Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for Arcare North Lakes is 3.78 out of 5, compared with a national average of 3.81. Three findings stand out as positive, and two are worth a closer look.
Things we noticed
Positive standouts
Food enjoyment is above average, with lower reported spending
84% enjoy meals vs 70.3% across other homes; spending is $14 vs a $16 sector median.
Residents consistently describe respectful, caring staff
100% positive on respect and 100% on caring staff, versus 95.9% and 96.0% across other homes.
Food enjoyment improved in the latest survey
84% positive in 2025, compared with 54% in 2024: 30 percentage points higher.
Worth a closer look
Reported care time falls short of a staffing target
Total care: 218 vs 218 minutes; registered nurses: 40 vs 44 minutes per resident per day.
Quality measures rating trails the national average
2 out of 5, compared with 3.07 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
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: 2025 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 2025 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 | 95.86% | 1354 |
| Feeling safe | 96.45% | 1354 |
| How well the home is run | 89.32% | 1354 |
| Getting needed care | 94.47% | 1354 |
| Confidence in staff skills | 89.48% | 1354 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 88.59% | 1354 |
| Staff explaining things | 81.81% | 1354 |
| Enjoying the food | 70.25% | 1354 |
| Following up concerns | 85.19% | 1354 |
| Kind and caring staff | 95.96% | 1354 |
| Having a say in daily life | 93.19% | 1354 |
What is the food like at Arcare North Lakes?
In the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey, 84% of residents surveyed at Arcare North Lakes said they like the food “always” or “most of the time”, 13.7 percentage points above the average of 70.3% across other homes. The share rose from 54% in 2024. Another 12% answered “some of the time” and 4% “never”.
Food spending at Arcare North Lakes in January to March 2026 was $14 per resident per day, 13% below the sector median of $16. In the same quarter, spending on dietitians was $0.38 per resident per day, 36% above the sector median of $0.28.
How are meals prepared?
According to Arcare North Lakes, 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”.
84% of surveyed residents
Spending & preparation
Daily spending on food and dietitian services, and how meals are prepared.
Sources and Explanation
What do residents say about Arcare North Lakes?
Asked in the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey whether staff explain things to them, 92% of residents surveyed at Arcare North Lakes answered “always” or “most of the time”, 10.2 percentage points above the average of 81.8% across other homes. Answers were also above the average for other homes when residents were asked whether they get the care they need (100% against 94.5%) and whether staff treat them with respect (100% against 95.9%).
On 8 of the 10 questions other than food, answers at Arcare North Lakes were at least 3 percentage points above the average for other homes, and on the rest they were within 3 percentage points.
Do residents feel safe?
Asked whether they feel safe, 88% of residents surveyed at Arcare North Lakes answered “always” and 12% “most of the time”.
Do residents have a say in daily life?
For choice and independence, the share of “always” or “most of the time” answers at Arcare North Lakes was 97% when asked whether they have a say in their daily activities and 89% when asked whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves.
How does Arcare North Lakes spend on resident care?
In the 2024–25 financial year, Arcare North Lakes spent $414.99 per resident per day, and care and nursing made up 60.1% of it. Care and nursing spending of $249.22 was 6% below the sector median of $264.85. These amounts are the home’s costs, not the fees a resident pays.
Where does the rest of the spending go?
Other categories included administration ($64.54), cleaning and laundry ($28.98), and accommodation and maintenance ($27.64) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($133.16) and registered nurses ($56.47).
How much care and nursing does Arcare North Lakes provide?
Arcare North Lakes reported 218 minutes of care per resident per day in January to March 2026, matching its target of 218 minutes. Registered nurses provided 40 of those minutes, 4 minutes below the registered-nurse target of 44.
Arcare North Lakes met both its total and registered-nurse targets in none of the last four quarters. Across those four quarters, minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 213 to 221.
Who provides that care?
Of the 218 minutes, personal care workers provided 158 (72.5%), followed by registered nurses (40 minutes, 18.3%) and enrolled nurses (20 minutes, 9.2%). In the same quarter, Arcare North Lakes also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists, dietitians, and lifestyle and recreation workers.
