Retirement living is no longer “God’s waiting room”, as actor Ian Smith states in a story below with village residents in 2024 daily undertaking many activities, inside and outside of the village.
It really does pay to do your research as no two villages are alike. Look around a village and it is highly likely they will be playing pickleball, bowls, or talking and laughing in the clubhouse over a cuppa. Perhaps the village is all but deserted as the mini bus has left for a morning’s adventure.
Residents of Keyton’s Rochford Place village at Ropes Crossing, a suburb of Blacktown, 34km west of Sydney’s CBD, regularly help children from Ropes Crossing Public School with reading, breakfast and in the school uniform shop.
After inviting residents to the school’s ANZAC day event in 2022, the school’s principal gave the go ahead to an Intergenerational reading program which kicked off in October 2022 with eight Rochford Place residents agreeing to help the students once a week to improve their reading skills.
The program has been so successful that it was extended in 2023, with the goal being to foster relationships between generations and promote literacy skills. They have been shown to benefit both the younger and older participants.
Make sure your retirement village is close to amenities and public transport. Keyton says its retirement villages are conveniently located close to public transport, shops, and everyday services.
Ask what events are available inside and outside the community.