Southern Cross Care (Tas) to close aged care home amid sector-wide contraction
“Southern Cross Care has seen a shift from Residential Aged Care towards Home Based Care over recent years. Accordingly, to adapt to this changing dynamic, we have made the difficult decision to close Rosary Gardens”
Tasmania’s largest Not For Profit aged care provider, Southern Cross Care (Tasmania) Inc (SCCT), will close its Rosary Gardens aged care home in New Town, 4km north of Hobart’s CBD, and sell the 3.9-hectare site.
The decision, announced this week, reflects the provider’s strategic shift towards home-based care, with SCCT citing changing consumer demand and sustainability pressures in residential operations.
“Southern Cross Care has seen a shift from Residential Aged Care towards Home Based Care over recent years. This is a trend that we support, and which we expect to continue moving forward,” SCCT said in a statement.
“Accordingly, to adapt to this changing dynamic, we have made the difficult decision to close our Rosary Gardens aged care facility in June next year.”
SCCT Chair Sonya Beyers said the St John’s Park site also houses the organisation’s head office, which will relocate following the sale. She confirmed no redundancies are expected, and that SCCT’s other homes will continue operating.
The provider employs over 1,200 staff, manages nine residential aged care homes with more than 700 beds, 13 retirement villages, and delivers home care to more than 850 clients statewide.
The closure comes amid a broader decline in Tasmania’s residential aged care capacity. According to Colliers’ latest Residential Aged Care Places report, the state lost a net 54 beds in FY24-25.
Meanwhile, demand continues to climb: in September alone, 73 Tasmanian hospital patients were waiting for an aged care bed – underscoring the mounting pressure on the system.
