Humans of Aged Care
Aged care isn’t one job. It’s the chef planning tomorrow’s menu, the physio helping someone take their first steps after surgery, the finance officer keeping a home running, the gardener who knows which resident likes to watch the roses bloom. It’s nurses and hairdressers, drivers and diversional therapists, volunteers and CEOs – hundreds of roles, all part of the same story.
Ageing Australia, in partnership with HESTA, invites you to enter Ageing Australia’s Humans of Aged Care, a national photo competition celebrating the everyday moments in the aged care sector – and the extraordinary range of people who choose this career.
Why we’re doing this
Aged care is one of the most varied, human, and rewarding sectors to work in. Behind every resident, every home, every community program, there’s a person who chose to be there: a nurse, a chef, a gardener, a diversional therapist, a volunteer, a physio, a driver, a hairdresser. Ageing Australia’s Humans of Aged Care is about putting a face – and a moment – to that career, and showing the wide variety of paths that lead into it.
What we’re looking for
Authentic photographs of real people, capturing those small moments that make up our days – a genuine glimpse of everyday life in aged care and the big impact that those small moments create.
Every entry must include at least one person who works or volunteers in aged care in Australia – in any role, at any organisation, in any part of the country.
You don’t need to be a professional photographer.
You just need a moment to share.
Key dates
- Entries open now
- Entries close: 16 October 2026
- Finalists and winners displayed: at the Ageing Australia National Conference, November 2026, social media and via the Humans of Aged Care digital gallery
- People’s Choice voting: 16-25 November 2026
You can win!
Cash prizes will be awarded to winning organisations to put towards your staff initiative – a social event, professional development, a coffee machine – your choice!
- First prize: $2,500
- Second prize: $1,000
- People’s Choice: $1,000
Who can enter
- Anyone – individuals and organisations, professional and amateur photographers alike.
- No age limit for entrants.
- Entrants and their photos must be based in Australia, because every image needs to feature someone working or volunteering in Australian aged care.
- Entry is free, with up to ten photos per person.
Full eligibility details are in our Terms and Conditions and FAQs.
How to enter
- Take (or choose) your photo. Real moments, real people – a shift on the floor, a quiet chat, a shared laugh.
- Get consent. Everyone identifiable in the photo needs to agree to appear and be named – please make sure you check this before you submit.
- Submit online. Upload up to ten images, tell us who’s in them, agree to our entry terms and choose a licence that tells us how we can use your image.
Judging & recognition
Entries will be reviewed by a judging panel, with an additional People’s Choice category decided by public vote, online. Finalists and winners will be displayed at the Ageing Australia National Conference.
Where your photo could end up
Selected images will feature in our pop-up gallery at Ageing Australia’s National Conference, in our digital gallery, social media, and printed in Aged Care Today magazine – helping tell a bigger story about who works in aged care and why. You keep copyright in your photo; we’ll only use it the way you’ve agreed to.
Ready to share your moment?
Every photo tells a story about the people who show up for others, every day. Yours could be next.
humans of aged care
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