Last checked: 29 August 2026. General information only. Not a promise of funding, and not a promise that friendships will form.
Most Brisbane families who ask about this are not looking for a crowded program with a friendship scorecard. They want a loved one to meet people around something they actually like, without being thrown in the deep end, and without pretending every new acquaintance is safe. This page is a practical guide to that work: shared interests first, safety skills without scare tactics, a named worker close by at the start, and a pace the person can live with.
The NDIS decides what is funded. A provider delivers support that already sits in the plan.
What making friends safely actually means
Friendship is ordinary. For a lot of people with disability the barriers are practical: communication differences, social anxiety, limited access to community spaces, and a real worry about who they are spending time with.
Safe here does not mean locked down. It means a consistent, named worker who knows them, a way to leave if something feels wrong, and enough rehearsal that a new group is not a surprise. It also means the activity is real: a cafe, a club, a park, a class. Not a social lesson with no one else in the room. Horizons Support Network walks alongside self-managed and plan-managed participants in Brisbane. We do not sell Support Coordination, SIL, or clinical therapy.
How this is usually funded
Official NDIS guidance on what Core supports are says Core helps with everyday activities and getting involved in your community. Assistance with social and community participation sits in that budget when a goal is to spend more time locally and join group or social activities. Families often use that line to pay a support worker to help someone become more independent in community and personal interests.
There is a second, skill-building lane. Official guidance on capacity building supports describes Increased social and community participation as funding to find and join activities that interest you and connect you with other people in your area, including hobby groups, sport, social-skills training, and making new friends.
Which budget a week sits in depends on the plan in front of you. Check it. Do not assume. The NDIA still decides what is reasonable and necessary for each person. NDIS guidance on what a support worker is says community support can include help to attend social events or join activities, and that it is a good idea to make sure workers have completed an NDIS Worker Screening Check and to use a service agreement. Self-managed and plan-managed participants can usually choose a non-registered provider when the support fits the plan. Horizons cannot support NDIA-managed funding.
Start with a shared interest, not a social lesson
Friendships form most naturally around something both people already care about. When two people are focused on a game, a dog walk, a class, or a footy side, the conversation happens beside the activity. That takes a lot of the pressure off.
Help the person name what they actually enjoy. Sport, cooking, gaming, animals, art, music, a favourite topic. In Brisbane there is almost always a club, class, or regular meetup built around that interest. A support worker can help find a suitable group and go along to the first sessions until the person is comfortable attending with less support, or independently. Social and community participation is the service page for that work. If getting out the door is the hard part, treat the lead-up as part of the support: clothes, transport, a calm return home.
Teach friendship safety without creating fear
Safety skills are part of preparing for a social life, not a reason to stay home. The useful ones are ordinary: the difference between a trusted person and a new acquaintance; how to recognise a request that does not sit right, including being asked to keep a secret from family; what to do if they feel uncomfortable or pressured, including leaving, finding their worker, or calling a named person; and that they do not have to accept money, lifts, gifts, or private chats they did not ask for.
This is not about creating fear. Role-play helps because it makes the lesson physical. Run through a few common scenes, practise the words and the exit, then stop. Do not drill it until the person is anxious about going out at all.
A named, consistent worker is part of the safety design. Official guidance is that you are in control of who you work with. Ask to see current NDIS Worker Screening. Ask what happens if the usual person is away. A rotating cast of strangers is a poor fit for this kind of support.
Go gradual, then choose the format
For someone new to socialising more independently, start with a structured activity where a support worker or trusted adult is present and can step in without taking over. As comfort grows, the level of supervision can reduce. Pushing too quickly can increase anxiety. Moving at the participant's pace builds confidence that transfers. That can look small at first: a short cafe visit, one hour at a group, a walk in a familiar park.
Group activities give a ready-made reason to be in the same room. A worker can sit nearby, help with a sticky moment, and fade back. Horizons Squad Social is our named group program in Brisbane: casual, supported activities where people can connect without pressure. Email hello@horizonssupportnetwork.com.au for what is on. Register early. Start small. Support workers are present. We do not promise friendships. Read Meeting New Friends Through Horizons Squad Social Activities for the program detail.
One-to-one community time is often the better first step, and it is how you trial a new venue before walking into a group. Group vs individual community activities is the closer read if you are weighing a mix. For the skill-building angle, building social skills through group activities sits next to this page.
For quieter museum sessions, parks with no ticket, and venue checks, see autism-friendly outings in Brisbane.
What families can do, and what funding does not pay for
Families still matter here. Facilitating a first meetup, attending a community event together, and talking about friendships at home in a plain, positive way all help. Celebrate a small win: they stayed, they said hello, they asked to go back. If something was uncomfortable, treat that as useful information, not a reason to cancel the whole idea. You do not have to engage a Support Coordinator to ask. If Support Coordination is already funded, that person can help implement the arrangement. A plan manager can help with budget and invoices. The NDIA still decides. Horizons is not a Support Coordinator.
The NDIS funds disability-related support. Official reasonable-and-necessary guidance is clear that funded supports cannot include day-to-day living costs, or attendance at events or holidays. In practice that usually means the worker's time to help someone take part can be in the plan. The ticket, the meal, the membership fee, and ordinary holiday travel are not. It also does not pay for Support Coordination, SIL, clinical or therapy services, or a social program billed as NDIS support when the plan does not include it.
Who Horizons is, and who we are not
Horizons Support Network is a family-run, Brisbane-based team. We keep the same named workers where we can, we listen first, and we shape support around the life someone actually lives. We are a non-registered NDIS provider for self-managed and plan-managed participants only.
We do provide daily personal activities, independent living skills, social and community participation, and planned Short Term Respite when it matches the funded plan and service agreement.
We do not provide Support Coordination, plan management, Supported Independent Living (SIL), clinical care, high-intensity supports, emergency care, or support for NDIA-managed participants. We cannot decide or guarantee what the NDIA will fund, and we cannot promise that a friendship will form.
If we are not the right fit, we will say so in the first conversation. Check current support availability for Brisbane and nearby suburbs, or browse the rest of the resource library.
Talk it through
If a more connected week would look like a regular outing, a club, or a first group with a familiar worker beside them, make an enquiry or call 0450 780 086. A real person replies within one business day. Usually Chris, the founder. No pressure, no obligation.