Care type · 60 listed providers
Dementia care — Australian aged-care providers + guide
Specialised dementia care recognises that residents with cognitive decline need different physical environments, staffing ratios + clinical pathways from standard residential care. Australia has an estimated 487,500 people living with dementia (Dementia Australia 2025). Of those in residential aged care, ~52% have a dementia diagnosis.
★Key takeaways
- ✓60 verified Australian residential aged-care providers offering dementia care, ranked by ACQSC star rating.
- ✓You or your family member has a confirmed dementia diagnosis with safety concerns (wandering, exit-seeking, falls) that mainstream residential care cannot safely manage. Mild cognitive impairment without safety concerns often does NOT require dementia-specific placement.
- ✓Dementia services charge the same federally-regulated basic daily fee ($66.80/day) + means-tested fee structure as mainstream residential care. RAD prices are typically equivalent — there is no "dementia premium" on accommodation. Some MSU services charge slightly higher Extra Service Fees if they provide enhanced lifestyle program activities specifically for cognitively-engaged residents.
- ✓Source: My Aged Care provider register + ACQSC star ratings + provider-published service-type schedules.
In depth
What dementia care actually means
Dementia-specific aged care covers two main models. **Memory support units** (MSUs) are dedicated wings within mainstream residential homes — secure layout, smaller resident groups (typically 12–20 per cluster), trained dementia staff. **Standalone dementia homes** like HammondCare's cottage-model facilities have entire buildings designed for residents with cognitive decline, with single-storey layouts, garden access, household-scale dining + minimal institutional appearance.
Quality markers for dementia care: care minutes well above the 215-minute federal target (185 for personal care + 44 for registered-nurse time is national mandate; dementia-specific services often run 240+). 24/7 registered-nurse coverage is essential. Look for **staff trained in non-pharmacological behaviour management** (rather than reliance on antipsychotic medication). The **Behaviour Support Plan** (BSP) is the formal document recording each resident's known triggers + response strategies — a thorough BSP is a positive signal.
The ACQSC rating system applies equally to dementia services. Most large faith-based not-for-profits (HammondCare, Bolton Clarke, Anglicare, Catholic Healthcare, Mecwacare, ACH Group) operate dementia-specific homes. A few independents specialise — HammondCare's Hammondville (Bond House) is the national benchmark for cottage-model dementia care.
Quality markers to look for
- Memory Support Unit (MSU) or standalone dementia home structure
- Secure layout with gardens + outdoor access
- Smaller resident clusters (12–20 per group)
- Higher care minutes (often 240+ vs 215 national target)
- 24/7 registered-nurse coverage essential
- Trained dementia staff + Behaviour Support Plans
- Non-pharmacological behaviour management as default
Choose this care type if
You or your family member has a confirmed dementia diagnosis with safety concerns (wandering, exit-seeking, falls) that mainstream residential care cannot safely manage. Mild cognitive impairment without safety concerns often does NOT require dementia-specific placement.
Cost
Dementia services charge the same federally-regulated basic daily fee ($66.80/day) + means-tested fee structure as mainstream residential care. RAD prices are typically equivalent — there is no "dementia premium" on accommodation. Some MSU services charge slightly higher Extra Service Fees if they provide enhanced lifestyle program activities specifically for cognitively-engaged residents.
Directory · ACQSC-ranked
60 verified Australian providers offering dementia care
Sorted by ACQSC star rating descending, then bed count. Each provider verified against My Aged Care + ACQSC quarterly ratings.
