diff --git a/roles/matrix-synapse/defaults/main.yml b/roles/matrix-synapse/defaults/main.yml
index ee38b1790..6fc7eab2c 100644
--- a/roles/matrix-synapse/defaults/main.yml
+++ b/roles/matrix-synapse/defaults/main.yml
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ matrix_synapse_enabled: true
 
 matrix_synapse_container_image_self_build: false
 
-matrix_synapse_docker_image: "matrixdotorg/synapse:v1.15.2"
+matrix_synapse_docker_image: "matrixdotorg/synapse:v1.16.0"
 matrix_synapse_docker_image_force_pull: "{{ matrix_synapse_docker_image.endswith(':latest') }}"
 
 matrix_synapse_base_path: "{{ matrix_base_data_path }}/synapse"
diff --git a/roles/matrix-synapse/templates/synapse/homeserver.yaml.j2 b/roles/matrix-synapse/templates/synapse/homeserver.yaml.j2
index a02eb48fe..fb432f870 100644
--- a/roles/matrix-synapse/templates/synapse/homeserver.yaml.j2
+++ b/roles/matrix-synapse/templates/synapse/homeserver.yaml.j2
@@ -288,7 +288,7 @@ listeners:
 # number of monthly active users.
 #
 # 'limit_usage_by_mau' disables/enables monthly active user blocking. When
-# anabled and a limit is reached the server returns a 'ResourceLimitError'
+# enabled and a limit is reached the server returns a 'ResourceLimitError'
 # with error type Codes.RESOURCE_LIMIT_EXCEEDED
 #
 # 'max_mau_value' is the hard limit of monthly active users above which
@@ -1182,7 +1182,11 @@ account_threepid_delegates:
 #enable_3pid_changes: false
 
 # Users who register on this homeserver will automatically be joined
-# to these rooms
+# to these rooms.
+#
+# By default, any room aliases included in this list will be created
+# as a publicly joinable room when the first user registers for the
+# homeserver. This behaviour can be customised with the settings below.
 #
 #auto_join_rooms:
 #  - "#example:example.com"
@@ -1194,11 +1198,63 @@ auto_join_rooms:
 # Where auto_join_rooms are specified, setting this flag ensures that the
 # the rooms exist by creating them when the first user on the
 # homeserver registers.
+#
+# By default the auto-created rooms are publicly joinable from any federated
+# server. Use the autocreate_auto_join_rooms_federated and
+# autocreate_auto_join_room_preset settings below to customise this behaviour.
+#
 # Setting to false means that if the rooms are not manually created,
 # users cannot be auto-joined since they do not exist.
 #
+# Defaults to true. Uncomment the following line to disable automatically
+# creating auto-join rooms.
+#
 autocreate_auto_join_rooms: {{ matrix_synapse_autocreate_auto_join_rooms|to_json }}
 
+# Whether the auto_join_rooms that are auto-created are available via
+# federation. Only has an effect if autocreate_auto_join_rooms is true.
+#
+# Note that whether a room is federated cannot be modified after
+# creation.
+#
+# Defaults to true: the room will be joinable from other servers.
+# Uncomment the following to prevent users from other homeservers from
+# joining these rooms.
+#
+#autocreate_auto_join_rooms_federated: false
+
+# The room preset to use when auto-creating one of auto_join_rooms. Only has an
+# effect if autocreate_auto_join_rooms is true.
+#
+# This can be one of "public_chat", "private_chat", or "trusted_private_chat".
+# If a value of "private_chat" or "trusted_private_chat" is used then
+# auto_join_mxid_localpart must also be configured.
+#
+# Defaults to "public_chat", meaning that the room is joinable by anyone, including
+# federated servers if autocreate_auto_join_rooms_federated is true (the default).
+# Uncomment the following to require an invitation to join these rooms.
+#
+#autocreate_auto_join_room_preset: private_chat
+
+# The local part of the user id which is used to create auto_join_rooms if
+# autocreate_auto_join_rooms is true. If this is not provided then the
+# initial user account that registers will be used to create the rooms.
+#
+# The user id is also used to invite new users to any auto-join rooms which
+# are set to invite-only.
+#
+# It *must* be configured if autocreate_auto_join_room_preset is set to
+# "private_chat" or "trusted_private_chat".
+#
+# Note that this must be specified in order for new users to be correctly
+# invited to any auto-join rooms which have been set to invite-only (either
+# at the time of creation or subsequently).
+#
+# Note that, if the room already exists, this user must be joined and
+# have the appropriate permissions to invite new members.
+#
+#auto_join_mxid_localpart: system
+
 # When auto_join_rooms is specified, setting this flag to false prevents
 # guest accounts from being automatically joined to the rooms.
 #
@@ -1431,7 +1487,7 @@ saml2_config:
 
   # The lifetime of a SAML session. This defines how long a user has to
   # complete the authentication process, if allow_unsolicited is unset.
-  # The default is 5 minutes.
+  # The default is 15 minutes.
   #
   #saml_session_lifetime: 5m
 
@@ -1516,7 +1572,7 @@ saml2_config:
 # use an OpenID Connect Provider for authentication, instead of its internal
 # password database.
 #
-# See https://github.com/matrix-org/synapse/blob/master/openid.md.
+# See https://github.com/matrix-org/synapse/blob/master/docs/openid.md.
 #
 oidc_config:
   # Uncomment the following to enable authorization against an OpenID Connect
@@ -1960,6 +2016,27 @@ push:
    #    example_stop_events_from: ['@bad:example.com']
 spam_checker: {{ matrix_synapse_spam_checker|to_json }}
 
+
+## Rooms ##
+
+# Controls whether locally-created rooms should be end-to-end encrypted by
+# default.
+#
+# Possible options are "all", "invite", and "off". They are defined as:
+#
+# * "all": any locally-created room
+# * "invite": any room created with the "private_chat" or "trusted_private_chat"
+#             room creation presets
+# * "off": this option will take no effect
+#
+# The default value is "off".
+#
+# Note that this option will only affect rooms created after it is set. It
+# will also not affect rooms created by other servers.
+#
+#encryption_enabled_by_default_for_room_type: invite
+
+
 # Uncomment to allow non-server-admin users to create groups on this server
 #
 enable_group_creation: {{ matrix_synapse_enable_group_creation|to_json }}