Developmental Education.

A Developmental Educator is a qualified professional who specialises in the field of disability. With a university degree focused on disability studies and accreditation through DEAI (Disability Educators Australia Incorporated) they bring expert knowledge and skills to their role.

Your Developmental Educator (DE) works alongside you to simplify and integrate your support services, aiming for a coordinated approach that maximises both impact and value.

They provide therapeutic support, carry out comprehensive assessments of developmental and behavioural needs, and partner closely with you, your family, and your wider support network.

By working together, your DE helps create tailored strategies designed to build your independence, skills, and confidence.

Your Developmental Educator can assist with leading and coordinating your therapy journey. They will:

• Assess your goals, life challenges and therapy needs to develop your therapy plan

• Provide therapy sessions

• Liaise and coordinate services from other allied health practitioners.

• Connect to your community, including external supports in education, mental health, community and employment services.

Your therapy goals and our approach is designed directly with you. Our supports are adaptable to ensure they meet your needs. Areas we can assist within include:

Life Transitions: Moving schools, Moving home, Changing jobs, Navigating new activities

Daily Living Skills: Increasing independence, Organisation and Self-Management, Maintaining my home, Learning about healthy lifestyles.

Community activities and engagement: Gaining confidence using public transport, accessing the community, money management, safety in public, finding and trying new hobbies.

Relationships and Development: Finding and making friends, understanding romantic relationships, puberty and sexual health.

Employment and Study: Strengthening skills in finding and keeping a job, Communicating with employers on my disability, Organisation and individual study skills, Understanding and managing individual learning needs

These are just some ideas! If you have specific goals but are unsure who can help you, please reach out. We are happy to provide guidance on what may be the most beneficial services for you.

This is one of the most common questions we hear.

The work that a DE and an OT does, can look very similar.

Both professions can focus on developing functional daily living skills and increased independence.

The key difference is the study and specialisation within DISABILITY-SPECIFIC topics that a DE completes as part of their qualification. Our studies within disability mean we have a greater and richer understanding of:

• The impact of various disabilities, as well as the interplay of comorbid conditions.

• The historical and social impact on your disability, including ableism.

• Strong understanding of human development and critical life stages.

• An undertanding of barriers you may experience to reaching your goals.

• Adapting our approach to meet specific disability needs: communication style, learning style, teaching approach, pace.

• Training within trauma-informed practice and awareness of disability-related trauma and its impact.

• Neuroaffirming approach based within disability-rights and human-rights.

• Helping caregivers, educators, and communities recognise and understand disability.

In Summary: Both DE’s and OT’s offer a valuable service.

In the context of disability support, you are guaranteed to receive a disability-focused service when engaging with a DE, knowing they have completed a specialised qualification.

The DE approach is always:

• Empowering and embracing Self-Advocacy

• Long-Term support in recognition of the adaption and changing needs of your disability

• Expert Guidance

• Personalised

• Keeping you at the centre

Developmental Education was formed through the growing need for disability-qualified professionals to lead the change from a medical model to a social model of disability.

The social model of disability views disability not as an individual's impairment, but as a consequence of societal barriers and attitudes that limit participation. It emphasises removing these barriers to create a more inclusive and equitable environment for everyone. Instead of focusing on what is "wrong" with a person, it looks at how society can be changed to better accommodate diverse needs. 

The profession of Developmental Education took form in the early 1990s, when a dedicated group of Developmental Educators established the Developmental Educators Association (DEA).

This pioneering body aimed to support the development of the profession and drew up the first Code of Ethics and Practice in 1994.

In 2011, the South Australian Commissioner for Public Sector Employment formally recognized Developmental Educators as Allied Health Professionals. This acknowledgment was codified in Determination 5, 2011.

Developmental Education is now recognised by the National Disability Insurance Agency and listed in the Pricing Arrangements under Capacity Building Supports and in the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission Practice Standards Verification Module.

Developmental Educators practice across Australia and are building a vibrant professional community.

Yes, you can request a Developmental Educator in your NDIS plan, especially if their support aligns with your goals and assessed needs. Developmental Educators are listed as an approved support in the NDIA price guide.

✅ What Is a Developmental Educator?

A Developmental Educator (DE) is a tertiary-qualified disability professional trained to support people with developmental delays, autism, intellectual disability, mental health conditions, and other complex needs. They help with:

• Skill building (daily living, social, emotional, and communication skills)

• Behavior support (non-restrictive and person-centred approaches)

• Goal setting and planning

• Increasing independence and participation

• Capacity building for both participants and families

📌 How to Include a Developmental Educator in Your NDIS Plan:

1. Link the request to your NDIS goals.
   For example:

   “I want to build my independent living skills,”
   “I want to improve my emotional regulation,” or
   “I want support to manage routines and relationships.”

2. Make the request during your planning or plan review meeting.
   Let your planner or LAC know that a Developmental Educator is part of your preferred support team.

3. Ensure you have relevant funding categories.
   Developmental Educators are often funded under:

   • Capacity Building – Improved Daily Living

   • Capacity Building – Improved Relationships

   • Core Supports (in some situations)

4. Provide supporting documentation (if needed).
   A letter from a psychologist, therapist, or GP explaining why developmental education is appropriate can strengthen your case.

📎 Tip:

Some planners or NDIS staff may not be familiar with the role of a Developmental Educator, so it helps to explain their qualifications and how they will help you meet your specific goals.

All mentors working with My Connected Community are students completing their disability degree at University.

This means you can be guaranteed to receive the ‘DE approach’ when working with one of our mentors.

The DE approach is one which is:

• empowering

• person-centred

• strengths-based

• disability-aware

• Our DE has been a massive support along the journey with our three neurodivergent children. From advocacy with school meetings, to developing routines suited to a child’s needs, to navigating the tricky dynamics of sibling relationships and behaviours we navigate with strategies that are neuro-affirming and help promote independence and confidence amongst them.

• A Developmental Educator with specialist knowledge about disability and evidence-based strategies has been a great fit for our family as they work with our son and our family holistically. Seeing him as a whole person, using flexible ways to develop and build on his strengths, interests and skills in order for him to reach his goals.

• Welcoming a DE into our lives was the best decision we have ever made.

• My DE is amazing. I am listened to, heard, and respected to grow and develop "In my own space, at my own pace, and in my own time”

• It has been fantastic to have someone with a teaching AND disability background to help us better understand our kids educational needs and the goals of teachers as well.

• Our DE walked beside me all the way through receiving Autism diagnoses for two of my children. I have always thought that her advice and support is what gave myself and my boys confidence in the hardest days.

• Our sincere thanks to you for your support as we navigated the NDIS.

• Our Developmental Educator has supported our adult daughter, and provided guidance to her team, as we continue to build our daughters skills & resilience in preparation of her future independent living plans.

• Our DE has been instrumental in helping me navigate life as an Autistic adult. Her support over the years has meant I have been able to believe in myself enough to start my own business.

• Our DE has always been neurodivergent affirming with a real focus on building a relationship with the client and helping them to shine.

To read more about the profession of Developmental Education, visit the site of our professional body - Developmental Educators Australia (DEA)

Or feel free to send us an email with any specific questions and we will get back to you shortly.