Sydney · Uniting Wesley Heights Manly
5★Uniting NSW.ACT
Service arm of the Uniting Church of NSW.ACT. Established LGBTI-inclusive practice across residential and home care port…
Adelaide · Resthaven Marion
5★Resthaven
Uniting Church SA aged-care arm; consistently among the highest ACQSC-rated providers in SA, operating 12 residential ho…
Sydney · Regis Rose Bay
5★Regis Aged Care
ASX-listed (REG) for-profit operator with around 60 homes nationally. Largest publicly-traded aged-care operator in Aust…
Sydney · Catholic Healthcare St Joseph Aged Care (Hunters Hill)
5★Catholic Healthcare
One of the largest Catholic-affiliated providers in NSW with over 40 homes across NSW and QLD. Founded by the Sisters of…
Sydney · Whiddon Easton Park (Glenfield)
4★Whiddon
Charitable not-for-profit founded 1947. Recognised for relationship-based care model and strong rural / regional NSW foo…
Sydney · Hunters Hill Montefiore Home
4★Montefiore
Australia's pre-eminent Jewish aged-care provider, established 1889. Three Sydney campuses: Hunters Hill, Randwick and W…
Perth · SwanCare Ningana
4★SwanCare
Operates Western Australia's largest single-site retirement village (Bentley Park, 13 hectares, 700+ residents) co-locat…
Brisbane · Churches of Christ Wheller Gardens (Chermside)
4★Churches of Christ
Churches of Christ in QLD; one of the state's largest single-site retirement and aged-care precincts, with 28 residentia…
Melbourne · Royal Freemasons Coppin Centre (Melbourne / St Kilda Road)
4★Royal Freemasons
Charitable provider founded by the Freemasons of Victoria in 1867. Open to all residents regardless of Masonic affiliati…
Brisbane · Wesley Mission Queensland Sinnamon Village
4★Wesley Mission Queensland (BlueCare partnership)
Uniting Church-aligned mission established 1907; one of the largest single-site continuing-care precincts in QLD, co-loc…
Perth · Hall & Prior Concorde (Carlisle) — Mosman Park HQ
4★Hall & Prior Health & Aged Care Group
Family-owned WA/NSW operator with around 30 homes split between the two states; multiple Italian and Greek CALD-speciali…
Brisbane · Bolton Clarke Tarragindi (formerly Trinder Park)
4★Bolton Clarke
Australia's oldest charitable aged-care provider (founded 1885 as the Royal District Nursing Service), operating 88 resi…
Perth · Juniper Hilltop (Balcatta)
4★Juniper
Uniting Church WA aged-care arm; one of Australia's largest providers of remote-Indigenous aged care, with sites in the …
Brisbane · Catholic Healthcare St Vincent's Bethania
4★Catholic Healthcare
Sponsored by the Sisters of the Good Samaritan; runs 47+ homes across NSW and South-East QLD with strong CALD chaplaincy…
Adelaide · Estia Health Daw Park
4★Estia Health (Bolton Group)
Privatised in 2023 via Bain Capital takeover (delisted from ASX); operates around 75 homes nationally including six in m…
Perth · Brightwater The Cove (Mandurah) and Inglewood — HQ in Inglewood
4★Brightwater Care Group
WA-only community provider with a national reputation in younger-onset dementia, brain injury rehab and the Brightwater …
Brisbane · Opal Raceview (Ipswich)
4★Opal HealthCare
Australia's largest private residential aged-care operator (130+ homes nationally) following the 2018 acquisition of Dom…
Adelaide · ACH Group Yankalilla Centre / Highercombe (Hope Valley) — Mile End HQ
4★ACH Group
Founded by the Anglican and Methodist Churches of SA; runs 12 residential sites and the 'Good Lives for Older People' re…
Perth · Amana Living James Brown Care Centre (Bull Creek)
4★Amana Living
Anglican Diocese of Perth aged-care provider; runs 12 residential homes and the Amana Living Training Institute, one of …
Adelaide · Eldercare The Lodge (Glenside)
4★Eldercare
South Australia–only community NFP with 13 residential homes; founded by SA business and church leaders to provide non-d…
Brisbane · Anglicare Symes Thorpe Toowoomba sister site — Brisbane HQ at Sandgate (Symes Grove)
4★Anglicare Southern Queensland
