Indigenous people, citizenship & regions of birth
2011 Census fact sheets
How does Canberra compare?
Issue #14 April 2013
Over 180,000 Indigenous Australians lived in capital cities at the time of the 2011
Census with 2.9 per cent of them living in Canberra. Indigenous Australians
represented 1.3 per cent of the total capital city population.
Indigenous people in Canberra made up the smallest share of the population
in any Australian capital city
In 2011, 5,156 people or
1.4 per cent of Canberra
residents identified as
Indigenous. Darwin had the
largest share of a capital city
population that was
Indigenous (9.2 per cent),
followed by Hobart
(3.3 per cent), Brisbane
(2.0 per cent) and Canberra
(1.4 per cent). More than 9 out of every ten (91.9 per cent) Indigenous people
in capital cities were Aboriginal, with Torres strait Islanders accounting for
4.8 per cent and both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders 3.3 per cent.
Melbourne had the lowest share of people who were Indigenous (0.5 per cent),
but this represented 10.0 per cent of Indigenous people in capital cities.
Percent of residents
Indigenous people, Australian capital cities, 2011
What is a Greater Capital City
Statistical Area?
In total, there are 34 GCCSAs with variable
population. This includes the eight state and
territory capital cities, the seven rest of state
regions (for ACT, the GCCSA covers the whole
area) and one for the Other Territories of Jervis
Bay, Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling)
Islands. In addition there are non-spatial GCCSAs
for Migratory-Offshore-Shipping and No Usual
Address for each State and Territory.
In 2011, the share of
Canberra residents who had
Australian citizenship was the
second highest
Total for
(87.9 per cent) of any
all capital
cities
Australian capital city, after
Hobart (90.1 per cent).
Canberra was followed by
Adelaide (86.0 per cent) with
these three cities having
much higher shares of people who were Australian citizens than for all capital
cities (83.0 per cent).
Australian Citizenship , Australian capital cities, 2011
Percent of population
Greater Capital City Statistical Areas (GCCSAs)
have been defined in the Australian Statistical
Geography Standard. GCCSAs are designed to
represent a socio-economic definition of each of
the eight State and Territory capital cities. As
such, the boundaries of these GCCSAs include
people who regularly socialise, shop or work
within the city, but live in the small towns and
rural areas surrounding the city. The GCCSA
does not reflect the built up edge of the city.
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
92
90
88
86
84
82
80
78
76
74
72
Region of birth, Australian capital cities, 2011
The main region
where residents
14.0
Southern and
of Australian
Eastern Europe
12.0
North Africa and
capital cities
10.0
the Middle East
South-East Asia
were born was
8.0
6.0
North-East Asia
Oceania and
4.0
Antarctica
Southern and
2.0
Central Asia
(67.0 per cent),
Americas
0.0
followed by
Sub-Saharan Africa
North- West
Europe
Except Oceania and Antarctica
(7.3 per cent),
Southern and South-East Asia (4.5 per cent) and Southern and Eastern Europe
(4.2 per cent). In Sydney and Melbourne, birthplaces (outside Oceania and
Antarctica) were more evenly distributed between Europe and Asia. In
contrast, North-West Europe was the predominant place of birth in all
remaining capital cities, including Canberra.
North-West Europe
percent of residents
16.0
What is a usual resident?
The Census asks where you usually lived on Census
night. It may or may not be the place where you
were counted. Overseas visitors who are visiting
Australia for less than one year are able to be
identified separately.
All data on this factsheet is sourced from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing, available
for analysis from the ABS website (see www.abs.gov.au)
Dwellings, mortgages & households
How does Canberra compare?
2011 Census fact sheets
Issue #14 April 2013
More than two-thirds of private dwellings were
separate houses in Australian capital cities
The nearly 4 million (3,984,037) separate houses in
Australian capital cities in 2011, constituted the main
private dwelling structure (69.6 per cent), followed by
flat, unit or apartments (17.9 per cent) and semidetached, row or terrace house, townhouses etc.
