specialty focus
Bryan Lipmann with a Wintringham resident . Photo : Supplied
Where the heart is
Inside Australia ’ s first homeless shelter for the elderly .
By Eleanor Campbell
When Bryan Lipmann founded Wintringham , he wanted it to be a place where he could envisage himself growing old . A place where if he wanted to , he could enjoy a drink , have a smoke , visit the local pub or leave to go jump out of an aeroplane .
This was the vision that Bryan carried with him when he established the first aged care homeless service in Australia .
Wintringham operates on trust , personal choice and autonomy . Residents can do as they like , as long as they do not interfere with the freedoms of others . According to Bryan , no aspiration is too large or too small .
“ There was an old fellow who … wanted to jump out of an aeroplane , so we facilitated that .
“ He did have a family and we had to convince all of them that they knew the risks , that he might die , and he wanted to do it .
“ They got these wonderful photos of him soaring through the air , strapped to a guy , with this grin on his face and the wind blowing his cheeks back to his ears .”
Bryan has employed around 93 workers to drive the company ’ s unique recreation
22 agedcareinsite . com . au program . Seven days a week , the staff will sit with clients , read to them , take them out for a coffee or ask them what it is they want to do with the rest of their lives .
“ I think one of my great advantages I had when I set up Wintringham was , I knew nothing about aged care ,” he said .
After spending 14 years in the bush as a farm labourer in regional Victoria , Bryan moved back to the city and retrained as a social worker .
When Bryan returned to Melbourne 1983 , he was appalled to find the state of the city ’ s homeless services after taking up a job at one of the country ’ s largest night shelters . Back then , Gordon House was a disheveled , 10 story building which housed over 300 of the CBD ’ s most disadvantaged men and women . “ It was a hellhole ,” said Bryan . “ I show photos of my staff when they start working with me to try and explain what it was like , but the photos don ’ t smell .”
Many of Bryan ’ s clients were elderly and frail , which made them vulnerable to crime and abuse . They also had complex health needs , and many died as a result of
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If you were able to buy yourself into aged care , you got good services .
the living conditions . After the mainstream aged care providers refused to take any of his clients in , he quit his job and established Wintringham in 1989 .
“ Access to aged care was pretty well dependent on money , and if you were able to buy yourself into aged care , you got good services . “ It hasn ’ t changed at all really . “ And as a result , Wintringham keeps growing .”
Decades later , Bryan ’ s six facilities operate at almost full capacity yearround , providing 1000 affordable housing units and employing over 900 staff . Most recently , the company opened up its second specialist dementia care unit .
The clients of Wintringham come from all walks of life . On the company website , the ‘ wall of legends ’ details the stories of a past war veteran , a marine researcher , a former pole dancer and a rodeo cowboy . Many of these men and women had lifelong careers , families and loved ones , and had fallen through the cracks due to disability , illness or structural disadvantage .
One in six people experiencing homelessness are aged 65 or over , according to the latest census . The fastest growing cohort of this group are older women . “ Increasingly , what we ’ re seeing now is ordinary mums and dads who are entering the homeless world or at great risk of becoming homeless because of poverty ,” said Bryan . “ They played in the local footy team , they raised kids , they worked in low paid jobs , they lived in the city .
“ Now it ’ s too expensive for them to maintain the rent .”
Wintringham has become internationally recognised for its services . In 2011 , it was awarded the UN Habitat Scroll of Honour , the first time an Australian organisation had taken home the prize .
A minister once asked Bryan how he measured his client ’ s success . He replied that it was the amount of complaints he received from people .
“ There ’ s consequences for complaining for homeless , powerless people .
“ So if you empower a person so much , that they can make decisions and then if necessary , complain , you ’ re really getting somewhere .” ■