The NDIS Code of Conduct and the Aged Care Code of Conduct: What's the Difference and Do Both Apply to You?

If you work as a support worker in Australia, there is a good chance that two separate Codes of Conduct apply to you simultaneously – and most workers have never read either of them properly.

The NDIS Code of Conduct and the Aged Care Code of Conduct both set out the personal obligations of workers delivering care and support to Australians. They are not workplace policies set by your employer. They are regulatory instruments set by the government. Breaching them can result in consequences that follow you regardless of where you work – including a banning order that prevents you from working in the sector entirely.

This article explains both Codes in plain English, how they overlap, where they differ, and what it actually means to comply with them in your daily practice.

Who Each Code Applies To

The NDIS Code of Conduct

The NDIS Code of Conduct applies to all workers delivering NDIS supports and services – both registered and unregistered providers and their workers. If you support an NDIS participant, the Code applies to you. This includes:

• Support workers employed by registered NDIS providers
• Independent support workers operating as sole traders
• Workers on NDIS platforms such as Careseekers, Mable and Hireup
• Volunteers delivering NDIS supports
• Contractors and subcontractors engaged to deliver NDIS services

Being unregistered does not exempt you. The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission has made clear that it will take action against unregistered providers for serious breaches of the Code, and that unregistered status is not a shield from individual accountability.

The Aged Care Code of Conduct

The Aged Care Code of Conduct applies to all aged care workers of registered providers, including:

• Employees delivering home care or residential aged care
• Volunteers
• Independent contractors
• Employees of contractors engaged by registered providers
• Workers engaged through employment services or digital platforms

The Code applies regardless of whether you have direct contact with older people – it covers all workers of registered providers.

If You Work Across Both Sectors

Many home care and community support workers support both NDIS participants and older Australians receiving aged care funding – sometimes on the same day. If this describes you, both Codes apply to you simultaneously.

In practice, the two Codes are substantially similar in their requirements. But they have different regulatory bodies, different enforcement mechanisms and different reporting obligations. Understanding which framework applies to which situation is part of your professional responsibility.

The NDIS Code of Conduct – All 8 Elements

The NDIS Code of Conduct is set out in the National Disability Insurance Scheme (Code of Conduct) Rules 2018. It requires people who deliver NDIS supports and services to:

Element 1: Respect Individual Rights

Act with respect for individual rights to freedom of expression, self-determination, and decision-making in accordance with relevant laws and conventions.

In practice, this means supporting participants to make their own choices – including choices you might personally disagree with. It means not making decisions on behalf of a participant when they are capable of making those decisions themselves.

Element 2: Respect Privacy

Respect the privacy of people with disability.

This covers how you handle personal information, how you deliver personal care and how you talk about participants outside of work. Sharing information about a participant with people who don't need to know – including on social media – breaches this element.

Element 3: Provide Safe and Competent Supports

Provide supports and services in a safe and competent manner with care and skill.

You must only perform tasks you are qualified and trained to perform. If you are asked to do something beyond your skills or training, raising this concern is not optional – it is required under this element.

Element 4: Act with Integrity

Act with integrity, honesty and transparency.

This covers financial dealings with participants, honesty about your qualifications and experience, and transparency about any conflicts of interest that might affect the support you provide.

Element 5: Raise Concerns Promptly

Promptly take steps to raise and act on concerns about matters that might have an impact on the quality and safety of supports provided to people with disability.

If you see something that concerns you – unsafe practices, risks to a participant's wellbeing, another worker's conduct – you are required to raise it. Doing nothing is itself a breach of the Code.

Element 6: Prevent and Respond to Violence and Abuse

Take all reasonable steps to prevent and respond to all forms of violence against, exploitation, neglect, and abuse of people with disability.

This element requires active prevention, not just personal abstention. If you are aware of abuse occurring and take no steps to report or address it, you are in breach.

Element 7: Prevent and Respond to Sexual Misconduct

Take all reasonable steps to prevent and respond to sexual misconduct.

Element 8: Fair Pricing

Not charge or represent a price for the supply of goods for an NDIS participant that is higher than the price charged for the same (or substantially the same) goods for a person who is not an NDIS participant, without reasonable justification.

