An aged care facility at Gerringong has been recognised with a prestigious award.
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The Urban Development Institute of Australia NSW Awards for Excellence took place last Friday in Sydney.
The Uniting group won the 'Aged Care Service' category for the Uniting Gerringong facility. The award recognised the facility's design and model of care.
"We wanted to build a place where our residents have a sense of home and family and carers can feel like an extension of that," Uniting's head of property development Adrian Ciano told the Mercury.
"We're delighted that UDIA has recognised the realisation of this vision.
"We know from experience (that) the household model of care is having a positive impact on health and well-being."
The residential aged care building is made up of five households of 20 rooms each. All rooms are single bed with ensuite.
"Residents live as part of a vibrant and active household where the daily rhythm and fabric of life is decided by them," Mr Ciano said.
"It was important to us, with our longstanding legacy of quality care in Gerringong, to bring the community in.
"The cafe, outdoor spaces, state-of-the-art seniors' gym and rooms for families of palliative patients are all testament to that.
"The result is a light, airy building that is an innovative extension of the South Coast community it serves."
According to the judges' citation, "this facility is an excellent template for the future of aged care".
The UDIA awards aim to highlight innovation, sustainability, industry leadership and excellence in urban development across NSW and the ACT.
Uniting will now be a finalist in the national award, to be announced at UDIA's National Congress in Sydney in March next year.
Also among the finalists at the state awards was IRT Group for Parkside at IRT Pioneer Place, in the 'Retirement Living' category.