Anglican Church Southern Queensland's social-services arm; runs 22 residential homes across QLD and was one of Australia…
Brisbane · Regis Aspley
4★Regis Aged Care
ASX-listed (ASX:REG) operator with around 65 homes nationally; Aspley is one of seven Regis facilities in metro Brisbane…
Adelaide · Helping Hand Mawson Lakes
4★Helping Hand Aged Care
Uniting Church SA founder; one of SA's largest providers of remote-Indigenous home care across the APY Lands and Far Nor…
Melbourne · Vasey RSL Care Frankston South (RSL Park)
4★Vasey RSL Care
Established by RSL Victoria in 1926. Strong veterans, war-widows and DVA-funded resident focus; non-veterans also welcom…
Perth · MercyCare Place Joondalup
4★Mercy Care
Sisters of Mercy Catholic-aligned WA provider; one of the state's oldest social-services organisations and the founder o…
Adelaide · Regis Marleston
4★Regis Aged Care
ASX-listed (ASX:REG) operator with around 65 homes nationally; Marleston is the largest of three Regis facilities in met…
Perth · Regis Como (formerly Lakeside)
4★Regis Aged Care
ASX-listed (ASX:REG) operator with around 65 homes nationally; Como is one of three Regis sites in metro Perth and sits …
Melbourne · Nellie Melba Retirement Village Aged Care Centre (Wheelers Hill)
4★Ryman Healthcare
NZ-headquartered (NZX:RYM) integrated retirement village + aged-care operator. Multiple Melbourne villages with continuu…
Brisbane · Carmel by the Sea (Cleveland)
4★Star of the Sea Aged Care
Single-site Catholic-aligned operator on Brisbane's bayside; one of QLD's most consistent four-star ACQSC performers amo…
Melbourne · Doutta Galla Avondale Heights
4★Doutta Galla Aged Services
Community-owned charitable provider serving Melbourne's culturally-diverse north and west; around 8 residential homes in…
Sydney · Bolton Clarke Greenwood (Normanhurst)
4★Bolton Clarke
Australia's largest not-for-profit aged-care provider. Lineage to RSL Care + Royal District Nursing Service Australia (R…
Adelaide · Southern Cross Care Bucklands (Glen Osmond)
4★Southern Cross Care SA, NT & VIC
Knights of the Southern Cross Catholic-aligned operator; runs 14 residential homes across SA, NT and VIC including the o…
Melbourne · mecwacare Malvern Centre
4★MECWACare
Charitable not-for-profit founded 1959. Strong CALD and LGBTI-inclusive practice; Victorian-only footprint with around 1…
Sydney · Anglicare The Terraces Residential Care (Paddington)
4★Anglicare Sydney
Anglican Diocese of Sydney, established 1856. Over 20 residential homes plus retirement villages and home care across Gr…
Perth · Rosewood Leederville
4★Rosewood Care Group
Single-site community NFP in inner-Perth; Rainbow Tick accredited and one of WA's most visibly LGBTI-friendly residentia…
Perth · Bethanie Subiaco
4★Bethanie
WA's largest not-for-profit aged-care provider, founded by the Uniting Church (formerly Methodist Homes WA); operates 12…
Adelaide · ECH Henley Beach Residential Care Home
4★ECH (Enabling Confidence at Home)
Anglican Diocese of Adelaide aged-care arm; SA's largest retirement-living operator (90+ villages) and a major home-care…
Melbourne · Benetas St Paul's Terrace (Frankston South)
4★Benetas
Anglican Diocese of Melbourne aged-care provider since 1948. Victoria-only footprint, around 11 residential homes plus h…
Adelaide · Clayton Church Homes Beulah Park
4★Clayton Church Homes
Churches of Christ in SA aged-care arm; six residential sites concentrated in Adelaide's eastern suburbs and a long-stan…
Melbourne · Estia Health Plenty Valley (South Morang)
4★Estia Health
For-profit operator with around 70 homes nationally. Publicly-traded on ASX (EHE) until taken private by Bain Capital in…
Melbourne · Arcare Brighton
4★Arcare Aged Care
Family-founded for-profit with around 50 homes across Vic, NSW and QLD. Hexagonal household-style residence model is the…
Sydney · Belmore Place Care Community (Lakemba)
4★Opal HealthCare
Privately-held for-profit operator with around 100 homes nationally. AMP Capital was historically a major investor.