Source: National Disability Insurance Scheme (Code of Conduct) Rules 2018 (as amended to 19 December 2023). See ndiscommission.gov.au for full guidance.

The Aged Care Code of Conduct – All 8 Behaviours

The Aged Care Code of Conduct is set out in the Aged Care Act 2024 and Aged Care Rules 2025. It outlines 8 behaviours expected of all aged care workers when delivering funded aged care services:

Behaviour A

Act with respect for individuals' rights to freedom of expression, self-determination and decision-making in accordance with applicable laws and conventions.

Behaviour B

Act in a way that treats individuals with dignity and respect and values their diversity.

Behaviour C

Act with respect for the privacy of individuals.

Behaviour D

Deliver funded aged care services in a safe and competent manner, with care and skill.

Behaviour E

Act with integrity, honesty and transparency.

Behaviour F

Promptly take steps to raise and act on concerns about matters that may impact the quality and safety of funded aged care services.

Behaviour G

Deliver funded aged care services free from: (i) all forms of violence, discrimination, exploitation, neglect and abuse and (ii) sexual misconduct.

Behaviour H

Take all reasonable steps to prevent and respond to: (i) all forms of violence, discrimination, exploitation, neglect and abuse and (ii) sexual misconduct.

Source: Aged Care Code of Conduct – A fact sheet for responsible persons and aged care workers. Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission, October 2025 (ACR-COC-005). See agedcarequality.gov.au for full guidance.

How the Two Codes Compare

Where They Agree

The two Codes share the same foundational values and are substantially similar in their requirements. Both require:

• Respect for individual rights and self-determination
• Privacy protection
• Safe and competent service delivery
• Integrity and honesty
• Prompt reporting of concerns
• Prevention of and response to violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation
• Prevention of and response to sexual misconduct

Workers who genuinely embody these values in their daily practice will generally be compliant with both Codes without needing to think about which Code applies to which client.

Where They Differ

Scope: The NDIS Code explicitly includes a fair pricing element (Element 8) that has no equivalent in the Aged Care Code. The Aged Care Code explicitly includes discrimination in its list of prohibited conduct.

Regulatory body: The NDIS Code is enforced by the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. The Aged Care Code is enforced by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission. These are separate bodies with separate complaint and investigation processes.

Incident reporting: Both Codes require prompt reporting of concerns, but the specific reporting obligations differ. Under the NDIS, the Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS) sets mandatory incident reporting requirements. The aged care sector has its own incident reporting obligations under the Serious Incident Response Scheme for aged care. If you work across both sectors, you may have parallel reporting obligations depending on who the affected person is.

What a Banning Order Means

Both the NDIS Commission and the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission have the power to issue banning orders against individual workers who breach the relevant Code.

A banning order can prevent you from:

• Working in the NDIS sector (NDIS Commission)
• Working in aged care (ACQSC)
• Working in both sectors if both Commissions act

Banning orders are listed on public registers. A prospective employer can check whether a banning order exists against you. In a sector moving toward individual worker registration, your compliance history will follow you in a way it has never done before.

The NDIS Worker Orientation Module

If you work for a registered NDIS provider, completing the NDIS Worker Orientation Module – Quality, Safety and You – is mandatory. It is a free online training module that takes approximately 90 minutes and provides a nationally recognised certificate.

The certificate is portable. You do not need to repeat the module when you change employers. But you do need to know you have completed it, have your certificate number recorded and be able to produce evidence of completion when a new employer asks.

The certificate does not expire, but it is considered good practice to revisit the module periodically, particularly as the sector evolves and the Code is updated.

Knowing Your Obligations Is Your Responsibility

Neither your employer nor your union will remind you to re-read the Code of Conduct. Neither the NDIS Commission nor the ACQSC will send you a personalised reminder of your obligations.

Knowing what is required of you – and being able to demonstrate that you know – is a personal professional responsibility. Workers who can articulate their obligations under both Codes, who know what to report and to whom, and who have a practice of reflecting on their own conduct are not just more compliant. They are better workers, more confident in their practice and better protected if anything ever goes wrong.

The Butler Diaries Support Worker Diary 2027 prints both Codes verbatim inside the front section – not a paraphrase, not a summary, but the actual text from the actual legislation. Because the most important professional reference you have should be in the tool you use every day.