turnover is high and the provider either doesn't know the rate or can't explain it. The provider also manages SDA housing and treats the two as a package deal, which creates a conflict of interest worth examining carefully. There is no clear process for adapting support if your family member's needs change over time.

If a provider is offended by the questions in this checklist, that tells you something too. A confident, well-run organisation welcomes scrutiny. The ones who don't usually have a reason.

Conclusion

Thirty questions is a lot. You don't need to ask all of them in one meeting, and you don't have to have your answers ready before you start. Take the questions that matter most to your situation, use them as a starting point, and keep the rest in your back pocket for follow-up conversations.

No provider will be perfect. You're looking for the best fit: someone who responds well to hard questions, gives you specific honest answers, and treats your family member's situation as genuinely individual rather than a standard arrangement. That matters more than a polished brochure or an impressive website.

If you're also navigating the SDA housing side of this decision, our guide to how to evaluate an SDA provider follows a similar framework. And if you'd like to explore SDA housing options in Melbourne, we're happy to talk through what that might look like alongside your SIL arrangement.

Got questions? Call us on (03) 9999 7418 or email admin@paramounthomes.com.au. We provide SDA housing, not SIL, but we understand how the two decisions fit together and we're happy to point you in the right direction.