User Profile

Chris
Baynes

Chris Baynes

Structural policy, productivity and strategic imperatives to support ageing Australians missing at one minute to midnight

We get it; it’s an election budget, and as Paul Keating used to say, ‘if you are not in power, you have no power’.

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Chris Baynes

10 hours ago

Opinion

Fact: the village sector understands retirement accommodation. It is time to shine

NSW Planning has just delivered the “worst-case scenario for the seniors housing industry’ in its Low and Mid-Rise Housing Policy, leaving retirement villages behind as ‘road kill’, according to Ethos Urban. In summary, affordable housing...

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Chris Baynes

25 Mar 2025

Opinion

Village operators relying on external Home Care take note: 105 days to new regs

Home Care is about to change significantly. You should know one reason but you are unlikely to know the second. Home Care changes to a new system titled Support at Home (S@H) on 1 July, just 105 days from now, or 71 working days. A lot of the...

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Chris Baynes

17 Mar 2025

Opinion

Australian Unity Group CEO Rohan Mead calls out why all village operators need to focus on a new revenue business model

The Financial Review last Wednesday published an exclusive article based on Rohan Mead’s assertion that the Australian health system is about to be swamped. In simple language, currently we average 20,000 ageing Australians turning 80 each year...

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Chris Baynes

10 Mar 2025

Opinion

Is this the canary in the coal mine for retirement village operators? The future when care crosses independent living

On 18 February, the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission quietly released an ‘Exposure Draft’ for the Aged Care Financial and Prudential Standards 2025. In it the Federal Government crossed the line into retirement villages. See the wording...

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Chris Baynes

04 Mar 2025

Opinion

Good news for our sector and older Australians – quality executives leading advocacy at the right time

Looking forward, the retirement living sector is set for both great times and very dangerous times. Public opinion and demand for our products will be strong, but we will also be susceptible to bad news – and there will be bad news. Regular...

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Chris Baynes

25 Feb 2025

Opinion

Are you strategically prepared for the next 5 years given the macro changes rushing towards us?

I have been reporting on the retirement living, home care and residential aged care sectors for 20 years. The future has never been as uncertain as today. With the first wave of Baby Boomers turning 80 this year, demand for ageing service will jump...

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Chris Baynes

18 Feb 2025

Opinion

Village operators will need home tech and possibly private 5G sooner than they think

Last week James Wiltshire and I were invited by the leadership of the big Not for Profit operator Warrigal, spread across the Illawarra and ACT, to strategically discuss the future of retirement villages. We emphasized that their future will require...

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Chris Baynes

11 Feb 2025

Opinion

Village operators on alert

The excerpt above from an article that caught my eye on Saturday is telling. There is still a large amount of work required to explain the value proposition, contracts and costs of moving into a retirement village. The writer, retired Professor Ross...

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Ian Horswill

03 Feb 2025

News & Headlines

Another week, another alarm for village operators and residents

We will be investigating solutions at our LEADERS SUMMIT 18 & 19 March in Sydney, plus presenting how Denmark overcame this problem. There are good lessons to be learnt. Register here

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Chris Baynes

03 Feb 2025

Opinion

Village operators: beware the media. Ignore the Code of Conduct at your peril - Sign up today

In this issue of The Weekly SOURCE we discuss how Lifestyle Communities lost $950 million in value in three months, thanks to three media reports on ABC TV. With village residents now significantly older, media alarm bells should be ringing. Our...

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Chris Baynes

28 Jan 2025

Opinion

Today, with 78-year-old President Trump in America and 30-something Adrian Puljich and Patrick Abolakian in Australia, each stand out – but we are in better hands

What a day. The US and the world looks to Trump to make America (and the world?) great with his inauguration and his deportation of immigrants. Here in Australia’s seniors living sector, we have two sons of immigrants leading the way to support...

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Chris Baynes

21 Jan 2025

Opinion

Will 2025 be the year the village sector realises it is no longer independent living?

Victoria has just released its new retirement village regulations, including for the first time acknowledgement of home care as a village service – operators beware.

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Chris Baynes

16 Dec 2024