Sydney · St Vincent's Care Services Edgecliff
4★St Vincent's Care Services
Part of St Vincent's Health Australia, founded by the Sisters of Charity in 1857. Hospital-aligned aged-care provider wi…
Adelaide · Adelaide Jewish Community Aged Care (Glenside)
4★Jewish Care SA
South Australia's only Jewish residential aged-care home; kosher kitchen, Shabbat services and dedicated Holocaust-survi…
Melbourne · Gary Smorgon House / Melbourne Hebrew Memorial Nursing Home (Caulfield)
4★Jewish Care Victoria
Australia's largest Jewish community-care organisation, lineage to 1848. Kosher catering, Hebrew-aware care, integrated …
Perth · Aegis Greenfields (Mosman Park)
3★Aegis Aged Care
WA's largest private residential aged-care operator with around 30 homes statewide; family-founded by the Charatsis fami…
Melbourne · Mercy Place Parkville
3★Mercy Health
Founded by the Sisters of Mercy in 1846. One of Victoria's largest Catholic NFP health and aged-care providers; hospital…
Brisbane · Ozcare Bowen Hills Aged Care Facility
3★Ozcare
Founded by the Catholic Diocese of Cairns; QLD-only operator with 15 residential homes and a flagship homelessness-pathw…
Sydney · HammondCare Hammondville (Bond House)
3★HammondCare
National pioneer of small-cottage dementia care. Independent Christian charity. HammondCare's Dementia Centre publishes …
Brisbane · Tabeel (Laidley), Salem (Toowoomba), Trinder Park sister-house Orana — Brisbane HQ
3★Lutheran Services
Lutheran Church of Australia–QLD District provider; strong German-speaking chaplaincy heritage and a major footprint in …
Brisbane · Carinity Cedarbrook (Mudgeeraba) and Karinya (Laidley) network — Brisbane HQ
3★Carinity
Queensland Baptist mission operating 11 residential aged-care communities across the state; one of QLD's largest faith-b…
Adelaide · Lutheran Homes Glynde Lodge
3★Lutheran Homes Group
Lutheran Church of Australia–SA District provider; strong German-Australian heritage with five residential homes and a l…
Perth · Southern Cross Care Margaret Hubery House (Rivervale)
3★Southern Cross Care WA
Knights of the Southern Cross Catholic-aligned WA arm; runs eight residential homes and the largest faith-aligned retire…
Brisbane · Bupa Mt Gravatt
3★Bupa Aged Care
Australian arm of UK-headquartered Bupa Group (private health insurance + healthcare); operates around 60 aged-care home…
Perth · Bupa South Perth
3★Bupa Aged Care
Australian arm of UK-headquartered Bupa Group; operates around 60 aged-care homes nationally including three in metro Pe…
Melbourne · Calvary Huntly Suites (Caulfield South / Calvary Kooyong precinct)
3★Calvary Aged Care
Operated by the Sisters of the Little Company of Mary since 1885. Acquired Japara Healthcare in 2021, becoming one of th…
Adelaide · St Basil's Homes SA Croydon Park Aged Care
3★St Basil's Homes SA
Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia provider; SA's largest Greek-language CALD-specialist aged-care home with on-sit…
Sydney · Bupa Queens Park
3★Bupa Aged Care
Australian arm of Bupa Group (UK-headquartered private healthcare). Operates around 60 homes nationally including multip…
Sydney · The Village by Scalabrini (Drummoyne)
Scalabrini
Not-for-profit Catholic provider founded by the Scalabrinian Fathers to serve Italian-Australians. Italian-language and …
Melbourne · Uniting AgeWell Box Hill (Box Hill Manor)
Uniting AgeWell
Aged-care arm of the Uniting Church of Vic/Tas Synod. Operates around 20 residential homes plus retirement villages acro…
Common questions
Dementia care — common questions
When should I move my parent to dementia-specific care?
Indicators: safety concerns (wandering, exit-seeking, falls), aggression or distress that mainstream staff cannot safely manage, frequent disorientation in familiar environments, deteriorating ability to engage in mainstream group activities. Mild cognitive impairment without these markers usually doesn't require dementia-specific placement — many residents stay in mainstream care indefinitely with appropriate staff awareness.
What's the difference between MSU + standalone dementia home?
A Memory Support Unit is a secure wing within a larger mainstream facility — easier to transition from existing care, allows couples to remain on the same site if one progresses. Standalone dementia homes (HammondCare cottage model) house only residents with dementia, with entire-building design optimised for cognitive decline — typically more therapeutic + less institutional, but a bigger move.
Are there government subsidies for dementia care?
Within residential care, dementia-related care needs are funded via the AN-ACC classification (Australian National Aged Care Classification). Residents with higher dementia care needs are placed in higher AN-ACC funding classes which deliver more federal funding to the provider — this funds the extra staffing. Out-of-pocket costs for residents remain the same as mainstream residential care.
How do I know if a home has good dementia care?
Tour at least 3 times — including once at evening (the highest-distress period for many dementia residents). Ask: care minutes for dementia residents specifically, registered-nurse coverage at night, antipsychotic prescribing rates (lower is generally better), staff training certifications (Dementia Australia, Dementia Training Australia). Read the latest ACQSC accreditation report for any noted concerns.