Dalkeith Gardens is a two stage project designed to expand and updgrade the existing 54 bed facility in Traralgon.

Stage 1: A 64 bedroom double storey extension to the existing building, consisting of eight self contained apartments each with eight bedrooms. Each apartment has its own kitchen, dining, living and outdoor spaces. Apartments are designed to connect to public circulation ‘streets’ with a social front ‘veranda’, to provide residents a sense of ownership of their home. In line with Benetas’ human centred model of care, the apartments are carefully design with elderly residents in mind including:

• The smaller household sizes provide a more domestic scale of living.

• Using familiar, warm materials and finishes to provide a homely feel.

• The floor plan avoids frustration points such as dead ends to hallways.

• Reduction of unwanted noise, appropriate light levels and simple wayfinding are key to provide a enjoyable place to live.

• All the apartments have a strong connection with nature, both to exterior landscaping and internal landscaped courtyards.

Stage 2: The existing 54 bed facility was significantly updgraded to match the apartment sizes developed for Stage 1. The original 54 bedrooms were served by a central kitchen and dining room. The new layout retains the existing bedrooms and adds six new living areas to create self contained apartments similar to Stage 1.