Aged Care Act 2024 and the NCC: What Developers Need to Know About Dual Compliance

The Aged Care Act 2024 introduced a new regulatory layer for aged care facilities that sits alongside the National Construction Code. For developers, architects and operators planning new builds or major refurbishments, understanding how these two frameworks interact is now essential to avoiding delays and compliance gaps.

What Changed Under the Aged Care Act 2024

The Aged Care Act 2024 replaced the Aged Care Act 1997 and introduced the Strengthened Quality Standards, a rights-based framework that places resident wellbeing at the centre of aged care regulation. While the Act primarily governs operational standards, several of its requirements have direct implications for building design and construction — particularly around dignity, safety, independence and infection control.

The National Aged Care Design Principles, published alongside the Act, provide guidance on how the built environment should support these outcomes. Although not mandatory under the NCC, these principles are increasingly referenced by approval authorities and aged care accreditation bodies.

Where the NCC and Aged Care Act Intersect

The NCC sets the minimum technical requirements for building design and construction, covering structure, fire safety, access, services and energy efficiency. For aged care facilities — typically classified as Class 9c (aged care buildings) or Class 3 (residential care) under the NCC — these requirements establish the baseline.

The Aged Care Act 2024 adds a second compliance layer. A building may satisfy every NCC provision and still fall short of the expectations set by the Strengthened Quality Standards. Common areas of overlap include:

• Accessible bathroom design
• Corridor widths for mobility aids
• Natural light and ventilation in resident rooms
• Infection control through spatial separation and material selection
• Wayfinding for residents with cognitive impairment

Practical Implications for Project Teams

Project teams should address both frameworks from the earliest design stages. Retrofitting aged care-specific requirements into a design that only considered NCC minimums is costly and disruptive.

Key steps include:

• Engaging a BCA consultant with aged care experience to identify where NCC provisions and Aged Care Act expectations diverge
• Incorporating the National Aged Care Design Principles into the design brief
• Coordinating access consulting early to address DDA, AS 1428.1 and aged care-specific accessibility needs
• Ensuring the building certifier understands the dual compliance environment

Planning for Dual Compliance

The interaction between building regulation and aged care regulation will only deepen as the Strengthened Quality Standards are fully implemented. Developers who treat these as separate workstreams risk approval delays, costly redesigns and operational compliance issues post-completion.

Absolute Approvals provides integrated BCA consultancy, access consulting and building certification services for aged care projects, ensuring both NCC and Aged Care Act requirements are addressed from concept through to occupation.