Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for St Basil's at Croydon Park is 3.45 out of 5, compared with a national average of 3.81. Three findings are worth a closer look.
Things we noticed
Worth a closer look
Food spending and enjoyment both fall below their benchmarks
$14 a day vs a $16 sector median; 47% enjoy meals vs 67.4% across other homes.
Reported care time falls short of a staffing target
Total care: 230 vs 222 minutes; registered nurses: 43 vs 44 minutes per resident per day.
Fewer residents feel they have a say in daily life
66% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 92.7% 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 | 96.25% | 1080 |
| How well the home is run | 88.08% | 1080 |
| Getting needed care | 94.44% | 1080 |
| Confidence in staff skills | 89.10% | 1080 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 87.15% | 1079 |
| Staff explaining things | 80.27% | 1078 |
| Enjoying the food | 67.36% | 1080 |
| Following up concerns | 84.23% | 1079 |
| Kind and caring staff | 95.44% | 1080 |
| Having a say in daily life | 92.73% | 1080 |
What do residents say about St Basil's at Croydon Park?
Asked in the 2026 Residents’ Experience Survey whether they have a say in their daily activities, 66% of residents surveyed at St Basil's at Croydon Park answered “always” or “most of the time”, below the 92.7% average across other homes by 26.7 percentage points. Answers were also below the average for other homes when residents were asked whether staff are kind and caring (74% against 95.4%) and whether staff know what they are doing (73% against 89.1%).
At St Basil's at Croydon Park, answers were at least 3 percentage points below the average for other homes on 7 of the 10 questions other than food, and within 3 percentage points on the rest.
What should you ask about on a visit?
A visit is a chance to ask about how residents have a say in daily activities. When residents were asked whether they have a say in their daily activities, 33% answered “always”, 33% “most of the time” and 33% “some of the time”; none answered “never”.
Do residents feel safe and get the care they need?
Asked whether they feel safe, 67% of residents surveyed at St Basil's at Croydon Park answered “always” and 27% “most of the time”. When asked whether they get the care they need, 67% answered “always” and 13% “most of the time”.
What is the food like at St Basil's at Croydon Park?
In the 2026 Residents’ Experience Survey, 47% of residents surveyed at St Basil's at Croydon Park said they like the food “always” or “most of the time”, 20.4 percentage points below the average of 67.4% across other homes. Another 40% answered “some of the time” and 13% “never”.
In January to March 2026, St Basil's at Croydon Park spent $14 per resident per day on food, 13% below the sector median of $16. Spending on dietitians in the same quarter was $1.17 per resident per day, 318% above the sector median of $0.28.
How are meals prepared?
According to St Basil's at Croydon Park, 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”.
47% of surveyed residents
Spending & preparation
Daily spending on food and dietitian services, and how meals are prepared.
Sources and Explanation
How much care and nursing does St Basil's at Croydon Park provide?
In January to March 2026, St Basil's at Croydon Park reported 230 minutes of care per resident per day, 8 minutes above its target of 222 minutes. Of those minutes, 43 came from registered nurses, 1 minute below the registered-nurse target of 44.
In two of the last four quarters, St Basil's at Croydon Park met both its total and registered-nurse targets. Across those four quarters, minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 226 to 234.
Who provides that care?
Personal care workers provided 168 of the 230 minutes (73.0%), followed by registered nurses (43 minutes, 18.7%) and enrolled nurses (19 minutes, 8.3%). In the same quarter, St Basil's at Croydon Park also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists, dietitians, and lifestyle and recreation workers.
How does St Basil's at Croydon Park spend on resident care?
In the 2024–25 financial year, St Basil's at Croydon Park spent $444.56 per resident per day, and care and nursing made up 64.2% of it. Care and nursing spending of $285.57 was 8% 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 administration ($57.70), accommodation and maintenance ($36.67), and cleaning and laundry ($27.35) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($161.56) and registered nurses ($63.93).
