"Just tell me what happens, in what order, and how long each step takes." That's a home maintenance operator in Bendigo, keen but wary. Two long-standing clients have asked whether their new Support at Home budgets can pay for his fortnightly visits. Last time he joined a panel arrangement, onboarding took four months and the client found someone else.

This example is illustrative, created to show how the local partner model works in practice.

Step 1: Enquiry and fit conversation

It starts with a call or an enquiry through our become a partner page. We talk through what services you deliver, where you work, and how they map to the Support at Home service list: clinical supports, independence supports, or everyday living supports like domestic assistance and home maintenance. Sole traders through to established providers fit the model.

Step 2: Documents and checks

This step sets the timeline, and you control it. Partner with Care is the registered provider carrying the compliance obligations under the new Aged Care Act, so we need your paperwork in order first. Have ready:

  • Your ABN and business details.
  • Current certificates of currency.
  • Screening for everyone who'll enter a client's home.
  • Qualifications and registrations where your service is clinical (nursing or allied health).

Step 3: Agreement and go-live

With documents complete, you sign the partner agreement and we set you up in our systems. New partners are typically live in around two weeks once documents are complete; established providers with paperwork at hand can have clients activated in hours.

Chasing an insurance renewal or an expired check is what stretches two weeks into six.

Step 4: Your first client

Most partners' first clients are people who already know them: existing customers moving onto Support at Home funding, or local word-of-mouth referrals. When a client chooses you, PWC activates the arrangement and handles the claiming, compliance and government-facing work.

You keep your brand, your clients and your pricing throughout. More on how we work at why us.