Shift note template
A printable shift note with prompts that keep notes factual and about the person: what happened, progress on their goals, any incident referenced rather than retold, and what the next shift needs to know.
Free to print · Checked against official sources on
Six habits of a good shift note. Each one has a prompt on the template below.
Objective
Describe what you saw, not a label for it. Write “raised his voice and left the kitchen”, not “was aggressive”.
Factual
Stick to what you saw and heard yourself, with times. Say who told you anything else, and leave out guesses and opinions.
Centred on the person
Write about the participant by name, put their own words in quotation marks, and note the choices they made.
Linked to their goals
Connect what you did to the goals in their support plan, and note progress or any change.
Incidents referenced
If something needs an incident report, complete one and put its reference in the note rather than retelling it in full.
A clear handover
Finish with what the next worker needs: anything outstanding, anything to watch for and what’s coming up.
A starting point. Not a sign-off.
The NDIS Practice Standards expect each participant’s information to be accurately recorded, current and confidential, and their support plan to track progress towards their goals. Much of that record starts in a shift note, written by the worker who was there.
There’s no set format for a shift note. These prompts are good practice, not a rule: check them against your own documentation policy, the participant’s support plan and your service agreements.
How to use it
- Write it during the shift or straight after, while it’s fresh.
- Write as if the participant will read it. They can ask to see their information, and to correct it.
- If anything could be a reportable incident, tell your supervisor straight away. For registered providers, the NDIS Commission’s 24-hour clock starts once you’ve told them.
- Run through the checklist at the foot of the page before you sign.
The template. Only the sheet prints, sized for A4.
Shift note
Write it during the shift or straight after: facts you saw and heard, in the participant’s words where you can.
Diversity Sync’d
Free template
Participant
Worker
Date
Location
Shift start
Shift finish
Supports delivered
As set out in the roster or service agreement
1How the shift went
What happened, in order, with times. What you saw and heard; the participant’s own words in quotation marks.
What happened
2Goals and progress
From the participant’s support plan.
Goal What we did Progress or change 3Health and wellbeing
Describe what you noticed, not labels.
Meals, rest and wellbeing, as you observed them
Medication, if part of this shift
- Recorded on the medication record
- Not part of this shift
- Something to follow up (note it below)
4The participant’s choices and voice
What they chose, asked for or raised, in their words.
Choices, requests and anything they raised
5Incidents, hazards and concerns
Reference the report here rather than retelling it.
- Nothing to report
- Incident report completed
- Hazard reported
- Concern raised with a supervisor
Report reference, and who you told and when
Could it be a reportable incident? Tell your supervisor now. Registered providers must notify the NDIS Commission of most reportable incidents within 24 hours of the organisation becoming aware.
6Contacts
Family, guardians, other providers or health professionals contacted, and why
7Handover
What the next worker needs to know.
Outstanding tasks, things to watch for, appointments coming up
8Before you sign
- Written during or straight after the shift
- Facts I saw or heard, with times
- Behaviour described, not labelled
- The participant’s own words in quotation marks
- No opinions, guesses or other people’s private details
- Incidents referenced, with the report number
- Readable by the next worker, and by the participant if they ask
Written by (name and signature)
Date and time written
From diversitysync.com/templates, checked against official sources on 26 October 2026. A starting point, not legal advice and not approved by any regulator: check it against current guidance and your own policies before you rely on it.
Where this comes from. Checked against official sources on 26 October 2026.
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission · Last updated 10 October 2024
NDIS Practice Standards core module: provider governance and operational management (opens in a new tab)Information management: each participant’s information accurately recorded, current and confidential, and how participants can see or correct it.
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission · Last updated 10 October 2024
NDIS Practice Standards core module: provision of supports (opens in a new tab)Support planning: support plans that reflect each participant’s goals, with progress towards them assessed.
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission · Last updated 12 October 2026
Reportable incidents (opens in a new tab)The 24-hour notification timeframe in the incidents prompt.
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission · Dated June 2019, linked from the page above
Reportable incidents: detailed guidance for registered NDIS providers (opens in a new tab)Writing down what was seen and heard, in the person’s own words, without opinions or interpretations. It’s written for incidents; the prompts apply the same habits to everyday notes.
What we couldn’t confirm
- We found no NDIS Commission rule that sets what a shift note must contain or how it’s laid out. The prompts are good practice drawn from the sources above, not requirements.
- We didn’t confirm how long shift notes must be kept. Check your registration requirements, your service agreements and your state or territory’s record-keeping laws.
- The medication prompt is general. Follow your own medication policy and the participant’s plan.
Check before you rely on it
This template isn’t legal advice, and no regulator has approved it. Rules, portals and forms change, so check it against current guidance and your own policies, and ask the regulator or an adviser when a matter is unclear.
Notes written on shift, not chased after it. In Diversity Sync’d, everyone on a participant’s day adds to one timeline from their phone’s browser, each entry under their own name and time, so the next shift reads the handover before it starts.
Explore shift notesToday · Friday 23 October 2026
Jonathan Nielsen · 4 contributions
Bailey SBreakfast on the deck. Chatty and relaxed.
Planted tomato seedlings at the community garden. He wants to go back on Sunday to water them.
Bailey S→
Priya RLocked once it’s reviewed
Once a participant’s day has been reviewed, an admin can lock it, and workers can’t add to it until it’s unlocked.
Forms inside the note
Incident reports, behaviour records and your own forms, completed in the timeline where the note is written.
Learn more about forms inside the noteMissing notes chased
In a shift’s last hour, a worker who hasn’t written for a participant gets a reminder, and a coverage view shows any day with gaps.
Redaction that carries through
Redact a passage once and it’s hidden in PDFs, exports and the API from anyone without permission to see it.
On the phone in their pocket
Workers write in their phone’s browser with nothing to install. It needs a data connection, and an iPhone app is on the way.
In the worker’s own words
Every note is written by the worker who was there. DS AI works on rosters; it doesn’t write or summarise notes.
Writing shift notes and filling in forms work on every plan, Free included; collaborative shift notes and the form builder come with Grow. Grow is $10 per user a month, or $9 a month billed yearly, with no GST added and a 14-day trial that takes a card at checkout. Turn this template into your own form in the builder and it opens inside the note.
More templates
All templatesNDIS · Printable
NDIS reportable incident template
What to record after a reportable incident, and when the 24-hour, 5-day and final reports fall due.
Queensland child safety · Printable
Reportable conduct checklist: the first 3 business days
For the head of a Queensland reporting entity: assess the allegation, manage the risk and give the QFCC an initial report within 3 business days.