Are you looking into Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) options? If so, you’ve come to the right place!
In this blog, we’ll focus on what Improved Liveability is, how it compares to the other SDA design categories, and how Enliven’s Improved Liveability apartments can help you live your best life.
Quick links:
- What is Improved Liveability SDA?
- How does Improved Liveability differ from other SDA design categories?
- What are the features of Improved Liveability SDA?
- Are you eligible for Improved Liveability SDA Housing?
- Enliven Housing’s Improved Liveability SDA
What is Improved Liveability in SDA Housing?
Improved Liveability (IL) housing is SDA designed for NDIS participants who benefit from simpler layouts, clearer visibility and sensory-friendly environments. It is one of four design categories outlined in the SDA Design Standard created by the NDIS and focuses on supporting people with sensory, intellectual or cognitive impairment.
Improved Liveability homes typically include features such as high-contrast walls and doors, simplified wayfinding with minimal corridors, task lighting and visual assistance cues. Together, these elements provide a reasonable level of physical access while enhancing safety, comfort and everyday independence.
How does Improved Liveability differ from other SDA design categories?
There are four SDA design categories: Improved Liveability (IL), Fully Accessible (FA), High Physical Support (HPS) and Robust. Each category is designed to meet different support needs, ensuring SDA housing aligns with your NDIS goals, preferences and daily living requirements. Understanding the differences between these categories can help you choose the option that best fits your needs. Improved Liveability, for example, focuses on sensory-friendly design and ease of navigation, rather than the higher physical access or specialised support features found in Fully Accessible, High Physical Support or Robust SDA.
Improved Liveability SDA is suited to participants who benefit from predictable, calm and easy-to-navigate features, creating an environment that supports their daily living and independence. These features may include high-contrast walls and floors for easier visibility, open living areas that allow support workers to maintain clear sightlines and homes with minimal or no stairs.
Improved Liveability SDA homes include spacious SDA bedrooms, accessible kitchens, bathrooms and laundry areas, all designed to promote safety and comfort. Common features include built-in wardrobes, accessible kitchen fixtures, slip-resistant flooring, easy-to-reach light switches and strong visual contrast to support safe and confident navigation throughout the home.
Comparison with Other SDA Categories
| Design Feature | Improved Liveability (IL) | Fully Accessible (FA) | High Physical Support (HPS) | Robust |
| Primary Focus | Sensory, intellectual or cognitive impairments | Significant physical impairments and wheelchair users | Severe physical impairments requiring high-level support | Safety and durability for those with complex behaviours |
| Physical Access | Enhanced visibility, easy navigation | Step-free access, accessible fixtures | Same as FA plus structural supports for hoists | Good physical access, strong materials |
| Key Features | High luminous contrast, slip-resistant floors | Accessible bathroom basins, wheelchair-friendly layout | Emergency power, assistive tech readiness | High-impact materials, secure windows and doors |
| Additional Supports | Visual assistance lines, task lighting | Automation-ready doors and windows | Structural provisions for ceiling hoists, wider doors | Soundproofing, retreat areas for staff |
| Safety Features | Clear lines of sight for support workers | Accessible kitchen appliances | Heating/cooling systems, household communication tech | Laminated glass, high-impact wall linings |
Having the right SDA design category is important to ensure you get the maximum benefit from your SDA home. This can enhance your overall well-being by helping you live your best life. Having the right category ensures your home isn’t just a place to live, but a space that truly supports your health and quality of life.
What are the features of Improved Liveability SDA?
The Improved Liveability SDA design aims to provide a reasonable level of physical access and additional features to promote safety and comfort. The table below lists the different types of Improved Liveability design features and how they can help those with sensory, intellectual or cognitive impairments.
| Type | Example (but not limited to) | Improved Liveability SDA Design Features |
Sensory This is related to how you see, hear and touch. |
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Intellectual This is related to how you speak and listen, read and write, judge and critically think |
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Cognitive This relates to thinking, remembering and reasoning |
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To find out more about other design categories, check out our guide on SDA design categories.
Are you eligible for Improved Liveability SDA Housing?
If you’re an NDIS participant with sensory, intellectual or cognitive impairments, you might be eligible for Improved Liveability SDA Housing.
To qualify, your NDIS plan needs to include SDA funding and you must demonstrate a need for housing with enhanced physical access and features tailored to your specific needs. You’ll need supporting evidence from medical professionals explaining that this housing will support your independent living goals and overall quality of life.
Improved Liveability SDA Criteria
To be eligible for SDA Improved Liveability funding, you may require one or more of the following:
- You must be an NDIS participant
- You have a sensory, intellectual or cognitive impairment
- You require someone else to help you complete daily tasks or,
- You need 1 on 1 assistance for a large portion of the day
The NDIS may ask for proof in the form of reports from your allied health professional or other documents outlining your daily support and housing needs. This may include a functional capacity assessment or a home and living supporting evidence form provided by your support coordinator.
Apart from this, you may be eligible for Improved Liveability funding if with SDA housing you would:
- Improve, maintain or prevent your functional capacity from getting worse
- Lower the need for future support and help from others
- Create better connections with informal (e.g. friends and family) and formal (e.g. health services, education and employment) support systems.
If you want to know more about your eligibility for Improved Liveability NDIS funding, our SDA eligibility calculator or check out our guide to SDA funding.
