Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for Epping Meadows Care Community is 3.6 out of 5, against a national average of 3.81. Three findings are worth a closer look.
Things we noticed
Worth a closer look
Reported care time falls short of a staffing target
Total care: 240 vs 233 minutes; registered nurses: 45 vs 46 minutes per resident per day.
Residents’ experience rating trails the national average
3 out of 5, compared with 3.62 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
How well the home is run is below the survey average
77% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 89.3% 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 | 89.34% | 1354 |
| Getting needed care | 94.48% | 1354 |
| Confidence in staff skills | 89.48% | 1354 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 88.60% | 1354 |
| Staff explaining things | 81.82% | 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 does Epping Meadows Care Community spend on resident care?
Spending on care and nursing at Epping Meadows Care Community in the 2024–25 financial year was $342.74 per resident per day, 29% above the sector median of $264.85. Total spending was $524.41 per resident per day. 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 accommodation and maintenance ($70.99), cleaning and laundry ($31.18) and administration ($31.15) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($198.79) and registered nurses ($71.91).
How much care and nursing does Epping Meadows Care Community provide?
In January to March 2026, Epping Meadows Care Community reported 240 minutes of care per resident per day, 7 minutes above its target of 233 minutes. Of those minutes, 45 came from registered nurses, 1 minute below the registered-nurse target of 46.
In one of the last four quarters, Epping Meadows Care Community met both its total and registered-nurse targets. Minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 240 to 263 across those four quarters.
Who provides that care?
Of the 240 minutes, personal care workers provided 180 (75.0%), followed by registered nurses (45 minutes, 18.8%) and enrolled nurses (15 minutes, 6.2%). In the same quarter, Epping Meadows Care Community also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists, dietitians, and lifestyle and recreation workers.
What do residents say about Epping Meadows Care Community?
When residents surveyed at Epping Meadows Care Community for the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey were asked whether the home is well run, 77% answered “always” or “most of the time”, 12.3 percentage points below the average of 89.3% across other homes. When residents were asked whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves (77% against 88.6%) and whether they get the care they need (86% against 94.5%), answers were also below the average for other homes.
At Epping Meadows Care Community, answers were at least 3 percentage points below the average for other homes on 6 of the 10 questions other than food, and within 3 percentage points on the rest.
What should you ask about on a visit?
On a visit, you can ask about who runs the home day to day and how changes are communicated. When residents were asked whether the home is well run, 41% answered “always”, 36% “most of the time” and 23% “some of the time”; none answered “never”.
Do residents feel safe?
Asked whether they feel safe, 59% of residents surveyed at Epping Meadows Care Community answered “always” and 36% “most of the time”.
What is the food like at Epping Meadows Care Community?
When residents surveyed at Epping Meadows Care Community for the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey were asked whether they like the food, 73% answered “always” or “most of the time”, within 3 percentage points of the 70.3% average across other homes. The share rose from 66% in 2024. Another 14% answered “some of the time” and 14% “never”.
Food spending at Epping Meadows Care Community in January to March 2026 was $13 per resident per day, 19% below the sector median of $16. In the same quarter, spending on dietitians was $0.16 per resident per day, 43% below the sector median of $0.28.
How are meals prepared?
Epping Meadows Care Community 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”.
73% of surveyed residents
Spending & preparation
Daily spending on food and dietitian services, and how meals are prepared.
