Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for Castledare Retirement Village 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 consistently describe respectful, caring staff
100% positive on respect and 100% on caring staff, versus 95.9% and 96.0% across other homes.
Residents’ experience rating exceeds the national average
4 out of 5, compared with 3.62 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
Staff communication is a relative strength
93% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 81.8% across other homes.
Worth a closer look
Reported care time falls short of a staffing target
Total care: 230 vs 219 minutes; registered nurses: 42 vs 44 minutes per resident per day.
Food enjoyment fell in the latest survey
71% positive in 2025, compared with 86% in 2024: 15 percentage points lower.
Confidence in staff skills is below the survey average
72% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 89.5% 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 | 89.33% | 1354 |
| Getting needed care | 94.47% | 1354 |
| Confidence in staff skills | 89.49% | 1354 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 88.59% | 1354 |
| Staff explaining things | 81.81% | 1354 |
| Enjoying the food | 70.26% | 1354 |
| Following up concerns | 85.20% | 1354 |
| Kind and caring staff | 95.96% | 1354 |
| Having a say in daily life | 93.19% | 1354 |
How much care and nursing does Castledare Retirement Village provide?
Castledare Retirement Village reported 230 minutes of care per resident per day in January to March 2026, 11 minutes above its target of 219 minutes. Registered nurses provided 42 of those minutes, 2 minutes below the registered-nurse target of 44.
In one of the last four quarters, Castledare Retirement Village met both its total and registered-nurse targets. Minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 210 to 230 across those four quarters.
Who provides that care?
Personal care workers provided 186 minutes per resident per day, followed by registered nurses (42 minutes) and enrolled nurses (3 minutes). In the same quarter, Castledare Retirement Village also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists, and lifestyle and recreation workers.
What do residents say about Castledare Retirement Village?
In the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey, 93% of residents surveyed at Castledare Retirement Village answered “always” or “most of the time” when asked whether staff explain things to them, 11.2 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 have a say in their daily activities (100% against 93.2%) and whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves (93% against 88.6%).
The largest gap below other homes was when residents were asked whether staff know what they are doing: 72% answered “always” or “most of the time”, against an average of 89.5%. In all, answers on 3 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 the training staff receive. When residents were asked whether staff know what they are doing, 29% answered “always”, 43% “most of the time” and 29% “some of the time”; none answered “never”.
Do residents feel safe and get the care they need?
Asked whether they feel safe, 79% of residents surveyed at Castledare Retirement Village answered “always” and 14% “most of the time”. When asked whether they get the care they need, 71% answered “always” and 21% “most of the time”.
What is the food like at Castledare Retirement Village?
In the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey, 71% of residents surveyed at Castledare Retirement Village said they like the food “always” or “most of the time”, 15 percentage points lower than the 86% recorded in 2024. Another 29% answered “some of the time”, and none answered “never”.
Food spending at Castledare Retirement Village in January to March 2026 was $12 per resident per day, 25% below the sector median of $16. In the same quarter, Castledare Retirement Village reported no spending on dietitians, against a sector median of $0.28 per resident per day.
How are meals prepared?
Castledare Retirement Village 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”.
71% of surveyed residents
Spending & preparation
Daily spending on food and dietitian services, and how meals are prepared.
Sources and Explanation
How does Castledare Retirement Village spend on resident care?
In the 2024–25 financial year, Castledare Retirement Village spent $447.80 per resident per day, and care and nursing made up 64.2% of it. Care and nursing spending of $287.70 was 9% above 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?
Spending on other categories included accommodation and maintenance ($76.02), cleaning and laundry ($30.60) and administration ($21.56) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($188.22) and registered nurses ($58.52).
