In recent years, Australia has witnessed a growing palette of lifestyle retirement living and aged care options. Theme-based options such as golf course, cruise-ship retirement, and newer types of inner-city lifestyle living. We asked what is missing in the current model, and how to create communities or places of belonging in the urban context. We identified the following 5 key design drivers: 1) Inter-generational Interaction, 2) Connection to Context, 3) Inclusivity, 4) Flexibility, 5) Proximity.

Our Trends and Market predictions for Retirement Living & Aged Care Design in 2019, as presented at our Sydney Health and Aged Care Press Media Briefing, on 12 November 2018: 1) Non-for-profits are back! 2) Volume and momentum both pick up but are inconsistent, 3) Quality is a concern, 4) Aged Care professionals are on trend to become rare, 5) Tech makes a big entrance in the Retirement Living and Aged care space, and 6) Specialist providers are thriving.

While aged care homes are nothing new, designing and building facilities specifically for elderly people with dementia requires a different approach. Everything from floor plans and facilities to lighting and signage must be carefully considered. Our aim with Dementia Aged Care design is to create a facility that feels like a home.