Empowering Independence: Matt’s Journey with SDA
Learn how Enliven Housing’s Improved Liveability apartments have empowered Matt to build his confidence and independence.
Check out Matt’s full story here:
What are the Features of Enliven Housing’s Improved Liveability SDA Homes?
At Enliven Housing, our Improved Liveability SDA accommodation is designed to meet your needs. We put our tenants at the centre of the decision-making process throughout their SDA journey with us. We currently have SDA homes in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Adelaide, Gold Coast and Perth.
We incorporate our Design Model in all our SDA housing. This includes prime location, on-site support hub and compatibility with all design categories including Improved Liveability SDA. Below, we break down what makes our apartments accessible for those classified within the SDA Improved Liveability category:
The Entrance
- Safe, continuous step-free access from entry to the building right through to the entry doorway
- Requires a functioning lift that provides access from the car park to the unit level
- Homes have a wider doorway with a minimum door opening of 820 millimetres
The Bedroom
- The bedroom must be a minimum size of 3.1 metres by 3.1 metres
The Kitchen
- The kitchen must have a fixed cooktop with a range hood, an inbuilt stove, a sink with a tap and a dishwasher
- Task lighting needs to be provided above workspaces
- Cupboards need to have deep uncovered handles or pushed-to-release mechanisms
- A minimum of one-metre clearance between appliances and fixed benchtops
The Bathroom and Laundry
- Must have a water closet, shower, hand basin and slip resistance on all floors
- Laundries are provided with a sink or tub with taps
- Enliven Housing installs a washer-dryer combo for accessibility and space
The Luminous Contrast
- All doorways must have a minimum luminous contrast of 30% between door leaf, floorboards or skirting boards.
- Luminous contrast of at least 30% between two surfaces (e.g. door leaf and door frame)
- Solid glazing strips over large areas of glass
- Toilet seats must have a minimum luminance contrast of 30% with the background
- Colour contrast between the floor and wall
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What are the Benefits of Improved Liveability with Enliven Housing?
At Enliven Housing, we don’t just stop at Improved Liveability SDA — we go the extra mile to help you reach your NDIS goals. We’re committed to going above and beyond to ensure our tenants not only enhance their liveability but also enjoy their best life. With our state-of-the-art AT, Friendly Landlord Model and Access and Safety Provisions, our Improved Liveability SDA options are designed to make our tenants feel safe, comfortable and truly at home.
Assistive Technology
All our SDA homes are integrated with AT to help you live your best life. We partner with SDA Assistive Technologies to ensure your home is technologically customised to suit your needs.
Smart devices with voice control are implemented in most of our homes so you can take charge of your environment, whether it’s for day-to-day activities, safety, functionality or to help you connect with carers and family. For example, we’ve made Amazon Alexa available in most homes, so that in the unlikely event of an emergency, Alexa can automatically notify up to 25 emergency contacts at any time.
Friendly Landlord Model
At Enliven Housing, we understand that everyone is different. We’re committed to long-term relationships with our Improved Liveability SDA tenants by providing a personalised experience. Our Friendly Landlord Model guarantees all our Tenancy Officers are approachable, helpful and open to suggestions. We’ll always respond to your concerns and ensure you’re at the centre of the decision-making process.
Location: Safety and Accessibility
All our Improved Liveability SDA homes are built with safety and accessibility in mind. We have a team of experts that ensure all our housing options are located in areas where our tenants have the optimal access to public transport, leisure activities and medical facilities. This ensures you can conveniently access these services whenever needed.
At Enliven Housing, we’re committed to ensuring our tenants feel safe and comfortable in their homes. This is a key consideration when selecting our locations and we achieve it by situating our SDA homes in some of Australia’s safest and reputable suburbs.
Learn more about our SDA location selection process by reading through our Design Philosophy.
Compliance and Quality You Can Trust
We design and deliver our Improved Liveability homes to meet the NDIS SDA Design Standard. Every home is independently assessed by accredited third-party SDA Assessors, both at the design stage and once the home is built. This gives you confidence that your home meets the standards required for SDA, now and into the future.
The SDA Design Standard supports better housing outcomes for people with disability. It sets clear, nationally consistent requirements that focus on independence, safety and comfort in everyday living. We use these standards to guide how we design our homes – always with the people who live in them at the centre.
Our Improved Liveability SDA also goes beyond the Livable Housing Australia (LHA) Silver Level Standard. LHA Silver is a nationally recognised benchmark referenced in the National Construction Code (NCC). It includes seven core design features that make homes more accessible and simpler to adapt over time.
What this means for you is peace of mind. You can stay in a home you know and feel comfortable in, even if your support needs change – without major renovations or having to move.
Explore Improved Liveability SDA Options with Enliven Housing
If you’re looking for SDA options, Enliven Housing is here to make your choice easier. We specialise in Improved Liveability SDA housing, offering modern, accessible living spaces tailored for individuals with sensory, intellectual or cognitive impairments.
At Enliven Housing, we don’t just meet SDA requirements; we go above and beyond to ensure you feel at home. Ready to explore if you’re eligible for Improved Liveability SDA? Use our quick eligibility calculator or contact us directly by hitting the “Call Us” or “Chat Now” button below to find out how we can support you on your journey to Improved Liveability SDA living.