(11.8 per cent).
Distrubution of households, Australian capital cities, 2011
Percent of private dwellings
40.0
Proportion of private dwellings, Australian capital cities, 2011
90
35.0
30.0
25.0
20.0
15.0
10.0
5.0
0.0
Separate house
80
In capital cities, the main household type was couple famiies
with children
Sydney
70
60
50
30
20
10
Flat, unit or
apartment
0
S
eparate houses comprised the largest share of the
dwelling stock in Hobart (81.2 per cent), followed by
Brisbane (77.6 per cent) and Perth (76.7 per cent). In
Sydney, less than six out of every ten (58.9 per cent)
private dwellings were separate houses, which was the
lowest share in any Australian capital city. Canberra
(70.7 per cent) was third lowest after Darwin
(60.3 per cent) and Sydney.
Conversely, Sydney had the highest proportion of flats,
units or apartments (27.6 per cent), followed by Darwin
(21.2 per cent). Canberra had the highest share of semidetached row or terrace houses, townhouses etc.
(14.9 per cent of private dwellings), followed by Sydney
(12.8 per cent), Darwin and Adelaide
(each 12.6 per cent).
Percent of arrivals from 2007 to
August 2011
Recent arrivals, Australian capital cities, 2007-2011
30
Arrived 2007
25
20
15
Arrived 2008
Arrived 2009
10
Adelaide
Perth
Hobart
Darwin
Couple fam with children
One parent family
Other familes
Lone person
Group
Canberra
In 2011, Sydney had the largest share of private dwellings occupied by
couple families with children (36.6 per cent), followed by Melbourne
(35.1 per cent) and Darwin (33.5 per cent). Canberra had nearly onethird (33.2 per cent) of private dwellings containing couple families
with children. Couple families with no children was the second main
household type in Canberra (26.5 per cent), ranking equal third largest
of all the capital cities. After Darwin (5.6 per cent), Canberra
(5.6 per cent) had the second largest share of dwellings occupied by
group households.
Owning a home with a mortgage common in Canberra
Outright home
ownership was
40
strong in
35
Owned
30
Hobart
outright
25
(32.8 per cent),
20
15
Owned
followed by
10
with a
5
mortgage
Melbourne
0
(31.5 per cent)
Rented
and Adelaide
(30.7 per cent).
In Canberra, 27.4 per cent of occupied private dwellings were owned
outright. Owning a home with a mortgage was common in Canberra,
which had the second largest share of dwellings that were mortgaged
(37.5 per cent) after Perth (38.0 per cent). Darwin had the largest share
of dwellings being rented (36.5 per cent), followed by Brisbane
(31.5 per cent), Sydney (29.7 per cent) and Canberra (29.4 per cent).
Tenure types, Australian capital cities, 2011
Percent of occupied private
dwellings
Semi-detached,
row or terrace
house,
townhouse etc.
40
Melbourne Brisbane
Couple fam no children
Arrived 2010
5
Arrived 1 Jan
2011 - 9 August
2011
Nearly one-quarter (24.8 per cent) of recent (between
2007 and August 2011) overseas arrivals to Australian
capital cities, arrived in 2008. However, in Adelaide
(25.1 per cent), Canberra (25.0 per cent), Darwin
(24.5 per cent) and Hobart (23.9 per cent) 2009 was the
year of most recent arrivals.
Reference
1. Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2011. Census
Dictionary Australia, Catalogue Number 2901.0
This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no
part may be reproduced by any process without written permission from the Territory
Records Office, Community and Infrastructure Services, Territory and Municipal Services,
ACT Government.
GPO Box 158, Canberra City ACT 2601.
Enquiries about this publication should be
directed to:
Chief Minister and Treasury Directorate
ACT Government
actdemography@act.gov.au
http://www.cmd.act.gov.au/policystrategic/actstats
© Australian Capital Territory, Canberra 2013