Support at Home, explained in plain words.
Support at Home is the Australian Government's home-care program for older Australians. It replaced Home Care Packages in 2025. This page is our attempt to explain it the way we'd explain it to our own parents — clearly, calmly, with no jargon.
One government-funded program. A flexible bundle of services. Delivered at home.
Support at Home is how the Australian Government helps older Australians live well at home, instead of moving into residential aged care. It pools the funding for clinical care, allied health, day-to-day help and home modifications into a single plan.
Your plan has a budget. Your provider — Ankang or another approved provider — uses that budget to arrange the services in your plan. You make the choices; we coordinate the people and the schedule.
- Clinical & nursing care
- Allied health (physio, OT, etc.)
- Personal care & domestic help
- Transport, meals, social support
- Home modifications & equipment
- Hospital care (covered by Medicare)
- Specialist medical visits
- Prescription medications
- Rent, mortgage, household bills
- Holidays or recreational travel
Who is eligible.
In broad terms, Support at Home is for Australians aged 65 or over (50 for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people) who need help to keep living at home. Eligibility is confirmed through an assessment.
65+ years (or 50+ for First Nations Australians, or 50+ on a low income and homeless or at risk).
Difficulty with daily activities, mobility, clinical care, or social isolation.
Australian citizen or permanent resident, living in Australia.
You or a family member must request an assessment through My Aged Care — we can do this with you.
How to apply, step by step.
You can apply directly with the government, or apply with our help. We'll guide you through every form, every phone call, and every assessor visit — at no cost, even before you become a client.
Start at myagedcare.gov.au or call 1800 200 422. You will need a Medicare card, ID, and details about your living situation. We can do this call with you on a three-way line.
An aged-care assessor visits your home — usually within 4–8 weeks. They confirm your eligibility and your support level. We can sit in if you would like a familiar face.
You will get a letter with your assigned classification (Class 1–8) and your funded budget. Most clients receive their plan within 2–8 weeks of assessment.
Sign a simple agreement with us. We co-design your care plan, agree on services, and set start dates. Care can begin within a fortnight.
We'll guide you through the application — for free, even if you choose another provider afterwards.
Your care plan, designed with you.
Once you have a Support at Home plan, your Ankang care manager works with you and your family to translate it into a real, weekly schedule.
We start with you, not a checklist. What does a good day look like? What do you want help with — and what do you want to keep doing yourself?
We translate your goals into services, schedules, and a budget. Plain English summary, in writing, before anything starts.
Care begins gently. We introduce you to your team — usually one or two people in the first month — and grow from there.
Monthly check-ins with your care manager. After a hospital stay, fall, or change in mood, we adjust together.
What it looks like in practice.
Mild dementia, lives alone, daughter in Sydney.
6 hrs/wk personal care, 2 hrs/wk domestic, weekly social walk, monthly OT review, fortnightly nurse for medication review.
Family contribution: ~$95 / week.
Recent hip replacement, returning home from hospital.
8 weeks intensive: twice-weekly physio, weekly nurse, OT home assessment & grab rails. Stepped down to maintenance plan after recovery.
~$0/wk (clinical serivces), $50/wk ongoing.
Couple, husband caring for wife with Parkinson's.
Combined: 4 hrs/wk respite for husband, 6 hrs/wk personal care for wife, weekly cleaning, monthly social outing, allied-health team review.
Combined contribution: ~$180 / week.
Government links & downloads.
Official sources, in case you want to read for yourself. We refer to these in every consultation.
How quality is regulated and how to raise concerns.
agedcarequality.gov.au ↗Explore what are the services that are within the scope of Support at Home.
Download PDF ↓A workbook to help you and your family prepare for the assessment.
Download PDF ↓The kind of help you'd want for your own parents.
Ready to understand your options?
Book a free 30-minute consultation. We'll walk through your eligibility, your budget, and what care could look like — no obligation, no hard sell.