Big changes to the Disability Support Fund: what providers need to know
The Australian Government has made significant changes to the Disability Support Fund (DSF), introducing new requirements for universities around disability governance, inclusion strategies and reporting. The changes were made through the Higher Education Support (Other Grants) Amendment (Disability Support Fund) Guidelines 2026, signed by the Minister for Education, the Hon Jason Clare MP, on 25 May 2026.
The amendments build on the Government's 2024-25 Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook commitment to significantly increase DSF funding. With more money flowing to the sector, the Government is now asking providers to demonstrate that this funding is being guided by people with disability and backed by clear, public strategies.
This article summarises the key changes and what they mean in practice. The instrument commences on 1 July 2026, and most of the new requirements apply to grants made from the 2027 grant year, giving providers time to prepare.
The headline changes
To remain eligible for DSF grants from 2027, Table A providers will need three things in place:
- A disability governance committee
- A disability education inclusion strategy
- A disability workforce inclusion strategy
There are also changes to how DSF funds can be spent, a simplified threshold for identifying students with disability and high cost needs, and new annual reporting requirements.
Disability governance committees
Every provider receiving DSF funding will need a disability governance committee, established as a subcommittee of the institution's principal governing body. This places disability inclusion squarely within institutional governance rather than leaving it solely to individual service areas.
The membership requirements are specific. At a minimum, the committee must include:
- a senior executive at Pro Vice-Chancellor, Deputy Vice-Chancellor or Vice-Chancellor level (or equivalent)
- a senior academic employee
- at least one other academic employee
- at least one professional employee
- at least two students with disability enrolled at the provider
- at least two external members who are not enrolled with, employed by or otherwise engaged by the provider.
Importantly, the committee must be made up of a majority of people with disability. This is a clear signal that the advice shaping how DSF funds are used should come predominantly from people with lived experience.
The committee will have responsibility for overseeing and advising the provider on the use of DSF grants, its own terms of reference, and both of the new inclusion strategies. Its terms of reference must cover how members are appointed, the committee's functions and decision-making processes, the skills and experience expected of members, and how an independent review of the committee and both strategies will be conducted at least once every five years.
Providers must publish the committee's terms of reference and membership on their website, and the committee must have access to the information and resources it needs to do its job.
Disability education inclusion strategy
Providers will need a disability education inclusion strategy that is drafted in consultation with people with disability, including students and staff with disability and the staff who directly support students with disability.
The strategy must set out activities over a minimum of three years to:
- improve access to higher education for people with disability, including activities to improve progression and completion for students with disability
- ensure teaching staff are supported in the design and delivery of teaching, learning and assessment that addresses the needs of students with disability.
Each strategy must include key performance indicators, which can be quantitative, qualitative or a mix of both. Providers must have a process to monitor progress against those indicators and take action to correct underperformance. An up-to-date copy of the strategy must be published on the provider's website.
Disability workforce inclusion strategy
The workforce strategy follows the same structure: drafted in consultation with people with disability, covering a minimum of three years, with KPIs, monitoring and website publication.
Its focus is on the institution as an employer and a learning organisation. The strategy must set out activities to:
- improve recruitment, professional development and promotion processes for employees with disability
- improve knowledge and skills in disability relevant practices across governing bodies, executives, and teaching, research and professional staff.
This is a notable broadening of scope. The DSF has historically focused on supporting students, and these amendments recognise that inclusive education depends on an inclusive workforce and informed institutional leadership.
You may not need to start from scratch
In a helpful clarification made in response to sector feedback, both strategies can form part of another document, such as an existing Disability Action Plan. If a provider takes this approach, it must clearly identify on its website which parts of the document constitute each strategy.
For institutions with mature Disability Action Plans, this means the work may be closer to mapping and strengthening existing commitments than building new documents from the ground up. It is worth reviewing your current plan against the new requirements now, particularly around the three-year activity horizon, KPIs and the consultation requirements.
Changes to how DSF funds can be used
The amendments restate the permitted uses of DSF grants, which continue to cover attracting and supporting students with disability, educational support and equipment, staff training, salaries for staff whose only duties involve supporting students with disability, and bulk ICT licences. Also retained are allowances to modify course content, teaching materials and delivery methods to better meet the needs of students with disability, specifically noting implementation of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Having UDL named in a legislative instrument is a significant moment for the many practitioners and educators across the sector who have been championing this work.
New additions to subsection 41(2) enable providers to use a portion of their enrolment-based grant amount to support the work of the disability governance committee itself. This includes training committee members in contemporary disability support, governance and institutional decision-making practices, funding the independent five-yearly reviews, and covering transport costs for student members attending meetings. The transport provision matters especially for providers with geographically dispersed campuses, where the cost of getting to meetings could otherwise be a barrier to student participation. Spending on committee support is capped at 10 per cent of the enrolment-based grant amount each year.
A simpler high cost needs threshold, starting this year
One change applies earlier than the rest. From the 2026 grant year, the minimum spend used to identify a 'student with disability and high cost needs' is fixed at $5,000, with indexation removed. The threshold had risen to $5,205 under indexation.
The explanatory statement notes this is beneficial for providers in two ways: it simplifies administration, and it means more students may fall within the definition, as providers only need to have spent more than $5,000 on a student rather than $5,205.
New annual reporting
From the 2027 grant year, providers must give the Department a performance report and an acquittal report by 1 May each year, covering activities funded in the previous calendar year.
The performance report must explain how the provider satisfied the grant conditions and include a statement from the chair of the disability governance committee, the chief executive officer (or equivalent) or an authorised officer confirming the provider met and continues to meet those conditions. The acquittal report must detail each activity funded by the grant, the value of funding for each, and any unspent funds.
How the changes were shaped
The Department of Education consulted on the amendments through the second half of 2025, including with the Higher Education Disability Roundtable, disability practitioners and managers at eligible providers, and peak bodies including Universities Australia, the Australian Technology Network of Universities, Innovative Research Universities and the Regional Universities Network. The Roundtable supported the amendments, and there was broad support across the sector for inclusive governance arrangements and stronger accountability and transparency.
Stakeholders also raised practical concerns about timing, student participation in committees, training for committee members and the need for institutional flexibility. The final instrument responds directly to that feedback through the delayed application to the 2027 grant year, the ability to fund committee operations from the grant, and the flexibility for strategies to sit within existing documents.
What providers can do now
The 2027 application date gives institutions the remainder of 2026 to prepare, and the groundwork is worth starting early. Some practical first steps:
- Brief your senior executive and governing body on the new eligibility conditions, particularly the requirement for the committee to sit under the principal governing body.
- Review existing governance arrangements. Many institutions have disability or accessibility advisory groups, but these may not yet currently meet the membership, majority and terms of reference requirements as set out.
- Audit your Disability Action Plan and related strategies against the requirements for the education and workforce inclusion strategies, including the three-year activity horizon and KPIs.
- Plan your consultation. Both strategies must be drafted in consultation with people with disability, and genuine consultation takes time.
- Think about recruitment and support for student and external committee members, including training and accessibility of meetings.
ADCET will continue to support the sector through this transition. Our existing resources on Disability Action Plans, good practice guides and Universal Design for Learning are a good starting point, and we will share further guidance, webinars and good practice examples as institutions begin implementing the new requirements.
As always, if you have questions or would like to share how your institution is approaching these changes, we would love to hear from you at admin@adcet.edu.au.
Further Information:
Department of Education
https://www.education.gov.au/higher-education-disability-support-program
https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2026L00651/latest/text
Times Higher Education article
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/new-disability-committees-be-given-say-over-funding