Relevant study
Psychology, Speech Pathology, Nursing, Education and related fields can be a strong starting point.
HOW WE CHOOSE OUR TEAMSCREENING, TRAINING & CREDENTIALS
You should know who you’re trusting with your child.
Here’s how we choose and prepare our team.
A support worker may spend one-on-one time with your child and become part of their weekly routine. So being available is not enough. We look for good judgement, warmth, experience, reliability and a real interest in this work.
SEE WHERE OUR TEAM COMES FROM ↓A clear look at who we recruit, what we look for and how workers are prepared.
WHERE WE FIND GOOD PEOPLE
Strong recruitment gives families better choices.
We look for people who already have a reason to care about this work — through their study, experience or both.
Support and youth work
We also recruit people with disability, behavioural, childcare, youth, health or community experience.
UNSW Psychology Student Society
Our partnership gives us another way to meet psychology students who want meaningful support experience.
See what the partnership means →STEP 1 — WHO WE LOOK FOR
We look for capable people who genuinely want to do this work.
Study and experience can open the door. We still look for warmth, judgement, reliability, initiative and a genuine ability to connect with neurodiverse young people.
Genuine interest
We want people who genuinely enjoy working with children, teenagers and neurodiverse young people.
Relevant experience
We value experience that shows they can support people safely and responsibly.
Communication
Workers need to communicate calmly with young people and clearly with parents.
Reliability
Consistency matters. We check whether their schedule, transport and other commitments make ongoing support realistic.
Initiative
We want people who can plan, adapt and take initiative without forcing things.
Fit with our approach
We look for people who lead with respect, genuine interest and trust.
STEP 2 — INTERVIEW & SCREENING
We want to know how someone will respond when the shift is not straightforward.
Anyone can sound good on a resume. In the interview, we look at judgement, communication and how they handle real support situations.
We ask what they would do with low engagement, dysregulation, refusals, changed plans and a child who needs space.
We ask why they want to do the work, how they handle boundaries and what good support means to them.
We check for realistic, ongoing availability before suggesting someone to a family.
Workers need a Working With Children Check, police check, First Aid and the NDIS Worker Orientation Module.
We look at what they have actually done, the responsibility they had and what they learned.
STEP 3 — FIELD DAY TRAINING & ONBOARDING
Getting hired is not the finish line.
Workers need to understand how we expect support to be delivered.
Before support starts, workers learn our expectations for safety, boundaries, communication and respectful support.
The role of a support worker
What respectful support looks like and how to balance choice, goals and practical help.
Building rapport
How to build trust, find common ground and avoid forcing conversation.
Boundaries & professionalism
Clear expectations around communication, privacy, reliability, phones and boundaries.
Common support scenarios
Practical guidance for refusals, low engagement, emotional regulation and changes to routine.
Safety & incidents
What to do when something goes wrong, when to escalate and who to tell.
Notes, reporting & systems
Workers learn the notes, reporting and systems needed to keep support clear and accountable.
THE NEXT STEP IS FINDING THE RIGHT FIT
Good hiring gives us better people.
Your child still needs the right person.
Tell us about your child, their interests, support needs, suburb and schedule. We’ll only suggest someone if we think the fit makes sense.
FREE MEET & GREET →