Short-Term Support, Long-Term Gains: Understanding the Restorative Care Pathway

The Australian Government's Support at Home program starting on 1st November 2025, introduces several flexible funding options designed to meet the diverse needs of older Australians. Among these is the Restorative Care Pathway — a short-term, goal-based care option that helps older people regain independence, function, and confidence after a health setback or period of decline.

In this blog, we explore how the Restorative Care Pathway works, who it's for, and how it complements long-term ongoing home care under Support at Home.

What is the Restorative Care Pathway?

The Restorative Care Pathway focuses on early intervention through intensive clinical care, support and monitoring and does this by providing intensive, time-limited support to help people:

• Regain mobility and strength
• Improve confidence in daily tasks
• Avoid unnecessary hospitalisation or entry into permanent care

It's designed for people who need targeted assistance after a decline in function, illness, injury, or hospital stay — but who have the motivation and capacity to work toward regaining their independence.

Duration and Frequency

Participants can access up to 16 weeks of short-term care.

• This may be extended by 4 weeks via a Support Plan Review.
• A maximum of 2 episodes (or funding units) can be accessed per 12-month period.

Participants can:

• Receive two separate 12-week episodes in a year (but not consecutively — there must be at least a 3-month break between episodes), OR
• Receive two funding units ($12,000) during a single extended 12–16-week episode if additional support is required.

This gives participants and their care teams flexibility to respond to temporary care needs while building toward long-term goals.

Funding and Budget

Each episode of restorative care includes up to $6,000 in funding, which may be increased to $12,000 in cases where additional allied health support is clinically justified.

This budget is separate from ongoing Support at Home funds and is used to:

• Fund allied health and nursing services
• Develop a tailored care plan with specific goals
• Coordinate short-term care delivery and follow-up

Note: Participants are not reassessed into a lower classification for ongoing care services following a restorative episode.

Who is Eligible?

To access the Restorative Care Pathway, a person must:

• Be eligible for Support at Home
• Demonstrate a functional decline or recent setback
• Show motivation and capacity to engage in reablement
• Have clearly defined, achievable care goals

The pathway is not available to individuals:

• Already receiving End-of-Life Pathway services
• In residential aged care
• Participating in Transition Care Program (TCP)
• Who have already used 2 restorative episodes in the past 12 months

Services Covered

The funding can support a broad range of short-term clinical and independence-based services:

• Physiotherapy
• Occupational therapy
• Nursing care
• Personal care (linked to a recovery goal)
• Falls prevention programs
• Home environment assessments and safety modifications

The goal is always to support someone to achieve greater independence and reduce the need for long-term support.

Care Management

Unlike ongoing Support at Home budgets, there is no fixed 10% care management allocation for restorative care. Instead:

• All care management activities (goal-setting, planning, progress review) are drawn directly from the episode’s budget.
• Providers must ensure spending is proportionate and appropriate to the participant's care goals.

How Right at Home Can Help

At Right at Home, our multidisciplinary care teams are well-equipped to deliver restorative care services that support:

• Strength and mobility improvement
• Recovery after hospitalisation
• Confidence in managing daily routines

We guide you through the eligibility process, goal-setting, and care delivery so that your short-term gains translate to long-term wellbeing. Ready to explore how restorative care can support you or a loved one? Contact Right at Home today for a personalised consultation.

Right at Home Australia is a leading provider of quality in-home care. Our mission is to improve the quality of life for those we serve ensuring the Right Care, Right at Home™.  We support people living with complex and post-operative care needs, dementia and cognitive decline, seniors, and adults living with a disability including NDIS participants. Our tailored services help clients to remain safe and independent in their homes. We are an Approved Provider under the Aged Care Act, meaning we can provide quality support at home under a government-funded home care package. We also offer private pay arrangements for those who do not have government funding, or who wish to pay privately for top-up care. Right at Home is all about you. We are available 24/7 so contact your local office today. You can also call our national number on 1300 363 802. 

Right at Home Offices in Australia: ACT & Queanbeyan; ACT Canberra; Adelaide Central; Brisbane Bayside; Brisbane North; Brisbane South; Brisbane West; Central Queensland & Wide Bay; Central West New South Wales; Darling Downs; Far North Queensland; Gold Coast North; Gold Coast South; Gosford; Greater Logan; Hunter & Port Stephens; Ipswich Lockyer Valley; Kalgoorlie Wheatbelt; Macarthur Penrith; Mackay; Melbourne Brighton; Melbourne Frankston; Melbourne Glen Waverley; Melbourne North; Melbourne Werribee; Moreton Bay Region; Newcastle; Noosa, Gympie & Hinterland; North Queensland; Northern Rivers; Padstow St George; Perth Midland; Perth Northern Suburbs; Perth South; Perth South Eastern Suburbs; Perth West Coast; South West WA; Southern NSW; Southwest Victoria; Sunshine Coast; Sydney Central & Eastern Suburbs; Sydney Five Dock; Sydney Inner West; Sydney Liverpool; Sydney Lower North Shore; Sydney Northern Beaches; Sydney Norwest; Sydney Parramatta; Sydney Randwick; Sydney Ryde; Sydney Sutherland Shire; Sydney The Hills; Sydney Upper North Shore; Western NSW