Finalists

We are delighted to celebrate the finalists in the 2023 ACS Aged Care Adviser of the Year Awards. Each of these advisers has demonstrated excellence in the aged care advice field, and we are very proud to recognise their accomplishments. All finalists are listed alphabetically within their respective category.

2023 Finalists

Award Category - Aged Care Adviser of the Year

This award recognises the individual adviser who is judged to have best demonstrated outstanding professional commitment to the provision of aged care advice to older Australians and their families.

Brenda Will CFP®
On-Track Financial Solutions

For Brenda, the first part of providing excellence in aged care advice has been to provide sound information, education and greater awareness to as many people as possible. She is a passionate advocate of ageing well and believes ageing is something to be valued.

  • Brenda CFP® is an accredited FAAA Aged Care Specialist. She holds a Graduate Diploma of Financial Planning, an Advanced Diploma in Financial Services, a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine & Surgery. She’s been working in financial advice for over 20 years.

    Brenda believes strongly in prioritising health, lifestyle and fulfilment no matter what your age. Her passion is to bring the best quality of life to older Australians through compassion, knowledge, planning and thinking outside the square. She believes there is now opportunity to approach age with the same enthusiasm as we approach youth.

Craig Phillips
Phillips Wealth Partners

Craig Phillips is a Senior Financial Planner who specialises in aged care and retirement living, offering a holistic, personalised approach to elevate his clients' financial well-being and peace of mind. He was a finalist in the 2022 ACS Aged Care Adviser of the Year Award.

  • Craig’s extensive experience encompasses investment portfolios, superannuation, social security, and ethical investing. Leveraging his expertise and experience with sensible and practical advice with personalised ongoing support has driven his success.

    Recognised as a multiple finalist with the Financial Planning Association of Australia, in 2020/20021, a finalist in the Association of Financial Advisers Great Advice Awards 2021 and a finalist in both the adviser and advice program of the year categories with Aged Care Steps in 2022.

Jillian Clarke
Alteris Financial Group

Jillian is a specialist lifestyle and care adviser with vast experience helping clients who are settling themselves, a partner or family member into aged care or retirement living. Jillian was also a finalist in the 2022 ACS Aged Care Adviser of the Year Award.

  • Jillian assists clients to find the right lifestyle and care solution by explaining the financial options to make a clear and confident decision.

    She can guide clients and their families through the complexities of the move into aged care or retirement living, and can take care of the whole process with providers and government agencies on their behalf, to ensure clients get the right support without the worry.

Katie Spence
Sage Care Advice

Katie has been with Sage Care Advice since its inception. Stepping up from the role of Client Care Advocate to Aged Care Adviser in 2018, she has assisted many clients through the aged care maze and provided assurance to their families and loved ones.

  • Katie is knowledgeable and extremely passionate about aged care. Her focus is to help people realise that if they are informed and open to the discussion, aged care can be a journey that they don’t have to fear, allowing them to have more say in the decision-making than they realise.

    She is passionate about helping clients navigate the obstacles families find themselves facing when a loved one enters care.

Kerri Mendl
Alteris Financial Group

Kerri is an accredited aged care financial adviser, dedicated to helping families navigate the transitions into aged care or retirement living. Her focus is in offering clear and thoughtful advice, ensuring that clients comprehend all available financial options.

  • Kerri enables clients to make the best choices for their unique circumstances.

    Whether it's aged care or retirement living, Kerri serves as a guiding hand through the often intricate process. She can oversee the entire process in collaboration with providers and government agencies, providing peace of mind that all aspects have been addressed for a seamless transition.

Kimberly McGrath
Viridian Advisory

Kimberly is a highly dedicated and compassionate financial advisor. She loves seeing her clients become more confident and informed, gaining peace of mind with the financial decisions they make. She takes pride in smoothing the path of their advice journey.

  • Kimberly holds a Master’s Degree in Financial Planning and is an Aged Care Steps (ACS) Accredited Aged Care Professional. She builds positive client relationships and enjoys helping their extended families and meeting parents and children.

    She helps her clients to know that it is possible to age in place within their own homes for as long as possible. But if they find they need to downsize or move into retirement facilities, they do not go into the unknown without choices.

