Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for Arcare Balnarring is 3.93 out of 5, against a national average of 3.81. Three findings stand out as positive, and three are worth a closer look.
Things we noticed
Positive standouts
Residents’ experience rating exceeds the national average
4 out of 5, compared with 3.62 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
Residents report stronger support for independence
94% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 87.1% across other homes.
How well the home is run is above the survey average
94% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 88.1% across other homes.
Worth a closer look
Food spending and enjoyment both fall below their benchmarks
$13 a day vs a $16 sector median; 60% enjoy meals vs 67.3% across other homes.
Reported care time falls short of a staffing target
Total care: 210 vs 209 minutes; registered nurses: 39 vs 43 minutes per resident per day.
Kind and caring staff is below the survey average
87% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 95.4% across other homes.
Sources and Explanation
This is a programmatic interpretation of published data, not an in-person inspection or a separate expert-assigned score. The figures are the Elderberry Index and its four government component ratings; a measure the home has no published rating for is left out. Our rating methodology.
Ratings: August 2026. Survey comparisons: 2026 interview responses from that extract. Other Australian homes in the same ratings extract; survey comparisons also require the same interview year. Each eligible home has equal weight; missing/invalid values excluded. These are descriptive comparisons, not resident-weighted or adjusted for differences in care needs.
How findings are selected
Survey gaps of at least 3 percentage points, rating gaps of at least 0.3 stars, and changes of at least 10 percentage points can qualify. These are editorial selection thresholds, not tests of statistical significance. Benchmarks need at least 30 homes. Each side shows up to three eligible findings; missing values never become negative findings. Specific combined food evidence and sustained care-target results are prioritised, then larger differences. Respect and caring are grouped when both qualify.
Food spending uses the My Aged Care sector median for Jan–Mar 2026; resident enjoyment comes from the 2026 survey. The combined finding reports two separate observations from different reporting periods; it does not establish that spending caused the survey result. Year-to-year survey samples may differ and respondent counts are unavailable. Care consistency uses the latest four submitted, quality-checked care-minute records and direct RN minutes without EN top-up.
A lower compliance rating is a comparison with other homes, not a claim of an active sanction. Higher expenditure alone is not treated as better care. Unadjusted clinical incident measures are not used to rank quality here.
My Aged Care home profile · Government Star Ratings extract
Benchmark populations
| Measure | Mean | Other homes |
|---|---|---|
| Elderberry Index | 3.81 | 2365 |
| Residents’ experience | 3.62 | 2434 |
| Compliance | 4.83 | 2395 |
| Staffing | 3.18 | 2454 |
| Quality measures | 3.07 | 2456 |
| Respectful treatment | 95.36% | 1080 |
| Feeling safe | 96.25% | 1080 |
| How well the home is run | 88.08% | 1080 |
| Getting needed care | 94.42% | 1080 |
| Confidence in staff skills | 89.08% | 1080 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 87.15% | 1079 |
| Staff explaining things | 80.26% | 1078 |
| Enjoying the food | 67.35% | 1080 |
| Following up concerns | 84.21% | 1079 |
| Kind and caring staff | 95.42% | 1080 |
| Having a say in daily life | 92.70% | 1080 |
What is the food like at Arcare Balnarring?
In the 2026 Residents’ Experience Survey, 60% of residents surveyed at Arcare Balnarring said they like the food “always” or “most of the time”, 7.3 percentage points below the average of 67.3% across other homes. The share was also 60% in 2025. Another 40% answered “some of the time”, and none answered “never”.
Food spending at Arcare Balnarring in January to March 2026 was $13 per resident per day, 19% below the sector median of $16. Spending on dietitians in the same quarter was $0.26 per resident per day, 7% below the sector median of $0.28.
How are meals prepared?
According to Arcare Balnarring, breakfast, lunch and dinner are all cooked fresh. All meals are prepared on site.
Do residents enjoy the food?
Residents who answered “Always” or “Most of the time”.
60% of surveyed residents
Spending & preparation
Daily spending on food and dietitian services, and how meals are prepared.
Sources and Explanation
How does Arcare Balnarring spend on resident care?
Total spending at Arcare Balnarring in the 2024–25 financial year was $411.98 per resident per day, and care and nursing made up 58.7% of it. Care and nursing spending of $241.83 was 9% below the sector median of $264.85. These figures are the home’s costs, not the fees a resident pays.
Where does the rest of the spending go?
Other categories included administration ($65.78), accommodation and maintenance ($38.87), and cleaning and laundry ($23.28) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($123.64) and registered nurses ($59.34).
What do residents say about Arcare Balnarring?
Asked in the 2026 Residents’ Experience Survey whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves, 94% of residents surveyed at Arcare Balnarring answered “always” or “most of the time”, above the 87.1% average across other homes by 6.9 percentage points. When residents were asked whether the home is well run (94% against 88.1%) and whether staff know what they are doing (93% against 89.1%), answers were also above the average for other homes.
The widest gap below other homes came when residents were asked whether staff are kind and caring: 87% answered “always” or “most of the time”, against an average of 95.4%. In all, answers on 2 of the 10 questions other than food were at least 3 percentage points below the average for other homes.
What should you ask about on a visit?
A visit is a chance to ask about how staff get to know each resident. When residents were asked whether staff are kind and caring, 67% answered “always”, 20% “most of the time” and 13% “some of the time”; none answered “never”.
Do residents feel safe and get the care they need?
When residents surveyed at Arcare Balnarring were asked whether they feel safe, 80% answered “always” and 13% “most of the time”. When asked whether they get the care they need, 87% answered “always” and 7% “most of the time”.
How much care and nursing does Arcare Balnarring provide?
Arcare Balnarring reported 210 minutes of care per resident per day in January to March 2026, 1 minute above its target of 209 minutes. Of those minutes, 39 came from registered nurses, 4 minutes below the registered-nurse target of 43.
In none of the last four quarters did Arcare Balnarring meet both its total and registered-nurse targets. Minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 206 to 211 across those four quarters.
Who provides that care?
Of the 210 minutes, personal care workers provided 152 (72.4%), followed by registered nurses (39 minutes, 18.6%) and enrolled nurses (19 minutes, 9.0%). Arcare Balnarring also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists, dietitians, and lifestyle and recreation workers in the same quarter.
