Census Data and the
City of Maribyrnong
Malcolm Roberts-Palmer
Maribyrnong City Council
How Council interprets data
Life stage – Age, gender, birth rates, death rates,
migration, household types
Issue based – Employment, income, health, education,
diversity, housing, transport, gambling, food security,
mental health and social and economic disadvantage
(SEIFA)
Place – Suburb Profiles, Activity Districts, Street Level ––
(fine grained analysis)
Program - Victorian Government programs such as the
– Health Initiatives, transport planning and Melbourne
2030, Commonwealth Programs such as Infrastructure
Grants and Affordable Housing
Why is Census data important to
Maribyrnong City Council?
Census data acts as a basis for:
• Understanding the characteristics of the City of
Maribyrnong
• Developing Council policies and projects
• Analyse how the City of Maribyrnong is travelling in
comparison to other municipalities
• Identify issues of concern such as the level of social
and economic disadvantage
• Determine future trends and influences to assist in
understanding service requirements
How does Council use Census data?
Census data assists with:
• Determining policy and project priorities
• Council’s advocacy role
• Providing evidence for planning decisions
• Determining long term trends and their impact on
local communities in the City of Maribyrnong
• Defining the identity of Maribyrnong and the
individual suburbs
Snapshot of City of Maribyrnong
• As of June 2010, the City of Maribyrnong has an estimated
residential population of 71,523 - ↑ of 2.18% from 2009
• Median age is 34
• 60% are family households, 7% group households lone, 28%
person households
• Median income is $932
• SEIFA index rating is 948.5 – City of Maribyrnong is the
second most disadvantaged municipality in the Melbourne
Statistical Division
Snapshot of City of Maribyrnong
• 17.3% of the City of Maribyrnong population with bachelors
or higher degree
• 10.9% with trade qualifications
• 36.3 % of the population do not have qualifications
• 75.4% of residents have home internet access compared to
78.9% for Victoria
• Migration from other countries – 5,776 between 2001 and
2006
• 39.2% of households have one vehicle - 26.2% have two
• 75.4% of residents have home internet access compared to
78.9% for Victoria
Social and Economic Disadvantage in
Braybrook
• Braybrook is the second most disadvantaged suburb in
Victoria with a SEIFA rating of 760.1
• Braybrook has the highest proportion of people in rental
stress in Maribyrnong at 35%, and the highest level of
people in mortgage stress at 20%
• 19% of Braybrook’s population rent privately and 22%
own their own home. This compares to 26% for
Maribyrnong city and 33% for Melbourne Statistical
Division
• 34% of the Braybrook population have Year 11 or lower
qualifications and 9% of Braybrook residents have
university qualifications
Median Income for Maribyrnong
1400
1200
1117
1152
1124
1079
1020
967
Income in $
1000
785
800
600
400
200
0
932
713
569
814
Percentage of occupations in Maribyrnong
35
31
30
30
28
24
25
24
21
19
20
15
15
11
10
19
13
12
12
11
8
9
7
10
8
8
6
5
5
0
Labourers
Machine Operators, Drivers
Professionals
6
5
Percentage of population renting from a government authority
30
25
24.8
Percentage
20
15
12.1
10
7.9
6.1
5
3.3
2.6
2.3
0.2
0
2.3
1.8
2.7
Future Trends
• Maribyrnong’s population is expected to increase by 38,221
to over 104,000 by 2031 with an average annual ↑ of 1.8%
• 46,382 households in 2031 with an average size of 2.23
• Footscray will see the greatest annual ↑ of 3.5%
• By 2031 the most populous age group will be 25-29 with
25,025 or 10.8% of the population
• Lone person households will ↑ by 7,579 by 2031
• Couples without dependents will ↑ by 4,154 by 2031
• Death rate will only ↑ 11.3% by 2031 - suggesting that older
population is living longer
• 25% ↑ in birth rate by 2031
Maribyrnong Story
• Maribyrnong Story is a web based resource that describes
and explores the foundations necessary for health and
wellbeing and the connections to the work of Council
• It aims to provide an information framework for building
connections across Council and the community
• It is linked to Council’s primary objective of protecting and
promoting the wellbeing of our community
Maribyrnong Story
• The Maribyrnong Story covers:
Life Needs: Requites for Health
Liveability
Social and Community Life: Belonging
Ill Health and Community Behaviours
• Census data is used in conjunction with data from other
resources to provide the framework for the Maribyrnong
Story
http://www.maribyrnong.vic.gov.au
Building on Census data
• Council requires detailed and timely data that accounts for
the complexity and dynamic nature of the municipality
• Although Census data is important, it is necessary for Council
to use other sources to meet our complex requirements
• These sources can provide Council with a suburb by suburb
and street analysis of what is occurring in the City of
Maribyrnong
• Council also uses its own research and analysis, such as the
Annual Community Survey or rooming house data to gather
information about the local community
Percentage of City of Maribyrnong population on income
support benefits by postcode March 2010
Yarraville
17%
Braybrook
29%
Maribyrnong
14%
Footscray, Seddon
20%
Kingsville, Maidstone, West
Footscray
20%