$18 Million Expansion of Aged Care and Health Facilities for the NT

Southern Cross Care (SA, NT & VIC) has unveiled plans for a state-of-the-art $18 million expansion of its aged care service in the heart of Darwin. Southern Cross Care will expand its footprint at Pearl Supported Care in Fannie Bay with a new purpose-built dementia-friendly unit and age friendly Health & Wellness Centre that will help to transform the delivery of aged care and healthy ageing services in the Northern Territory.

The project will increase capacity by 30% at Pearl Supported Care with 26 new aged care beds, housed in a dedicated unit that incorporates the latest in dementia-friendly design principles.

“This is a transformational project for aged care in the Northern Territory,” Southern Cross Care Chief Executive Officer, David Moran, said.

“It will support the delivery of our Better for life vision for residents, while delivering an enhanced working environment for valued staff.

“Pearl Supported Care has a proud history of providing quality aged care and allied health services to the Darwin community. Our new Residential Care unit will include the latest in dementia-friendly design, while our new Health and Wellness Centre will provide greater access to high-quality health, wellness and rehabilitation services to promote health and prevent frailty for older people in the community.

“Our expanded Pearl care home will offer our people a modernised workplace and opportunities for career advancement. We are keen to support our existing valued staff members at Pearl as well as build, train and recruit future employees.”

The project has been made possible thanks to a capital grant from the Commonwealth Government that will assist in funding the aged care building works. The Northern Territory Government has also generously contributed to part of Southern Cross Care’s purchase of approximately 5400 square-metres of Crown land for the new facilities, south of the existing Pearl Supported Care home.

“We welcome the generous support of the Commonwealth and Northern Territory Governments in their commitment to collaboratively deliver vital services to older Territorians,” Mr Moran said. 

Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, Natasha Fyles said the Northern Territory is now Australia's fastest ageing population.

“The number of Territorians aged over 65 is set to increase from around 20,000 in 2021 to 35,000 in 2041, we need to make sure our seniors are taken care of in their later years.”

“The Northern Territory Government is working closely with key stakeholders to improve our capacity to care for Territorians as they age in their homes as well as in community residential settings. The Northern Territory Government is pleased to be able to support the expansion of the Pearl Supported Care facility as one of a range of projects which aim to increase access to aged care support and improve quality of life for Territorians," Minister Fyles said.

Acquisition of the land was completed earlier this month, paving the way for the next stage of detailed project planning. Building works are expected to commence in mid-2024 and be completed in time for operations to commence in late 2025.

Click here to find out more about Southern Cross Care (SA, NT & VIC)