Indicators for a Statistical Portrait of the Australian Capital Region

© Australian Capital Territory, Canberra 2012

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:
ACT Demographer

http://www.cmd.act.gov.au/policystrategic/actstats

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Telephone: Canberra Connect 132 281

Contents

1.0 Introduction 4

1.1 Next steps 5

1.2 The Australian Capital Region 5

2.0 Key data items 6

2.1 Listing of data items 6

2.2 Data availability and updating 8

2.2.1 Current and projected population 8

2.2.2 Demographic and social characteristics 8

2.2.3 Household characteristics 8

2.2.4 Economic characteristics 8

2.2.5 Residential development characteristics 9

2.2.6 Service provision characteristics 9

2.2. 7 Regional functionality characteristics 9

2.3 Useful links 10

2.3.1 The Australian Bureau of Statistics 10

2.3.2 Regional Development Australia committees 10

2.3.3 Research institutes 10

2.3.4 Government sources 10

3.0 Headline indicator set 12

3.1 What is a headline indicator? 12

3.2 Headline indicators for the Australian Capital Region 13

4.0 Appendices 14

4.1 Appendix One – The Australian Capital Region 14

4.2 Appendix Two- ‘Canberra Plus One’ Region 15

4.3 Appendix Three - Regional Development Areas 16

4.4 Appendix Four - South East Regional Organisation of Councils (SEROC) 17

1.0 Introduction

This paper identifies a selection of key data sets that provide a statistical portrait of the
Australian Capital Region (ACR). The ACR (the Region) is made up of Australia’s capital city Canberra and the adjoining New South Wales (NSW) local government areas (see 4.1 Appendix One – The Australian Capital Region). With a current population over 600,000 people, the ACR represents a sizeable population cluster.

As the data from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing is progressively released during the second half of 2012, data on the indicators outlined in this paper will be compiled. These tables will be released as available, commencing with updated population estimates in August 2012.

Apart from the role of Australia’s capital, the Region is of strategic importance forming a major section of the key Sydney-Canberra corridor. Important higher order services are provided in the cities and towns of the ACR for the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and a large catchment of south-eastern NSW. As a result of these factors, and the attractiveness of particular parts of the Region as retirement destinations, the ACR is projected to grow to 688,000 people in the next decade.

Effective planning for both the current and the future population requires a clear picture of the Region, the characteristics of its population and economy and a measure of how it functions.
Section Two of this paper lists and briefly describes a series of indicators and related material in six separate themes that provide a statistical portrait of the ACR. This listing is not comprehensive. As such, it will not provide a complete answer to all questions about the Region. There are, for example, no indicators relating to the environment in this list.

The selection of indicators presented in Section Two is designed to provide some insight into the key characteristics of the Region’s population. The emphasis in this selection is on the people of the Region: how many of them there are; how they group together; how they interact with the economy and shape the urban environment; what services are provided; and how the Region functions. The indicators are grouped into seven themes covering population, demographic and social characteristics; household characteristics; economic characteristics; residential development characteristics; service provision characteristics and regional functionality characteristics. Brief comments are made on the availability of the data used to compile the indicators and opportunities for updating this data.

A set of headline indicators are also identified. This set represents a summary of the statistical picture provided by the full range of indicators and associated material. This headline indicator set provides clear and simple indications of the characteristics of the Region. Comparable data for other regions is readily available permitting comparisons across jurisdictions.

Different organisations operate on a range of regional boundaries and some of these are illustrated in the selection of maps in the Appendices.

1.1 Next steps

This paper outlines a selection of indicators that provides a picture of the ACR. This picture will be able to be completed once data from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing (2011 Census) becomes available later in 2012. Where the data is available, it is intended to provide tables covering the indicators described in this paper. Some data will be available from the first release of 2011 Census data in late June 2012, while other data will not be available until the second or third releases of data in late 2012 and early 2013.

The release of the 2011 Census data provides a wealth of new data that can be utilised in preparing population projections. Detailed analyses of the Census data, a collation of historical data on the new geographic boundaries and a review of models will be undertaken during 2012-13. New projections will be released in 2013-14. Liaison between the ACT and NSW Governments over the preparation of population projections for both ACT and NSW Local Government Areas (LGAs) is also planned.

1.2 The Australian Capital Region

The Australian Capital Region (ACR) comprises the ACT and the surrounding 17 NSW local government areas (see Appendix One). The ACR was originally delineated as local representatives from this area regularly met to discuss issues at a Regional Leaders Forum. It remains a convenient representation of Canberra’s functional region.

There are also other regions centred on Canberra that are of interest. Various organisations or groups have established particular regions or catchments for the application of their policies or delivery of services. Regional Development Australia (RDA) for example, covers the ACR with three separate regional groupings the ACT RDA; the Southern Inland RDA; and the Far South Coast RDA[1]. Maps outlining a selection of these areas are provided in the Appendices.

2.0 Key data items

This section outlines the suggested listing of variables to provide a population and socio-economic picture of the ACR. Section 2.1 lists the data items grouped into broad themes. Section 2.2 provides some comments on the availability of these data items and opportunities to update them. Finally Section 2.3 makes reference to existing compilations of regional data and provides some useful links to sources of data on the Region.

Key data items or indicators can generally be considered to be summary measures related to a significant issue or phenomenon that can be used to show positive or negative change. Indicators are measures that can be used to monitor progress or direction of change.

2.1 Listing of data items

The recommended variables have been organised into seven themes covering demographic, social and economic characteristics, complemented by information on the nature of residential development, some descriptions of services provided, and finally indicators of how areas within the Region function (Table One).

