Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge is 4.15 out of 5, against a national average of 3.81. Three findings stand out as positive, and one is worth a closer look.
Things we noticed
Positive standouts
Residents consistently describe respectful, caring staff
100% positive on respect and 100% on caring staff, versus 95.9% and 96.0% across other homes.
Care and registered-nurse targets met in four reported quarters
The latest quarter records 224 minutes against a 216-minute daily care target; RN time is 45 against 44.
Staffing rating exceeds the national average
4 out of 5, compared with 3.18 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
Worth a closer look
Support for independence is below the survey average
77% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 88.6% 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: 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 | 88.60% | 1354 |
| Staff explaining things | 81.81% | 1354 |
| Enjoying the food | 70.26% | 1354 |
| Following up concerns | 85.18% | 1354 |
| Kind and caring staff | 95.96% | 1354 |
| Having a say in daily life | 93.19% | 1354 |
How much care and nursing does Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge provide?
Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge reported 224 minutes of care per resident per day in January to March 2026, 8 minutes above its target of 216 minutes. Of those minutes, 45 came from registered nurses, 1 minute above the registered-nurse target of 44.
In each of the last four quarters, Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge met both its total and registered-nurse targets. Minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 224 to 242 across those four quarters.
Who provides that care?
Personal care workers provided 171 minutes per resident per day, followed by registered nurses (45 minutes) and enrolled nurses (9 minutes). Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists, and lifestyle and recreation workers in the same quarter.
What do residents say about Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge?
Asked in the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey whether staff follow up when they raise things, 100% of residents surveyed at Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge answered “always” or “most of the time”, above the 85.2% average across other homes by 14.8 percentage points. When residents were asked whether staff explain things to them (92% against 81.8%) and whether they have a say in their daily activities (100% against 93.2%), answers were also above the average for other homes.
The widest gap below other homes came when residents were asked whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves: 77% answered “always” or “most of the time”, against an average of 88.6%.
What should you ask about on a visit?
On a visit, you can ask about how staff support residents to do things for themselves. When residents were asked whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves, 54% answered “always”, 23% “most of the time” and 23% “some of the time”; none answered “never”.
Do residents feel safe and get the care they need?
Asked whether they feel safe, 77% of residents surveyed at Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge answered “always” and 23% “most of the time”. When asked whether they get the care they need, 54% answered “always” and 46% “most of the time”.
What is the food like at Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge?
In the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey, 69% of residents surveyed at Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge said they like the food “always” or “most of the time”, within 3 percentage points of the 70.3% average across other homes. The share was also 69% in 2024. Another 31% answered “some of the time”, and none answered “never”.
Food spending at Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge in January to March 2026 was $17 per resident per day, 6% above the sector median of $16. In the same quarter, Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge reported no spending on dietitians, against a sector median of $0.28 per resident per day.
How are meals prepared?
Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge reports that 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”.
69% of surveyed residents
Spending & preparation
Daily spending on food and dietitian services, and how meals are prepared.
Sources and Explanation
How does Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge spend on resident care?
Total spending at Burswood Care Gwen Hardie Lodge in the 2024–25 financial year was $384.31 per resident per day, and care and nursing made up 69.1% of it. Care and nursing spending of $265.44 was in line with 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?
Spending on other categories included cleaning and laundry ($34.58), administration ($24.14), and accommodation and maintenance ($20.24) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($154.27) and registered nurses ($55.66).
