OT vs Support Worker: Who Should Build Daily Living Skills?
Occupational therapist vs support worker: who builds daily living skills, how the two roles differ and work together, and how the NDIS funds each.
When your goal is to get better at everyday tasks — cooking a meal, managing money, catching the bus — who should help you get there: an occupational therapist or a support worker? Both have a role, and the best results usually come from using them together. This guide explains how their jobs differ and how to combine them well.
What an occupational therapist does
What a support worker does
The key difference: designing vs doing
How they work together to build skills
Where a therapy assistant fits
How each is funded
A worked example
Finding the right OT and support worker
Frequently asked questions
Should an OT or a support worker build my daily living skills?
Both, ideally. An occupational therapist assesses what's hard and designs the plan; a support worker helps you practise it consistently in daily life. The OT brings the clinical strategy, the support worker brings the repetition that makes a new skill stick. Using them together usually works best.
Can a support worker do what an OT does?
No. A support worker delivers and practises support with you, but they aren't qualified to assess complex needs, prescribe equipment or write the clinical reports your plan relies on. Think of the OT as designing the approach and the support worker as helping you carry it out.
How is each one funded?
Occupational therapy is funded from Capacity Building — Improved Daily Living. Support workers are funded from your Core budget. Because Core is usually more flexible, many people use a little OT time to design a program and support-worker hours to practise it, which stretches the plan further.
What's a therapy assistant?
A therapy assistant works under an OT's direction to deliver parts of a therapy program at a lower hourly rate than the OT. They're a good way to get regular hands-on delivery without paying full therapist rates for every session. See our therapy assistant vs therapist guide.
Related guides
- Occupational Therapy vs Physiotherapy: Which Do You Need?
- Physiotherapy vs Exercise Physiology: What's the Difference on the NDIS?
- Plan Manager vs Support Coordinator: What's the Difference (and Can You Have Both)?
- Plan Review vs Reassessment: What's the Difference?
- Psychologist vs Psychiatrist vs Recovery Coach: NDIS Mental Health Support Compared
- Psychology vs Counselling vs Behaviour Support: Which NDIS Therapy?