Protecting people in villages
A select committee will be established to review the South Australian Retirement Villages Act, it was revealed recently. South Australian Minister for Health and Ageing, Jack Snelling, said it was the first time the Act had been reviewed in more than a decade.
A select committee will be established to review the South Australian Retirement Villages Act, it was revealed recently.
South Australian Minister for Health and Ageing, Jack Snelling, said it was the first time the Act had been reviewed in more than a decade.
“People are living longer, our population as a whole is ageing and more people are living in retirement villages.” he said.
“The Act needs to be updated to reflect these changes and ensure these people are adequately protected.”
Mr Snelling added a large retirement village went into administration last year and it highlighted some issues with the regulations.
“There are issues in relation to the current powers of investigation and auditing requirements that govern a village’s operation while they are in receivership.
“These need to be addressed and the only way to do this adequately is through a review of the Act.”
The Retirement Villages Act Regulations was reportedly reviewed recently, with more than 350 submissions received.
“The review of the Regulations highlighted the need to consider the Act more generally, and this review will allow people to have their say on a much broader range of issues,” he said.
“I anticipate that through reviewing the Act we will strengthen protections provided to residents and clarify requirements for groups who operate retirement villages.”
The review would “strike a balance” between the needs of providers and the rights of people who access these services, Mr Snelling added.
There are 522 registered retirement villages in South Australia, with about 24,400 residents.
