Celebrations for Karori’s new Selwyn Sprott Village

Residents and staff of Sprott House retirement village in Karori joined Board Members of The Selwyn Foundation and Trustees of Sprott House Board to mark the village’s transfer of ownership to Selwyn and its new name ‘Selwyn Sprott Village’.

Following the announcement in July that The Selwyn Foundation and Sprott House Trust had entered into a conditional agreement, with a view to Selwyn purchasing the village after a three month transitional period, the sale has completed and Sprott House has now joined the Selwyn group. The transfer enables Selwyn to have a presence in the Wellington market for the first time, complementing its core business activities in Auckland, Northland and in the Waikato.

A New Zealand registered charity*, The Selwyn Foundation has led the way in improving the quality of life of senior citizens for over sixty-four years. In addition to its nine retirement villages providing residential aged care and independent living options, it delivers a broad range of services through its Selwyn Community arm to help older people living in the wider community stay active, healthy and socially connected so they can live well in their home environment for longer. Through its Selwyn Institute knowledge hub, the Foundation also shares an array of practical knowledge and advice with those who have an interest in helping others age well, in order to achieve better outcomes in the long-term for older people and their families.

At the heart of the Foundation’s work is its charitable mission, and it undertakes a wide range of charitable activities aimed at helping ageing people. Its charitable goals are centred on key issues that affect older people’s wellbeing and potentially make them vulnerable, with its charitable work focussed specifically on reducing loneliness and social isolation, increasing the availability of affordable housing options, and mitigating the impact of financial hardship.

*To avoid confusion, any references to ‘charitable trust’ status have been amended to clarify that The Selwyn Foundation is a registered charity under the Charities Act 2005, governed by a Board incorporated under the Charitable Trusts Act 1957.

Wellington’s Sprott House similarly has a long heritage of providing quality care and charitable service. It was first established in 1898 by the Anglican Diocese of Wellington to provide care for young women and children. It became a residential aged care home in 1951 and now comprises a 73-room care facility (rest home and hospital), a purpose-built, dedicated secure dementia care unit for 24 people and 13 independent living villas.

At the recent celebratory event marking the handover, Selwyn Board Chair, Dr Kay Hawk, said: "As we jointly celebrate this new era in our growth and development – and in honouring the heritage of both of our organisations within our new village name – we look forward to going into the future much stronger and with greater potential to continue our shared work and mission in support of the older person."