Three years after Daniel Gannon took the reins of the Retirement Living Council (RLC), the sector has achieved something his predecessor Ben Myers was never able to: national recognition in Canberra.
Ben used to say that when he went to Parliament House, if he introduced himself as representing “retirement living,” Ministers and bureaucrats would wave him off as “state-based” and move on. Today, that dynamic has shifted.
Last Wednesday, the RLC took members and its leadership team to meet with Aged Care and Seniors Minister Sam Rae. That trip followed a major win earlier this year when the proposed liquidity ratio for retirement village operators with aged care co-located was cut from 10% to 2% – proof that Canberra is listening.
Recognition is only the first step. Retirement villages now need to capitalise on this moment and demonstrate their role as part of the solution to Australia’s care and housing challenges.
The case for retirement villages
Villages are essentially full. Aged care homes nearby are also full. The result? Residents living with dementia are ending up in hospitals or relying on fellow residents for daily support. This is not sustainable.
The answer lies in allowing villages to do more. Models like assisted living, Shared Care and private aged care can deliver the right level of support in the right setting. But operators are at risk of being caught in the same tangle of red tape that is suffocating residential aged care.
Canberra must recognise the distinct role of villages and regulate accordingly – otherwise opportunity will be lost.
Productivity matters
This isn’t just about fairness or flexibility – it’s about national productivity.
The Federal Government has made productivity its economic buzzword. Yet in aged care and housing, productivity gains won’t come from more compliance or more paperwork – they’ll come from unleashing providers to innovate, to deliver care more efficiently, and to keep people healthier at home for longer.
Retirement villages can do exactly that, if they’re empowered to.
As Daniel told The Weekly SOURCE this week: “Government needs to be pulling every lever to take the pressure off hospitals and aged care, shorten queues and help people age well at home.”
The RLC has given the sector a seat at the table. Now the challenge is to use it. If Canberra wants to avoid a crisis of beds, workforce and ballooning public spending, villages must be recognised – and enabled – as a central part of the care economy.