In short
Five things to know.
- Neuro Support's first month is NZ$1,399. It is the intensive build month: a 90-minute interview, the Neuro Agent build, and 8 x 15-minute Support Sessions. Below the NZ$1,500 per-purchase threshold for Tiers 1, 2, and 3. No pre-approval required.
- Ongoing Neuro Support after the first month is NZ$499/month, billed monthly, cancellable any time. Also below the threshold.
- There is no standalone Neuro Agent install purchase. Building the Agent is how the first month of Neuro Support is delivered.
- The service is a specialist disability support service. Not equipment, not therapy.
- Manawanui has previously paid an invoice from a client for a Neuro Agent purchase (April 2026, NZ$1,499, under a pricing structure that has since been retired). That payment is a precedent for the purchase type, not the price. Current pricing is set by the cost of delivering each service, and sits below the pre-approval threshold as a result.
- The smartphone itself is the client's own equipment, a separate purchase from these invoices.
The service
What the Neuro Agent is.
The Neuro Agent is a personal support system set up on the client's own devices (PC and mobile, the client's choice). iPhone is recommended specifically for the one-press Action Button capture; modern Android (2020 or later) is supported with an alternative capture surface. De-emphasising the device is deliberate. The funded thing is the service, not any piece of hardware.
The system uses Claude AI (a conversational support agent) and Notion (a structured workspace), together with sensory-friendly device settings. Configuration is tailored to the client during a 90-minute interview at the start of the first month, where the specialist support worker (Jamie) and the client work through what the system needs to hold.
Once it is set up, the system externalises the parts of executive function that ADHD and autistic brains have the hardest time with. Working memory, time awareness, task initiation, prioritisation. These things get held in the system rather than in the client's head. The clinical basis is Russell Barkley's externalisation framework, the most established model for ADHD support.
The client owns everything that is set up. No subscription lock-in. No proprietary platform. No provider-held data. If the client stops working with Neuro Support, the built system keeps running on their own Notion plan.
The rules
Why this qualifies for flexible funding.
Under the current flexible-funding rules (in force since 1 April 2026), there is no list of approved items or vendors. The relevant government page states plainly: "There is no set list of approved items, activities or services." The test is whether the purchase relates to the disabled person's disability support needs. Source: Disability Support Services, Flexible funding Q&A, retrieved 11 June 2026.
The Neuro Agent meets that test for a person with executive function difficulties. Specifically:
- Working memory. The system holds appointments, reminders, plans, ideas, current focus. Things the person no longer has to keep in their head.
- Time awareness. Calendar events surface on the Home page before they happen. Reminders fire when they're needed. The system makes time visible for a brain that has trouble feeling it.
- Task initiation. The next thing is visible without the person having to search for it. Removing the executive function barrier between intention and action is the heart of the build.
- Prioritisation. The system tells the person what to do next rather than asking them to choose from a long list.
- Sensory regulation. Device settings are configured to reduce sensory load. Notifications, contrast, motion, font, all set during the build.
These are not generic productivity benefits. They are the disability-related supports the build is specifically there to deliver, for clients whose disability creates the executive function deficits the system addresses.
What Manawanui's guidance adds
The principle above is the load-bearing justification. Manawanui's published FAQ gives some host-precedent colour, but it speaks to device and technology purchases specifically. It confirms that tablet devices and self-management technology can be funded where they relate to disability needs: "if you need a computer, cell phone or tablet to help you manage your funding, you can use your funding to pay for this" (with cost-effectiveness conditions). Source: Manawanui FAQ, retrieved 11 June 2026.
Building the Neuro Agent is a specialist support service rather than a device or software purchase, so this FAQ is not directly on point. But the principle it reflects, that disability-specific support tools relate to the person's support needs, applies here. A smartphone alone is not a disability support. An unconfigured Claude and Notion are not a disability support. The first month of Neuro Support is the specialist support service that brings the device into actually-supporting-the-person territory.
Line items
What you'd buy under IF.
