Your practical next steps
From a decision to change to a considered handover
Keep notice, continuity and your consent visible while you discuss a new arrangement.
- Check the termsClarify notice and exit arrangements.
- Plan continuityIdentify any possible support gap.
- Confirm the handoverConfirm dates, responsibilities and consent.
Open a question to see what to do next. You can add a situation to your conversation summary. Selections stay in this browser tab until you review and choose to send them.
Do you understand the current notice and exit terms?
Choose the situation closest to yours
Yes, I have checked them
Do this next: Note any notice period, outstanding actions and how you will confirm the end date in writing.
Go to question 2No, something is unclear
Do this next: Ask the current provider to explain the relevant terms, including any proposed charges. Seek help understanding them before setting a date.
Go to question 2
Could there be a gap in essential support?
Choose the situation closest to yours
A gap may affect daily life
Do this next: Raise the possible gap with your current support team promptly. Ask who will help arrange continuity; do not assume a new provider has confirmed capacity.
Go to question 3The next arrangement is ready to discuss
Do this next: Confirm the proposed start date, scope and contact person with the new provider. Check how it fits with the old arrangement ending.
Go to question 3
Have you agreed what information may be handed over?
Choose the situation closest to yours
Yes, the people and purpose are clear
Do this next: Confirm what will be shared, with whom and through which agreed channel. Set a first check-in with the new provider.
Make your next action clearNo, I want to clarify consent first
Do this next: Ask what information is needed and why. Agree the limits of sharing before records are transferred.
Make your next action clear
Write a short handover plan
Keep the dates, responsibilities and consent together. If someone is in immediate danger, use emergency services rather than this planning guide.
- End and proposed start dates
- Who covers any support gap
- What may be shared and when to check in
Read the full guide
Open only the explanation you need, or read them all.
Be clear about what you want to change
Write down what is not working and what a better arrangement would look like. Is it communication, timing, worker fit, reliability or the service itself? This helps you decide whether to ask for a change within the current service or look elsewhere.
If you feel comfortable, discuss the issue with the provider. You can ask a trusted person or coordinator to help you prepare. You do not have to handle a serious quality or safety concern through an ordinary conversation alone.
Read the current terms
Check how to end the agreement, the notice required, any outstanding charges and what happens to booked appointments. Ask for an explanation if the wording is unclear. Different agreements can have different terms.
Avoid assuming that changing one relationship automatically changes every booking or portal arrangement. Ask what needs updating and who is responsible for it. Follow the current NDIA guidance for your portal and circumstances.
Plan the next arrangement before the old one ends
Where possible, confirm the next provider’s capacity, first appointment, communication and agreed terms before essential supports stop. Discuss an interim arrangement if the handover dates do not line up.
Keep the participant involved. Agree which information is necessary, who can receive it and how it will be shared. A handover should be useful and proportionate rather than a transfer of every document.
Write a simple handover plan
Use four headings: what continues, what ends, what needs updating and the next check-in. Put a name and date against each action. Include practical preferences that help someone work respectfully with you.
The downloadable handover planner is for your own use. Keep names, personal identifiers and health details on your own device or paper, and agree a suitable exchange method with the people involved.
Check the first weeks
Ask whether appointments happen as agreed, communication works and the new provider understands your priorities. Note any change that would make the arrangement easier.
Moving providers does not guarantee a particular outcome. It creates an opportunity to agree a better fit, review it and keep your own choices central.
Go to the source
General preparation guidance. Use the current official page and the details of your own plan for decisions.