Northcote - Preston - Whittlesea vs Upper Goulburn Valley

Northcote - Preston - Whittlesea and Upper Goulburn Valley offer very different living environments. Northcote - Preston - Whittlesea is very walkable, with 92.2% of homes within a 10 minute walk of public transport and 87.7% near a school. In contrast, Upper Goulburn Valley is mostly car-dependent, where only 34.8% of homes are close to public transport and 39.3% are near a school. First Nations outcomes also differ, with Northcote - Preston - Whittlesea seeing a far higher Year 12 completion rate of 50.0% compared to 38.1% in Upper Goulburn Valley.

These two areas have tracked similarly since 2011 in a few key ways. They share a First Nations median age of 25 and have very similar First Nations unemployment rates, at 7.9% and 8.3%. While Northcote - Preston - Whittlesea has a far larger First Nations population and higher household incomes for this group, both areas sit below the national figure for the share of people who speak a First Nations language.