Top tips for managing multiple service providers

It’s common for families to have more than one provider supporting their child – and for good reason. Different specialists bring valuable skills to help your child build confidence and develop in key areas.

If this is the case for your family, then you may already be aware that without clear coordination, juggling multiple providers can quickly become confusing and overwhelming.

How to build a collaborative team

When all your child’s service providers communicate and work as a team, it makes life easier for you – and leads to better, more consistent results for your child and your family.

To help create a strong, collaborative support network, it’s important to have clarity around:

• who is part of your child’s support team
• what each provider is focusing on (skills, goals or behaviours)
• how each support connects to your child’s goals.

If you notice overlap or confusion, it’s absolutely okay to ask questions and get clarity. After all, you’re an important, if not the most important, part of your child’s team, and your input is vital.

It can also help to stay across funding – understanding what type of funding your child is using and how much is allocated to each service can make planning much easier.

A balanced approach

At the end of the day, you know your child best. You’re in control of the support they receive, so it’s important that everything feels right for your family.

If something isn’t working, or you need time to reassess, it’s okay to make changes. You might decide to:

• adjust how often sessions happen
• pause a service for a period of time
• step back from a support that isn’t delivering the benefits you expect.

Remember, more isn’t always better. A smaller number of well-coordinated, meaningful supports can often have a greater impact than trying to do everything at once.