Your approval letter has arrived. Here is what happens next.
Support at Home
If you are helping a parent sort out their home care, the approval letter is usually where it gets real. It confirms the funding, but it does not tell you how to start, who to call, or what to do first.
This page walks through what happens from here, in the order it actually happens.
What happens next
Four steps from the letter in your hand to support starting at home.
Step-by-step
One call to talk through the letter, what the funding covers, and what it does not
Choose how the package is managed, self-managed or coordinated, once you know the difference
Simple agreement and welcome pack, so you know exactly what is included before anything starts
Support begins at home, and you have a named person to call when something changes
If there are already carers you trust
A common worry at this point is that starting a package means starting again with new faces.
Self-managed care works the other way round. You choose who provides the support, which means that where existing support workers are willing and able to continue, they usually can. Talk to us about the specific people involved and we will tell you honestly what is possible.
You choose who comes through the door.
Getting Started with Support at Home
What can I learn?
Starting your home care journey can feel overwhelming, especially with so many terms, processes, and options to navigate. That's why we created our Getting Started series, a collection of easy-to-read guides to help you understand the essentials of home care in Australia.
At Trilogy Care, we believe knowledge is empowering. Each blog explains key concepts in plain language, outlines your rights and options, and shows how we can partner with you to make the most of your funding.
What happens at your assessment
Your assessment is a conversation, usually at home, with an assessor from My Aged Care. They will ask how you manage day to day: cooking, showering, getting to appointments, keeping on top of the house. It usually takes about an hour.
Answer as things are on a difficult day, not a good one. People routinely understate how much they are managing, and the assessment sets the funding level you are given. If someone helps you at home already, have them there. What they see day to day is often the clearest account of what you need.
You will get a letter afterwards confirming your classification and what it funds.
Your letter has arrived. What now?
The letter tells you your classification and the funding that comes with it. It does not tell you who to go with. That choice is yours, and it is the part most families find hardest.
You have a window to choose a provider. There is no advantage in rushing it, and no penalty for asking questions first. A provider should be able to tell you, in dollars, what they charge and what you get for it. If they cannot, that is worth knowing early.
Your funding follows you. If you pick a provider and it is not right, you can move.
From your first call to your first service
Once you have chosen, the paperwork is the provider's job, not yours. We contact My Aged Care, confirm your funding position, and set up your services.
If you already have people helping you, in most cases they can keep doing so. Continuity matters more than most families expect, and losing a trusted worker is one of the main reasons people change providers later.
You will have a real person to call. Not a call centre queue, not a ticket number.
Not sure where to start? Ask us.
