If your parent or loved one wants to stay in their own home as they get older, you may have heard a new phrase appearing in conversations about aged care: Support at Home.
But what does it actually mean? Does it replace Home Care Packages? How is funding decided? And will your family need to contribute towards the cost of care?
These are important questions because Australia’s approach to government-funded in-home aged care has changed significantly. Support at Home began on 1 November 2025, replacing the Home Care Packages (HCP) Program and Short-Term Restorative Care Programme.
For Sydney families navigating aged care for the first time, understanding the basics can make the process feel much more manageable. Here is what you need to know about how the program works, what services it can fund and what to consider when organising care for someone you love.
Table of Contents
- What is the Support at Home program?
- How does Support at Home work in Sydney?
- What services can you receive?
- How do the eight funding classifications work?
- What might your family need to pay?
- What happened to existing Home Care Packages?
- What should Sydney families consider when choosing care?
- What should you do next?
What Is the Support at Home Program?
Support at Home is the Australian Government’s program for delivering government-funded aged care services to eligible older people living in their own homes.
Its aim is straightforward: help older people remain independent, healthy and connected to their communities for longer.
The program replaced Home Care Packages and the Short-Term Restorative Care Programme on 1 November 2025. The Commonwealth Home Support Program (CHSP), which provides entry-level support, continues separately and is expected to transition to Support at Home no earlier than 1 July 2027.
For families researching Support at Home Sydney, one of the most important things to understand is that support is based on an individual’s assessed needs. Rather than assuming everyone needs the same type or amount of assistance, an aged care assessment helps determine which services and funding classification may be appropriate.
This could mean relatively straightforward help with everyday activities for one person and more extensive clinical or personal support for another.
How Does Support at Home Work in Sydney?
The national rules are the same whether you live in Sydney, Newcastle or elsewhere in Australia, but your location can influence how care works in practice.
Sydney is a large and diverse city. Someone living alone in a North Shore apartment may have different needs from an older adult living with several generations of family in Western Sydney.
When exploring Support at Home services in Sydney, it is therefore useful to look beyond whether a provider simply covers your postcode. Think about how services will fit around your loved one’s health, household and established routine.
Practical questions can include:
- Is nursing care available when required?
- Can services be adjusted if needs change?
- How will care work alongside support already provided by family?
- Can cultural and language preferences be accommodated?
- How are appointments and regular visits scheduled?
- How will care be coordinated with other health professionals?
A good care plan needs to make sense in someone’s actual home and daily life.
What Services Can You Receive?
Support at Home covers three broad categories of services: clinical supports, independence services and everyday living services.
Examples include:
| Service category | Examples of support |
| Clinical supports | Nursing and physiotherapy |
| Independence | Personal care, transport and assistive technology |
| Everyday living | Domestic assistance, cleaning and gardening |
The exact services a person receives depend on what has been approved following their assessment.
Support at Home also includes three short-term pathways. These cover:
- Assistive Technology and Home Modifications
- Restorative Care
- End-of-Life Care
This structure recognises that needs do not always remain the same. Someone may require ongoing assistance but also need additional short-term support following a change in their health or circumstances.
How Do the Eight Funding Classifications Work?
One of the biggest differences families may notice is the funding structure.
Support at Home has eight classifications for ongoing services, compared with the four levels used under the former Home Care Packages system.
Each classification has a set funding amount based on assessed needs. As of 1 July 2026, annual funding ranges from approximately $11,010 for Classification 1 to $80,137 for Classification 8.
| Classification | Approx. annual funding* |
| 1 | $11,010 |
| 2 | $16,451 |
| 3 | $22,537 |
| 4 | $30,469 |
| 5 | $40,730 |
| 6 | $49,365 |
| 7 | $59,660 |
| 8 | $80,137 |
*Amounts current from 1 July 2026 and subject to indexation.
Funding for ongoing services is allocated quarterly rather than simply being treated as one annual pool. Up to $1,000 or 10% of the quarterly budget, whichever is greater, can generally be carried into the following quarter.
Ten per cent of each participant’s quarterly ongoing-services budget is allocated to care management.
This makes planning important. Families should understand not only the total funding available but also how that budget translates into actual services throughout each quarter.
What Might Your Family Need to Pay?
Support at Home does not necessarily mean every service is free.
Participant contributions depend partly on the type of service received. Under the current arrangements, clinical support services such as nursing and physiotherapy do not attract a participant contribution.
Other categories can require contributions. Broadly:
- Clinical supports: no participant contribution
- Independence services: moderate contributions may apply
- Everyday living services: higher contributions may apply
The exact amount can depend on the participant’s financial circumstances and applicable contribution arrangements.
There is also an important upcoming change. From 1 October 2026, approved personal care services will move into the Clinical Supports contribution category. This means participants with personal care included in their support plan and sufficient Support at Home funding will no longer pay a contribution towards those personal care services.
Because aged care funding rules can change, families should check current government guidance rather than relying on an older brochure, article or previous experience with Home Care Packages.
What Happened to Existing Home Care Packages?
If your loved one was already receiving a Home Care Package when Support at Home commenced, the transition was designed differently from the process for someone entering aged care for the first time.
Existing Home Care Package recipients moved to transitional Support at Home classifications intended to provide an equivalent level of funding.
There are also protections around contributions for certain people who were receiving, approved for or waiting for a Home Care Package on 12 September 2024. The Government’s no worse off principle is designed so eligible people do not pay higher contributions under Support at Home than they would have under the previous arrangements.
Families who transitioned from the old system should therefore avoid assuming that contribution rules for a new participant automatically apply to them.
What Should Sydney Families Consider When Choosing Care?
Funding is important, but it is only part of the decision.
Your loved one is allowing someone into their home, often to assist with personal or health-related tasks. Reliability, communication and continuity matter too.
When comparing providers, consider asking:
- What services can you provide under my loved one’s approved support plan?
- How clearly are your service prices explained?
- Who coordinates changes to the care plan?
- What happens if a regular worker is unavailable?
- How much choice does my loved one have about their care?
- Can you provide clinical nursing if this becomes necessary?
- How do you communicate with family members or registered supporters?
- How will you help us monitor the quarterly budget?
Providers are required to publish their most frequently charged prices on their own website and on My Aged Care, helping families compare costs.
Price should still be considered alongside quality, availability and suitability. The cheapest service on paper may not necessarily be the best fit for your loved one’s circumstances.
What Should You Do Next?
If your family is beginning the aged care process, start with your loved one’s needs rather than trying to choose individual services immediately.
Consider what is becoming difficult at home. Perhaps showering is less safe, preparing meals is exhausting, managing household tasks has become challenging or a health condition now requires professional nursing support.
Write these concerns down before an assessment. It can also help to discuss:
- What your loved one can still do independently
- Where family members currently provide support
- Which tasks are becoming unsafe or difficult
- Whether there have been recent falls or hospital visits
- What would make everyday life easier
- What matters most to your loved one about remaining at home
You can then use the assessment and resulting support plan to understand which services are approved and how funding can be used.
Make the Program Work Around the Person
Support at Home introduces new terminology, classifications and contribution rules, so it is understandable if the system initially feels complicated.
The simplest way to approach it is to keep the person at the centre of every decision.
For Sydney families, that means looking beyond a funding classification and thinking about what everyday independence actually means for your loved one. It could mean safely showering without relying on a family member, having a nurse visit at home, getting help with household tasks or simply having the right support to continue familiar routines.
Understanding the program is the first step. The next is turning that funding and support plan into care that works in the home, respects personal choices and helps your loved one remain as independent as possible.