Council (LGA) · Area profile
Brimbank
123 km²
Weekly personal incomes in Brimbank are much lower than in most other areas, with a typical resident earning $611. This is a diverse, multicultural hub where nearly half the population was born overseas. The community is relatively young, with a typical age of 37 and a high proportion of large family households. It is a place where many residents speak a language other than English at home and a significant number of people are working or looking for work in a large industrial and retail landscape.
Brimbank's schools draw a more advantaged community than the area overall.
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The population grew by 6.5% to reach 194,618 people. Residents are a little younger than the national figure, and while the typical age is 37, the proportion of seniors rose 4.8 points since 2011.
Cultural diversity is very high, with 48.2% of people born overseas—far above the national figure of 27.7%. Vietnamese and Australian are the most common ancestries, with Vietnamese making up 16.9% of the population.
Language diversity is a defining feature, as 57.3% of people use a language other than English at home, which is far above the national rate. This is consistent with the high overseas birth rate, though 13.6% of residents speak little or no English.
The area is more religious than most, with only 21.2% of people reporting no religion, far below the national figure of 38.9%. Christianity is the most common affiliation at 48.3%.
Educational attainment is rising, with those holding a bachelor degree or higher increasing by 6.6 points since 2011 to 19.8%. Year 12 completion also rose 8.7 points to 57.7%.
Typical family income is $1,674 per week, which is well below the national figure of $2,120. However, the number of households earning over $3,000 a week rose 11 points since 2011.
A higher number of people need help with daily activities compared to most areas, at 7.7%. Conversely, the rate of long-term health conditions is well below the national figure.
Volunteer rates are among the lowest at this level, at 6.9%. This is well below the national figure of 14.1%.
There are 853 First Nations people in the area, and 8.9% speak a First Nations language, which is much higher than most similar areas.
Homes are larger than usual, with a typical 2.9 people per home. This is consistent with a high rate of one-parent families, which at 18.2% is well above the national figure.
Detached houses make up 81.5% of dwellings, and 85.5% of homes have three or more bedrooms. Typical weekly rent is $346, which is about the same as the national figure.
Public transport use is higher than most areas, with 829 stops across the region. Working from home also rose sharply since 2011 to 17.9%.
The population is more stable than other areas, with only 29.6% of people moving in the last five years, far below the national figure of 40.7%.
The unemployment rate is 7.9%, which is a little above the national figure of 5.1%. Health care, retail, and manufacturing are the main industries for local workers.
Brimbank is a major business hub with 18,830 businesses. However, its overall advantage score of 928 is lower than about 69% of other areas.
The area is slightly wetter than the state average, with an average annual rainfall of 570mm. The average maximum temperature is 20.3 degrees.
Theft rates are much higher than most areas, and burglary is also higher. However, sexual offence rates are much lower than usual.
The area is very walkable, with a score of 6.6. Most homes are within a 15-minute walk of a park (98%) or a school (89.2%).