Council (LGA) · Area profile
Sorell
584 km²
A typical resident in Sorell is 42, making the area noticeably older than the national figure. The community has grown by 27% since 2011 and is largely made up of families, with over half of households consisting of couples with children. While the area is mostly Australian-born, it is seeing a steady rise in people from overseas and a significant shift toward those with no religion. It is a spacious, car-dependent region where nearly every home is a separate house.
A fast-growing area where schools haven't kept pace per child.
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The population has reached 16,734 and is slightly older than the Australian average. Seniors make up 20% of the community, a figure that has risen by 5.5 points since 2011.
Sorell is far less diverse than the national average, with only 10.3% of people born overseas. Most residents claim English or Australian ancestry.
English is the only language used at home for 90.4% of residents, which is far above the national figure. However, the number of people using another language at home rose by 2.0 points since 2011.
Over half the population (51.8%) now report no religion, a sharp increase of 23 points since 2011. This is far above the national figure of 38.9%.
The number of adults with a bachelor degree or higher rose by 6.1 points since 2011 to 15.4%, though this remains far below the national average.
Typical weekly household income is $1,400, which is about the same as the state average. High earners are rare, with only 6% of people earning $2,000 or more per week.
Long-term health conditions are much more common here than in most areas, affecting 34.7% of residents. Mental health conditions are also well above the national figure at 12.1%.
Unpaid care is common, with 13.2% of people providing unpaid care and 27.7% caring for children. Notably, 4.8% of residents served in the Defence Force, among the highest at this level.
There are 799 First Nations people in the area. Their typical personal income of $617 is a little above the national figure.
Families are the mainstay of the area, with 50.5% being couples with children. One-parent families make up 16.3% of households, which is higher than most areas.
The area is dominated by separate houses, which make up 97.8% of all dwellings. Renting is much less common than in the rest of the state, occurring in only 18.4% of homes.
Car use is essential, as 68.7% of people drive to work and only 2.5% of homes have no motor vehicle. Public transport use is very low at 1.1%.
The community is fairly mobile, with 37.8% of people moving in the last five years. Recent arrivals from overseas have increased to 10.5% since 2011.
About 59.6% of adults are working or looking for work. The most common industries are health care and social assistance, followed by construction.
The area is growing rapidly, with a population increase of 6.7% since 2021, which is well above the state figure of 1.6%.
Sorell experiences average maximum temperatures of 16.4 degrees, which is well above the Tasmanian average.
The area is mostly car-dependent, with a low walkability score of 3.3. Many residents live far from services, with only 17.6% within a 15-minute walk of health services.