Sophie Doyle
Morgans Financial

Providing support and empathy, combined with strategies and solutions, Sophie has a passion for assisting people making informed financial decisions, as they navigate their way through retirement and aged care.

  • Sophie joined Morgans as an Associate Adviser in 2017, setting her eye on aged care as the niche she would specialise in.

    She prides herself on providing her clients with peace of mind. Working together, she helps them create a financial strategy tailored to their goals and objectives.

    She is an Aged Care Steps (ACS) Accredited Aged Care Professional, has an Advanced Diploma of Financial Planning, and a Diploma of Financial Planning.

Photo of Zachary Dodds

Zachary Dodds CFP®
Muirfield Financial Services

Zac Dodds, a Muirfield member since 2017, following completion of his Bachelor of Commerce degree. He has since bolstered his expertise with a Master of Financial Planning, Aged Care Steps (ACS) Accredited Aged Care Professional, and Certified Financial Planner status.

  • Specialising in aged care advice, Zac leads the aged care advice sector at Muirfield Financial Services, alongside offering retirement planning to his existing clients.

    His knowledge eases the transition to care, instilling confidence in clients and their families. He also contributes as an educational writer, presents at client and community events, and serves as a content expert at conferences.

Award Category - 2023 Aged Care Advice Program of the Year

This award recognises an Australian adviser or advice business working in financial services that has actively advocated the promotion of aged care advice among their client base, referral networks, peers or local community.

Alteris Financial Group
Andrew Biviano

Alteris Financial Group offers comprehensive financial advisory services for individuals and families spanning generations and at every stage of life. They were the winner of the 2022 ACS Aged Care Advice Program of the Year.

  • Through their specialist divisions Wealth, Accounting, Lifestyle and Care, Alteris assists people through the often complex process of planning and structuring the move to a retirement village or aged care home.

    Their Lifestyle and Care team are dedicated to empowering clients and their families to make informed choices about aged care and retirement living. They take pride in witnessing the enduring positive impact of their tailored financial advice for clients today and in the future.

    Their interactive seminar program actively engages with facility managers and admission staff to help them understand the various financial considerations, raising awareness of the importance of specialist aged care advice.

Cosca Personal Wealth
Jayden Swarbrick

Over the past 12 months, the focus of Cosca has been to provide education and awareness to internal and external business professionals, their client base and their broader local community on aged care and the value of planning.

  • Cosca’s initial program provided education sessions to solicitors in their local region highlighting the benefits of aged care planning and advice, but also the better outcomes which can be achieved by working together.

    The education programs have also grown to include community focused age care awareness and planning sessions. As they look towards 2024, they are commencing work on an online education program for aged care.

Olive Grove Financial Advice
Bill Savellis

One of the significant aged care-specific initiatives that the team at Olive Grove Financial Advice undertook this year was the launch of an education program aimed at increasing awareness and understanding of the value of aged care advice.

  • First, the team focused on improving their educational content to support those making aged care decisions. They also developed comprehensive resources covering all aspects of aged care decisions, from understanding various aged care options to navigating financial considerations.

    Secondly, they recognise the importance of educating their industry partners, such as accountants and solicitors, to work collaboratively in the best interests of their clients.

    They also worked on building their media profile to reach a wider audience. Their commitment to education and collaboration has raised awareness about the value of aged care advice, and contributed to business growth and success.

Phillips Wealth Partners
Craig Phillips

In conjunction with an industry partner, Craig and the team at Phillips Wealth Partners launched the Canberra Educational Event Series to educate the community on aged care, enhance their business profile and foster connections with industry operators and peak bodies.

  • Working with KJB Law to leverage their reach and relationship, the collaboration resulted in a purpose-driven seminar series offering expert financial and legal advice on downsizing, retirement, intergenerational living and aged care.

    It fostered relationships, facilitated continued growth, and resulted in the expansion of a valuable directory resource for aged care services in the ACT.

    Their focus on referral partnerships has had a direct contribution to a significant revenue increase for the business without expanded resources.

Previous Awards

For all the details on our previous finalists and winners, please click below.