How many hours a week does Classification 6 buy?
Last updated 21 August 2026
Budget figures current as at the 1 July 2026 indexation (2026-27); median hourly prices from the mid-2026 National Summary of Support at Home Prices.
The short version
- Classification 6 buys about seven to seven and a half hours a week at national median prices, after care management.
- The quarterly budget of $12,341.32 is $949.33 a week - about $854.40 for services once the 10% care management cap comes out.
- The big trade-off at this level is clinical time versus hands-on time: a nursing-led week delivers 6.5 hours, a support-worker week 7.5.
- Nursing is free to you - no contribution - but it still consumes budget at $145-$180 an hour.
Classification 6 is typically where nursing stops being occasional. The question that shapes the week isn’t “can we afford help?” but “how much of the budget should clinical care take?” Three honest versions of the same week:
First, the arithmetic
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Quarterly budget (2026-27) | $12,341.32 |
| ÷ 13 weeks in a quarter | ≈ $949.33 a week |
| − care management (capped at 10%) | − $94.93 |
| = left for services each week | ≈ $854.40 |
| ÷ $115 - the median personal care hour | ≈ 7.4 hours a week |
Clinical week, support week, carer week
| Service | Rate | Hours / week | Cost / week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registered nurse (assessment, wound care) | $180/hr | 1 hr | $180.00 |
| Enrolled nurse (medications, monitoring) | $145/hr | 1 hr | $145.00 |
| Personal care | $115/hr | 3 hrs | $345.00 |
| Cleaning & laundry | $110/hr | 1.5 hrs | $165.00 |
| Care management (10%) | - | - | $94.93 |
| Total | 6.5 hrs | $929.93 of $949.33 weekly budget |
| Service | Rate | Hours / week | Cost / week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal care | $115/hr | 4 hrs | $460.00 |
| Cleaning & laundry | $110/hr | 2 hrs | $220.00 |
| Social support (outings, appointments) | $111/hr | 1.5 hrs | $166.50 |
| Care management (10%) | - | - | $94.93 |
| Total | 7.5 hrs | $941.43 of $949.33 weekly budget |
| Service | Rate | Hours / week | Cost / week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Community respite (carer’s regular break) | $130/hr | 3 hrs | $390.00 |
| Personal care | $115/hr | 2 hrs | $230.00 |
| Cleaning | $110/hr | 2 hrs | $220.00 |
| Care management (10%) | - | - | $94.93 |
| Total | 7 hrs | $934.93 of $949.33 weekly budget |
Indicative only - providers set their own prices, evening and weekend visits usually attract loadings, and your contribution changes what you pay, not the hours the budget buys. Compare typical hourly rates.
Clinical care - nursing, allied health, care management - carries no contribution for anyone. But it draws down your quarterly budget at the provider’s hourly rate like everything else. If nursing needs are climbing, the answer is usually a reassessment toward Classification 7, not quietly cutting the cleaning. How reassessment works.
How to get more hours from the same budget
Week 2 above costs $846.50 in services at the medians. Price that identical list 15% lower - which well-priced providers do reach - and it comes to about $719.53, leaving roughly $135 a week spare: better than an extra hour, every week, from the same budget. Three ways to chase that:
- Compare full price lists across two or three providers, including nursing rates - the spread on clinical hours is often wider than on cleaning. Typical rates by service.
- Scrutinise the care management fee. The 10% cap is about $1,234 a quarter at Classification 6. Providers charging below the cap return the difference to you as hours. How the fee works.
- Match the worker to the task. If a task doesn’t need a nurse’s qualification, a $115 support worker hour beats a $180 RN hour. And consider self-management for the non-clinical parts of the roster.
Seven hours a week deserves a well-priced provider
We’ll compare providers in your area on the mix you actually need - nursing rates included - and tell you who has capacity.
Common questions
Why does nursing use my budget if it’s free?
“Free” refers to your contribution - clinical care costs you nothing out of pocket, whatever your means. The service itself is still paid for from your quarterly budget at the provider’s rate. Two ledgers: what the budget spends, and what you contribute. Contributions explained.
Can nursing come from one provider and cleaning from another?
You hold one service agreement with one registered provider, but many deliver parts of the roster through subcontractors - and self-management arrangements widen your choice of who actually turns up. Self-management explained.
We had a heavy week - does that blow the budget?
The budget is quarterly, not weekly, so heavier and lighter weeks can balance out across the 13 weeks. Between quarters, unspent funds roll over up to the greater of $1,000 or 10% of the quarterly budget - about $1,234 here. The rollover rules.
When is it time to look at Classification 7?
When clinical visits are crowding out everyday help week after week - that’s the pattern Classification 7’s bigger budget (about $14,915 a quarter) exists for. Compare Classifications 6 and 7, then ask My Aged Care (1800 200 422) about a free reassessment.
Sources
- Department of Health, Disability and Ageing - Support at Home program classifications and budgets, 1 July 2026 indexation.
- Department of Health, Disability and Ageing - National Summary of Support at Home Prices (median service prices), 2026.
- Support at Home Program Manual - quarterly budgets, care management cap and the defined service list.
- My Aged Care, myagedcare.gov.au - Support at Home program guidance, accessed 21 August 2026.