Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for Juniper Hillcrest is 3.3 out of 5, against a national average of 3.81. Three findings are worth a closer look.
Things we noticed
Worth a closer look
Quality measures rating trails the national average
1 out of 5, compared with 3.07 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
Enjoying the food is below the survey average
38% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 67.4% across other homes.
Fewer residents say staff explain things consistently
56% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 80.3% 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: 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 | 96.26% | 1080 |
| How well the home is run | 88.09% | 1080 |
| Getting needed care | 94.44% | 1080 |
| Confidence in staff skills | 89.10% | 1080 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 87.17% | 1079 |
| Staff explaining things | 80.28% | 1078 |
| Enjoying the food | 67.37% | 1080 |
| Following up concerns | 84.22% | 1079 |
| Kind and caring staff | 95.42% | 1080 |
| Having a say in daily life | 92.71% | 1080 |
What do residents say about Juniper Hillcrest?
Asked in the 2026 Residents’ Experience Survey whether staff explain things to them, 56% of residents surveyed at Juniper Hillcrest answered “always” or “most of the time”, 24.3 percentage points below the average of 80.3% across other homes. When residents were asked whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves (69% against 87.2%) and whether staff know what they are doing (75% against 89.1%), answers were also below the average for other homes.
At Juniper Hillcrest, answers were at least 3 percentage points below the average for other homes on 8 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 how staff explain changes to care. When residents were asked whether staff explain things to them, 31% answered “always”, 25% “most of the time”, 38% “some of the time” and 6% “never”.
Do residents feel safe and get the care they need?
Asked whether they feel safe, 75% of residents surveyed at Juniper Hillcrest answered “always” and 13% “most of the time”. When asked whether they get the care they need, 63% answered “always” and 19% “most of the time”.
What is the food like at Juniper Hillcrest?
When residents surveyed at Juniper Hillcrest for the 2026 Residents’ Experience Survey were asked whether they like the food, 38% answered “always” or “most of the time”, 29.4 percentage points below the average of 67.4% across other homes. The share fell from 63% in 2025. Another 44% answered “some of the time” and 19% “never”.
In January to March 2026, Juniper Hillcrest spent $20 per resident per day on food, 25% above the sector median of $16. In the same quarter, Juniper Hillcrest reported no spending on dietitians, against a sector median of $0.28 per resident per day.
How are meals prepared?
Juniper Hillcrest 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”.
38% of surveyed residents
Spending & preparation
Daily spending on food and dietitian services, and how meals are prepared.
Sources and Explanation
How does Juniper Hillcrest spend on resident care?
In the 2024–25 financial year, Juniper Hillcrest spent $400.55 per resident per day, and care and nursing made up 62.2% of it. Care and nursing spending of $249.23 was 6% 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 ($59.79), accommodation and maintenance ($34.41), and cleaning and laundry ($19.93) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($142.94) and registered nurses ($75.95).
How much care and nursing does Juniper Hillcrest provide?
Juniper Hillcrest reported 205 minutes of care per resident per day in January to March 2026, matching its target of 205 minutes. Of those minutes, 42 came from registered nurses, matching the registered-nurse target of 42.
Juniper Hillcrest met both its total and registered-nurse targets in three of the last four quarters. Across those four quarters, minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 202 to 213.
Who provides that care?
Of the 205 minutes, personal care workers provided 158 (77.1%), followed by registered nurses (42 minutes, 20.5%) and enrolled nurses (5 minutes, 2.4%). In the same quarter, Juniper Hillcrest also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists, and lifestyle and recreation workers.
