Mission Australia is building the 60-bed home at the Bloomfield health campus, targeted at elderly people who are homeless or socially or financially disadvantaged.

The organisation’s aged care general manager, Jill Bicknell, said the building had reached lock-up stage.

“We’re actually bringing in our first residents in June, but the official opening, we’ve decided to not have it during the winter months, but to have it in November,” she said.

“We’re bringing the first lot of staff on board on May 1 – it is exciting.”

She said 29 of the 35 staff members had already been hired, including some former Myer and Electrolux personnel.

“All of the staff we’ve employed are from the Orange/Cabonne area,” she said. 

Benjamin Short co-founded the Sydney City Mission in 1862 and played a pivotal role in supporting the homeless.