Shoalhaven vs Sutherland Shire

Shoalhaven and Sutherland Shire are two different types of New South Wales landscapes. Sutherland Shire is very walkable, with 85.6% of homes in a 15-minute-city walkshed and a walkability score of 7.2 (very walkable). Shoalhaven is somewhat walkable, with a score of 4.2 and only 40.8% of homes within a 15-minute walk of groceries. There is also a large gap in First Nations outcomes; in Sutherland Shire, 54.9% of First Nations residents finished Year 12, compared with 30.0% in Shoalhaven.

Both areas sit near the national figure for the share of people who speak a First Nations language. However, Shoalhaven has a far larger First Nations population with 7,060 people, while Sutherland Shire has 3,273. This group in Shoalhaven faces more challenges, with a First Nations unemployment rate of 11.1%, which is well higher than the 5.3% seen in Sutherland Shire.