For over 100 years, Uniting has been providing community health and aged care services in Waverley. A number of the current buildings and facilities are coming to the end of their useful asset life. They also no longer meet contemporary expectations around accommodation or the changing needs of older people.

By revitalising the Estate, we aim to unify its historic Victorian heritage with modern, accessible spaces that enhance its useability and meet the evolving needs of the Waverley community. This proposal will expand the range of housing options and aged care services available, ensuring people can continue to live with dignity and independence as their health and care needs change. The redevelopment will not only enhance our existing services in the area but also strengthen our connection with the War Memorial Hospital, creating a hub of care, wellbeing and community. At its heart, the proposed redevelopment is about building a place where people feel safe, valued and connected – a place that respects the past while embracing the future.

We’ve been respectfully using and maintaining the heritage buildings in the Uniting Waverley Estate for over 100 years. Uniting remains committed to preserving and celebrating the Victorian heritage buildings.

Under the masterplan:

• The main Edina manor (currently named the Vickery Building), War Memorial Hospital, and all Victorian heritage buildings will be retained.
• The Ellerslie, Banksia and Wych Hazel buildings will be retained and returned to a residential use.
• The Church Street cottages will be adapted and reused to 7 affordable rental housing units.
• Historical items such as the chapel and the gates on the corner of Bronte Road and Birrell Street, will be retained and improved.
• Cadi Cottage (Federation building) has been excluded from the masterplan and is proposed to be removed to better celebrate, preserve and improve the setting for the nearby Victorian buildings. This space will provide important landscape links between the historic driveway and the buildings, and extend the Victorian style gardens.

• Uniting is also committed to respecting and conserving the heritage landscape spaces, restoring and enhancing them for the future.

Parts of the Estate are listed in the Waverley Local Environment Plan (2012) and on the Register of the National Estate and the National Trust Register.

This listing includes the main Vickery/Edina Building and the Banksia, Wych Hazel and Ellerslie buildings.

None of the buildings on the site are State Heritage listed.

The masterplan has been designed to honour the heritage of the Estate by:

• Re-interpreting the original carriageway with an accessible pathway, which moves through the landscaped gardens
• Creating a lower or western garden acknowledging this original Estate feature
• Celebrating the original entry to the Estate by retaining the historic gates on the corner of Birrell Street and Bronte Road
• Ensuring the use of the site remains true to the historic and current use of the land.

We recognise that we need to provide affordable, accessible homes for the growing number of seniors in Waverley. Uniting commits to providing 10% of all dwellings on the site as affordable rental housing. 

95 existing trees will need to be removed to allow new services or landscaping, but we’ll be adding 201 new trees to the Estate to minimise impact. We’ve considered each tree on site and assessed its cultural significance.

We’ll retain most of the significant mature trees on the Estate, including an additional fig tree. More than 50% of the trees on the Estate (115 in total) will be retained. We’re going to double the amount of useable landscaped spaces and supplement the existing trees with new trees.

We’ll plant 201 new trees and also add a significant number of new plants.

The current number of car spaces will be maintained and where services are expanding, new car spaces will be added to support them. A total of 478 car spaces is proposed within the redevelopment, including those for the hospital and its services.

• The aim is to make the Estate more pedestrian friendly by taking the majority of parking and vehicles to the basement level.
• The main service vehicle entry will be on Bronte Rd with secondary entry/exit points off Birrell Street, Carrington Road and Church Street. This will aim to ease congestion on Church Street.
• Shared pedestrian and vehicle zones for service drop-offs and reduced vehicular speed restrictions.
• A Traffic Management Plan will be developed. It will outline how the builders will minimise the impact of parking and traffic on the surrounding neighbourhood, during construction.

The height of the buildings has been considered to suit their location and topography. In most places this means the buildings are stepped to mitigate their impact at street level. The building heights will range from 4-7 storeys.

The new buildings integrate landscaping and setbacks to reduce their bulk and scale. Overshadowing is minimised through the architectural design and all open spaces will all receive adequate sunlight during the winter solstice (the shortest day of the year). They’ve also been designed and positioned to maximise solar access to the public and private internal building spaces.

Yes. Our aim is to enhance the Uniting Waverley Estate and provide more services and areas for the community to use. The proposal will improve the Estate’s streetscapes and access. It will also open up the central garden and create new green spaces for the community to use and enjoy. 

Under the revised masterplan, safer and clearer entries with views into the Estate will enable greater connection to the community. You’ll be able to see the main heritage precinct.

Uniting submitted an Environmental Impact Statement for the redevelopment to the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI), as a State Significant Development Application (SSDA) in late 2024. 

The proposal was placed on public exhibition for 28 days on Thursday 13 March 2025. The community is invited to make submissions during this time, until the public exhibition period closes on Wednesday 9 April 2025.

The DPHI will review the SSDA and is expected to determine it in late 2025.

We’re committed to supporting the residents of Conrad Beard Village and Bushell and Johnson Village to find alternate accommodation. We’re having ongoing discussions with the residents and connecting them with additional support as required.

The comfort and safety of our residents are our main priority, so every effort is being made to ensure the moves are as smooth as possible.

All aspects of the legislation relating to residents’ rights – the Retirement Villages Act (RVA) and Residential Tenancies Act (RTA) – will be honoured.

If approved, the project is estimated to create around 375 jobs, including 250 direct construction jobs. It would also allow for up to 125 operational jobs to be associated with the Uniting Waverley Estate at any one time.

You can stay updated by completing our subscribe form. You can also ask any questions by emailing us at ask@uniting.org or calling 1800 864 846. Our team will be happy to answer your questions.