The Henry is a boutique over-55s retirement village in Higgins, Canberra, developed on the 40,425 sqm former Higgins Primary School site. Delivered in stages, it pairs low-maintenance townhouses and apartments with resort-style shared facilities — a wellness centre and gym, cinema, café and bar, clubhouse, library and treatment rooms.
Project snapshot
- Location: Higgins, ACT (Belconnen)
- Type: Retirement village — a mix of Class 2, Class 3 and Class 9c buildings
- Stage 1–2: 46 townhouses and a clubhouse (opened 2020)
- Stage 3: 54 apartments across two low-rise buildings
- Site: former Higgins Primary School (40,425 sqm)
- Absolute Approvals’ role: Building certification
The compliance challenge
The Henry brings three building classifications together on a single masterplanned site — Class 2 apartments, Class 3 residential accommodation and Class 9c residential aged care — each offering a different level of care and a different compliance profile. Spanning the continuum from independent living through to residential aged care means the fire-safety strategy, accessibility provisions and egress design must satisfy the distinct requirements of each class, including the more stringent provisions that apply where Class 9c residents may not be able to self-evacuate. Staged delivery adds the challenge of maintaining compliance across separable portions while earlier stages are already occupied.
How Absolute Approvals helped
Absolute Approvals provided building certification for the development across its Class 2, Class 3 and Class 9c components. That meant confirming the correct classification for each building and part, then certifying design and construction against the National Construction Code provisions applying to each class — coordinating the fire-safety, access and egress requirements across the different care levels and verifying compliance at each critical stage through to occupation.
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