Coober Pedy

The population is far older than most areas, with a typical age of 50 and a high proportion of seniors. It is also much more diverse than average, with 15.1% of residents being Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

A little over a quarter of the community was born overseas, which is slightly above the state figure. The most common ancestries are Australian and English, followed by German and Greek.

Language diversity is high, with 22.2% of people using a language other than English at home. This is well above the South Australian average, though the number of people who speak little or no English has fallen since 2016.

People with no religion make up 30.8% of the community, which is far below the state and national figures. Christianity remains the most common affiliation at 39.8%.

Educational attainment is much lower than in most areas; only 34.1% of residents completed Year 12. This gap is reflected in the workforce, where only 11.5% of adults hold a bachelor degree or higher.

Incomes are among the lowest in the country, with a typical household earning just $764 a week. This is far below the national figure of $1,746.

Long-term health conditions are reported at 27.9%, which is about the same as the national average. However, the rate of mental health conditions is much lower than in most other areas.

Unpaid care and housework are less common here than elsewhere, and the number of people caring for children is among the lowest at this level. Around 15.1% of the community are volunteers.

The First Nations community is notably older than the national average, with a typical age of 27. While 19.1% speak a First Nations language, the unemployment rate is very high at 26.2%.

The community is dominated by people living alone, who make up 53.4% of households. Because of this, homes are small, with a typical 1.8 people per dwelling.

Rent is much lower than the national figure at $163 a week, and many people own their homes outright. Most residents live in separate houses, though very few of these have three or more bedrooms.

Public transport is non-existent, with no stops or routes in the area. Consequently, the community is car-dependent, although 10.9% of homes have no motor vehicle.

The area sees a higher than average number of recent arrivals from overseas, at 17%. However, fewer people have moved into the area in the last five years compared to most other regions.

Workforce participation is among the lowest at this level, with only 43.1% of adults working or looking for work. The unemployment rate is well above the national average at 11.8%.

The area ranks very low for overall advantage, including access to money and job skills. Population growth has also fallen by 5.9% since 2021, one of the lowest trends for its level.

The climate is very hot, with average minimum and maximum temperatures much higher than most areas. The annual rainfall is among the lowest at this level, averaging 177mm.

The area is mostly car-dependent, as many homes are far from parks and schools. However, residents have better access to health services within a 15-minute walk than people in most other South Australian areas.