Webinar 4: Principle 2 – Cultivate a home

Cultivating Aged Care Homes

Australia's aged care sector stands at an inflection point. The Aged Care Act 2024, which commenced on 1 November 2025, places older people's rights to autonomy and dignity at the system's core, while the National Aged Care Design Principles and Guidelines—published in 2024—supply the practical blueprint for translating those rights into physical space.

Institutional models still dominate the 224,000 operational places. Long corridors, shared facilities and clinical workstations compound cognitive decline for the 54% of permanent residents with dementia, fuelling agitation, psychotropic prescribing and social withdrawal. COVID-19 outbreaks amplified the problem: risk rose 335% for every additional 20 residents in a single building.

Principle 2, Cultivate a Home, prescribes the remedy: familiar, domestic-scale environments with private bedrooms and ensuites, identifiable household entries, open-plan kitchens at the heart of clusters no larger than 15 people, and corridors short enough to feel navigable. Evidence from implemented models shows reduced pacing and exit-seeking, better nutritional intake, fewer emergency presentations and improved staff-resident relationships.

The stakes are concrete. Retrofitting existing stock or building anew carries higher upfront capital than conventional designs, even if operational costs prove neutral or lower over time. Providers in regional areas already struggle with workforce continuity; dispersing staff across small households intensifies that pressure. A government review of accommodation supplements, required by June 2026, will determine whether funding flows support the transition or leave providers trapped between regulatory expectation and financial viability.

Non-obvious tensions surface here. Domestic kitchens foster belonging yet complicate stringent infection-prevention rules. Private entries preserve calm for residents but can slow clinical response. Furniture chosen for familiarity may clash with cleaning protocols or manual-handling standards. Cultural needs add another layer: personalised spaces must accommodate diverse backgrounds without defaulting to a one-size-fits-all aesthetic.