Banksia Villages has been awarded a $2 million federal grant to better support residents living with dementia at its residential aged care facility, Banksia Lodge.
The grant was announced last week as part of the 2020 Aged Care Approvals Round (ACAR) program, which provides capital grants to build or upgrade facilities operated by eligible residential aged care providers. The $2 million funding awarded to Banksia was the fourth highest capital grant allocation in NSW in the 2020 ACAR round, out of a total of 26 successful applications from across the State.
Banksia CEO Graham Wise was thrilled to receive the news late last week. “More than 50% of our residents at Banksia Lodge are living with some form of dementia. This funding will enable us to implement significant improvements in the physical and service environment at Banksia Lodge to better support residents and contribute to their quality of life and enjoyment,” he said.
The works will better connect the indoor and outdoor spaces, giving residents greater access to the beautiful gardens and surrounds of Banksia Lodge. They will also address internal spaces, creating smaller, more intimate and home-like areas for residents to enjoy. Orientation, way-finding and subtle changes to the environment will make Banksia Lodge more comfortable for residents, particularly those living with dementia.
Earlier this year, Banksia worked closely with Dementia Training Australia (DTA), Australia’s peak dementia research and education body, through an environmental consultancy to explore how the Banksia Lodge environment, including buildings and gardens, could be used to better support people living with dementia. Around 40 Banksia staff also participated in a comprehensive dementia training program delivered by DTA, designed to improve the lives of Banksia residents and clients who are living with dementia. Several of these staff were also involved in development of the project plan that will now be funded by the ACAR grant.
Banksia Village Project Manager Liz Paterson-Finlay led the planning for this exciting project and developed the successful ACAR application. “As an organisation, Banksia aims to deliver quality of life, dignity, choice and independence for older people. I am so excited that we can now deliver additional benefits for our residents living with dementia, and we are very grateful to DTA and their lead architect Nick Seemann for their support as we have continued to develop our dementia training and resources,” she said.
With funding now secured, Banksia’s management team is focusing on developing timelines for the project and is hopeful that works can commence later this year.