This is only one of a number of possible indicator sets that could be compiled to provide a picture of the Region and its population. The focus of this paper is intentionally on the people of the ACR, their population and socio-economic characteristics. Other indicator sets may provide more detail on the economy for example, or indeed on the environment, or some other aspect.

This listing of characteristics is designed to inform land and infrastructure planning, social planning and provide an initial picture of who lives here, how they live and some of the prospects for future growth. Any project involving substantial expenditure will need to supplement the brief picture presented by these this paper with a detailed business case.

Table One: Broad description of data items by theme

Theme / Data items
Population / ·  Total population (current and projected)
·  Age structure (current and projected)
Demographic and social characteristics / ·  Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population (number, age structure and shares – of Indigenous and of total population)
·  Overseas born (number, age structure and shares – of overseas born and of total population)
·  Income distribution (individual, family)
·  Educational participation (pre-school, primary, secondary, tertiary, government and non-government)
·  Disability (number and share of population with severe or profound disability)
·  Socio-economic disadvantage (advantage and disadvantage)
Household characteristics / ·  Number of families, couples, lone persons, (current and projected)
·  Families (by number of children)
·  Couples (by age structure)
·  Lone persons (by sex and age structure)
·  Household income
Economic characteristics / ·  Industry structure (by residence of workers and by jobs)
·  Occupational profile (number and share by occupational groupings)
·  Labour force status (employed part time or full time, not in the labour force, unemployment rate)
·  Business counts (national regional profile, employing,
non-employing, starts and exits)
·  Job numbers
·  Industry clusters
·  Tourism establishments
Residential development characteristics / ·  Dwelling types (separate houses, flats units apartments, townhouses, caravans etc)
·  Unoccupied dwellings
·  Tenure (owned, rented government or private)
·  Mortgage costs
·  Rental costs
·  Locations of current residential activity (dwelling approvals, lot creation)
·  Planned future land releases
Service provision characteristics / ·  Aged care services (number of beds, description)
·  Educational facilities (pre-school, primary, secondary, tertiary, government, non government)
·  Early childhood services
·  Before and after school care
·  Hospitals
·  Emergency services
·  Sport and recreation facilities
Regional functionality characteristics / ·  Employment containment
·  Job containment
·  Volunteering
·  Public transport availability
·  Internet connections
·  Protected areas (parks and forests)
·  Regional comparisons

2.2 Data availability and updating

Many of the listed data items are available from the five-yearly Census. Results from the most recent Census conducted in August 2011, will become progressively available during 2012. This will provide an opportunity to present a picture of the ACR based on relatively recent data. The other advantage of the Census is that it is not based on a survey; each household in Australia is counted and information is provided in respect of each individual and dwelling. This provides a valuable and detailed selection of data from which to draw our statistical picture.

2.2.1 Current and projected population

Data on the current population is available from the ABS. In between the five-yearly censuses this data is modelled annually, but is re-based every five years once the Census results are processed. The release of the Census data in 2012 provides a timely opportunity to access refreshed data.

Estimates of the current population are combined with other demographic data to produce population projections. For the ACT, these projections are produced by the ACT Government while in NSW, the Department of Planning and Infrastructure prepares and releases projections at the local government level. The most recent release of population projections in the ACT was in 2011 while the NSW projections date from 2010. Both jurisdictions will be preparing new projections based on the more recent trends and the results from the 2011 Census during 2013-14. The release of these new projections will provide an important opportunity to update this paper.

2.2.2 Demographic and social characteristics

All suggested demographic and social characteristic indicators are available from the Census. Basic demographic data will be available in the first release of 2011 Census data from late June 2012, while data that required additional processing will be available in the second release in late October 2012. More complex analysis or compilations such as the socio-economic characteristics for areas will be available in the third release from March 2013.

While this data is not able to be updated for five years, until after the 2016 Census is processed, these variables have the advantage of being available for a range of areas within the ACR and beyond. This will facilitate comparison with other geographic regions.

2.2.3 Household characteristics

Similarly, all household characteristic indicators can be sourced from Census data. As noted in Section 2.2.2 above, one important benefit of using Census data is that it has a much wider coverage than surveys typically taken between Census dates. This allows for a detailed picture of the differences between communities within the ACR to be revealed, thus highlighting particular areas of need or opportunity. This opportunity to identify differences within the Region supports the varied experiences lived and understood by residents.

2.2.4 Economic characteristics

The majority of indicators reporting the economic characteristics of the ACR will be available from Census data. However, the indicator set is complemented by a measure of business activity using data on businesses by industry, the number of employees and turnover. Additionally, the number of tourism establishments by number of rooms, type of establishment (hotel, motel, serviced apartment, caravan park or holiday flats) gives an indication of the size of the tourism market in each location. These latter indicators are available from the National Regional Profile for LGAs within the ACR.

2.2.5 Residential development characteristics

Indicators listed under this category combine measures reflecting dwelling stock, tenure patterns and housing costs data sourced from the Census with some development activity indicators reflecting the location of residential activity and an indication of future planning directions. This latter information can be sourced from Council development data and planning documents. It is also possible that the Strategic Plan being developed as part of the NSW-ACT Cross Border Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) may provide relevant information. Development activity levels can be monitored periodically, but major planning documents are prepared irregularly. Updating of these data items should occur on an as-needs basis (in other words, prompted by the level of activity and when planning strategies are refreshed).

2.2.6 Service provision characteristics

The variables recommended under the service provision characteristics category are problematic to obtain. They need to be sourced from a variety of providers. It is recommended that data on individual services be compiled according to priority; that is, when such data is required for funding applications or to assess the extent of the service provision across the Region. Some data will be more readily obtained than others. For example, the location of government school facilities should be readily available from the ACT Education and Training Directorate and the NSW Department of School Education. However, information on non-government and tertiary service provision will need to be sourced separately.