Neuro Support — first month
NZ$1,399Invoice line "Specialist support service: personal support system build, configuration, and onboarding (first month)"
What it covers: a 90-minute support session with Jamie (specialist support worker, fifteen years' experience, BA Human Services, ADHD lived experience), the personal support system configured on the client's own devices (PC and mobile, their choice), and 8 × 15-minute Support Sessions across the month (2 a week).
Neuro Support — ongoing
NZ$499/monthInvoice line "Ongoing specialist support service: Neuro Support (monthly)"
What it covers: the Notion Business workspace (a delivery cost of the service that Neuro Support carries while the arrangement runs; no second invoice to the client, and it transfers to the client if they ever stop), ongoing maintenance of the configured Custom Agents as Notion and Claude evolve, agent-driven Help inside the workspace, content and Library curation, and 4 × 15-minute Support Sessions a month (rolling over to a maximum of 8 banked).
The ongoing service is optional. The client can stop at any time. If they do, the built system keeps running on the client's own Notion plan (approximately NZ$80 to NZ$110/month direct to Notion, depending on agent use) — a state called Docked. The build is durable; the ongoing layer is the variable.
Support Sessions
NZ$80 · 60 min in person | NZ$40 · 15 min onlineInvoice line "Specialist support worker session: [date], 60 minutes" (in person) or "Specialist support worker session (online): [date], 15 minutes"
Optional support-worker time, booked as needed. In person in Christchurch (NZ$80, 60 minutes), or online across NZ in 15-minute units (NZ$40, extendable once to 30 minutes) over evening slots five nights a week. Clients on the ongoing service pay a client rate of NZ$20 per 15-minute unit. Every session format is sub-threshold for all tiers; this is routine support-worker time, the most straightforward IF category to fund.
Not part of any invoice: the smartphone itself. That is the client's own equipment, purchased separately. If the client does not already own a suitable smartphone, equipment purchases through IF require pre-approval regardless of price.
Categorisation
Specialist disability support service. Not equipment. Not therapy.
This distinction matters because IF rules treat the three categories differently.
- Specialist support service: no pre-approval required under NZ$1,500 per purchase for Tiers 1, 2, and 3. The first month and the ongoing service are each priced on the cost of delivering them, and both sit below this threshold.
- Equipment: requires pre-approval regardless of price. The client's smartphone is in this category and is a separate purchase. Building the Neuro Agent is not equipment.
- Therapy: therapy has its own treatment under IF. Complementary therapies need prior approval, and therapy that another government agency (Health NZ, ACC) is responsible for is explored with that agency first. The Neuro Agent is not therapy. Jamie is a specialist support worker, not a therapist, counsellor, or clinician. The service is support work, framed as a specialist support service throughout, which keeps it clear of the therapy categorisation entirely.
This is why the canonical invoice line uses "specialist support service" and "personal support system setup" rather than "coaching", "training", or "therapy". The framing reflects what the service actually is and keeps the categorisation clean.
The pathway
How to set this up with your host.
For most clients (Tiers 1, 2, and 3):
- 01Get in touch with Jamie at jamie@neurosupport.co.nz to confirm fit and book your first month.
- 02Tell your IF host that you want to use flexible funding for a specialist support service: a personal support system build. Mention the price (NZ$1,399 first month, NZ$499/month ongoing) and that both clear the NZ$1,500 per-purchase threshold for Tiers 1, 2, and 3.
- 03Receive your invoice from Jamie after the first month is booked or after each ongoing month is delivered. The canonical line is on every invoice. A one-page funder explanation attaches automatically for any host coordinator who isn't already familiar with the service.
- 04Your host processes payment. Sub-threshold transactions process without pre-approval. If your coordinator wants additional context, Jamie is reachable directly.
On Tier 4? The next section is for you.
Tier 4
For Tier 4 clients.
Tier 4 has a lower NZ$500 per-purchase threshold. The first month at NZ$1,399 crosses this, so it starts with a pre-approval conversation with your host. Describe the purchase as a specialist disability support service that builds you a personal executive-function support system, delivered through sessions with a specialist support worker. Manawanui has paid for this exact purchase pattern previously (April 2026, at NZ$1,499 under a since-retired pricing structure). Your host can either approve the first month as a one-off purchase or set up the arrangement as routine support worker time.
