Residents and home care clients at two Sunshine Coast retirement villages are set to benefit from an imminent merger.
Living Choice Kawana Island and Living Choice Twin Waters will gain access to a broader range of support services when Living Choice Home Care transitions to Five Good Friends on October 1.
The long-term partnership is designed to strengthen home care across Living Choice communities while keeping existing care arrangements largely unchanged.
Clients will continue with their current schedules and familiar care workers wherever possible, while gaining access to a broader network of home care services, additional support as needs evolve and digital tools to help families stay connected and informed.
Dedicated support teams with experience working in retirement villages will also be available, giving residents access to more specialised resources as their care requirements change.
For residents at Kawana Island and Twin Waters, the transition means the home care service they already rely on will continue, but with the additional scale and capabilities of Five Good Friends.
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The organisation currently supports more than 1,500 people living within retirement village communities across Australia and has specialist experience delivering care in retirement living environments.
The transition follows a series of information sessions held jointly by Living Choice Australia and Five Good Friends throughout August. Representatives have been meeting with care recipients, families, resident committees and village communities to explain the changes and answer questions ahead of the October handover.
The partnership covers 12 Living Choice communities across Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia.
The move positions Five Good Friends to expand its presence in the retirement living sector, combining Living Choice’s established community-based home care service with Five Good Friends’ technology-enabled and relationship-focused model.
The organisations say the combined approach is intended to help older Australians remain independent in their own homes and stay connected to their families, friends and communities for as long as they choose.
Five Good Friends co-founder and CEO Simon Lockyer said the organisations shared a strong commitment to supporting older Australians to live independently while maintaining vital community connections.
“At Five Good Friends, we believe great care is built on relationships, trust and genuine human connection,” he said.
“That’s why preserving continuity of care throughout this transition has been our highest priority.
“Living Choice Australia has created something special within its retirement village communities and we’re honoured to continue that legacy while bringing additional services, technology and support to residents and their families.”
Living Choice Australia’s CEO Darren Steele said the decision followed careful consideration of how best to support the future needs of residents and home care clients.
“The wellbeing of our residents has always been at the centre of every decision we make,” he said.
“Five Good Friends shares our person-centred approach and commitment to wellness, independence and quality care.
“Importantly, their specialist home care capability and scale will allow our residents and existing home care clients to access a broader range of services as their needs change.
“We are confident this partnership provides a strong foundation for the future while maintaining the relationships and continuity of care our clients value.
“Living Choice Home Care’s existing team has played an important role in building trusted relationships with clients and residents, and maintaining those relationships has been a key consideration in planning the transition.”
Five Good Friends co-founder and COO Nathan Betteridge said the engagement program reflected the organisations’ shared commitment to transparency.
“This transition is about people, not systems,” he said.
“We wanted residents, clients and families to hear directly from us, understand exactly what is changing and, importantly, what is staying the same.
We are looking forward to becoming part of these communities and supporting residents as their needs change over time.”
