Lifely support co-ordinator Rob Fisher has seen how the NDIS operates from both sides.

As well as advocating and helping families access the scheme, he has two brothers and a son who rely on the NDIS.

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Mr Fisher said the effort needed to apply for NDIS support was arduous and left people frustrated.

"I have seen it from many aspects," he said. "Right across the board, it almost appears when people make applications for upgrades or anything to access NDIS, it is so arduous and tedious.

"You need to have so many evidence-based reports to request funding that people give up.

"I have been with Lifely for 11 years and the constant disillusionment from families is evident. A lot of them need funding and support to see their families thrive but they have to jump through so many hoops."

SportzRulz Australia director Pam Dawkins said she had also found a lot of families were struggling with the NDIS system.

"The system itself is not seamless," she said. "You see people with the same disability where one is accepted and one is not accepted depending on what is written in the application.

"People say it is too frustrating and not worth it.

"In cases, especially in regional Victoria, some money is allocated for a specialist service but there is a waiting list."

Federal government services minister Bill Shorten promised to review the after finding a lot of "bureaucratic blockage" in the system after Labor won the election.

Mr Shorten visited Bendigo this week to recognise the work of Services Australia's Bendigo office during the pandemic and NSW floods.

When questioned about how the government would improve the system Mr Shorten said a lot of improvements were necessary.

"Not in my wildest dreams could I imagine some of the problems from opposition that I've now discovered in government with the NDIS," he said.

"It's a great scheme and it's helping a lot of people but the level of bureaucratic blockage (and) the inexplicable nature of some decisions (show some) pretty disappointing dysfunction.

"More generally, we will review the system to make sure the planning process works better that it's more seamless, that's more transparent (and) take out a lot of the red tape."

Mr Fisher said more NDIS-funded activities to help young people socialise and develop was needed.

"I have found over years a lot of kids autism, some that are high funcitoning and attend mainstream schools, have trouble socialising with peers," he said.

"There is not enough funding to do recreational activities tailored to their disability that also focuses on peer groups to help them make friends in a safe, supportive environment. It's been like that since implementation and is something that certainly needs to be rectified."

Mr Fisher said more support was also needed for middle-aged and older clients.

"My twin brother and older brother have both lived with disabilities all their life," he said.

"When it was implemented as an insurance scheme to build a person's capacity that, as they get older, they need less support.

"But as (people living with a disability) get to middle to late age, they need extra support because they have aged and don't have the abilities they had 10 or 15 years ago.

"My brothers are 50 and 55 and need more support now than they did 15 years ago. I'm someone can handle the wait and stalemates and dragging of feet but not all families can comprehend it and give up too easily.

"It is a shame that an organisation like Lifely had to seek funding to develop a role in advocacy because the NDIS doesn't have the money for it. That's a huge disappointment because without advocacy no one gets anywhere."

Mr Shorten acknowledged there were complex problems in the NDIS.

"There are people with pretty complex needs," he said. "But not everyone's needs are as complex as the (NDIS) red tape would seem to warrant."

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