The ongoing arrangement is best agreed with your host in the same conversation as the first month. Each month is a real, separately delivered period of support, priced on the cost of delivering it, and monthly invoices then process as part of the agreed arrangement.
Talk to Jamie before that conversation if you want backup.
IF hosts
IF host providers in New Zealand.
Your host is the organisation that holds your flexible funding budget and processes your purchases. Most NZ clients are with Manawanui.
Common questions
What clients and coordinators ask.
Is this a subscription?
No. The first month is NZ$1,399. The ongoing service after that is monthly (NZ$499/month) and cancellable at any time. If you cancel, your built system keeps running on your own Notion plan.
Is this equipment?
No. The smartphone is your equipment, purchased separately. Neuro Support is the specialist support service that builds a working personal support system with you, on devices you already own.
Is this therapy?
No. Jamie is a specialist support worker, not a therapist or counsellor. The service is support work, framed as a specialist support service throughout, which keeps it clear of the therapy categorisation (where complementary therapies need prior approval and clinically-funded therapies are another agency's responsibility). The Neuro Agent is not therapy.
Does this count as disability support, or is it software training?
Building the Neuro Agent is disability support delivered via a digital medium, not software training. The 90-minute interview is a support-worker session, not a tutorial. Jamie isn't teaching the client to use an app. He is conducting a support assessment (understanding the client's executive function challenges, goals, and current system), then building a personalised support system tailored to what he heard. The result is a working externalised executive function system, not a configured app. The difference is who does the work: in software training the client learns to operate the tool themselves; here Jamie builds the system while the client talks and watches. On the worst day, with low executive function and no initiation capacity, the system still works, because the client never needed to master it in the first place.
Does the government (DSS) approve this specifically?
Disability Support Services does not approve specific vendors or products. The current government guidance states there is "no set list of approved items, activities or services". The test is whether the purchase relates to your disability support needs. The Neuro Agent meets that test.
Has any IF host paid for this before?
Yes. Manawanui paid an invoice from a client for a Neuro Agent purchase at the NZ$1,499 per-transaction level in April 2026, under a pricing structure that has since been retired. That payment is a precedent for the purchase type, not the price. The current structure (NZ$1,399 first month + NZ$499/month ongoing) is priced on the cost of delivering each service, and sits below the pre-approval threshold as a result. Other host payments are added to this list as they happen.
What if my coordinator hasn't heard of Neuro Support?
A one-page funder explanation attaches to every invoice, and the public reference for coordinators is the funders page on this site. A more detailed coordinator reference sheet is available on request. If your coordinator wants to talk to Jamie directly, email jamie@neurosupport.co.nz. Jamie is available to answer host questions before, during, or after the purchase.
What about the smartphone? Can IF cover that?
The smartphone is treated as equipment under IF rules, which requires pre-approval regardless of price. Talk to your host about this separately. Many clients already own a suitable smartphone; the build works with what you have if your device is reasonably current (iPhone preferred, modern Android supported).
Can my family or support network use this too?
Yes, in the Team variant. The system can be set up so a trusted support person (parent, partner, support worker, sibling) can write into the workspace alongside the client. The privacy architecture keeps personal content client-only by default. Ask Jamie about the Team variant during your build conversation.
What happens if I stop ongoing Neuro Support?
The built system keeps running. You take over the Notion subscription directly (~NZ$80-110/month). The system stays with you. You can rejoin later if you want the upkeep, Help, and included sessions back.
Questions about the funding system itself, like what needs approval or what counts as equipment, have their own page: flexible funding, answered plainly. Every answer names its official source and the date it was last checked.
Coordinators: the public service reference (overview, pricing, pathway) is the funders and coordinators page.
Contact
Questions about funding? Email Jamie directly.
Jamie Robinson. Specialist support worker, fifteen years' experience, BA Human Services, ADHD lived experience. Christchurch; available online across NZ, in-person installs in Canterbury.