Statistical Area 2 (SA2) · Area profile
Palm Island
72 km²
Over 91% of the population in Palm Island are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, making it a community with one of the highest First Nations populations in the country. This is a very young place, where the typical resident is just 26 years old and nearly a third of the population are children. The community is marked by significant disadvantage, with very low typical incomes and a high reliance on rental housing. Since 2011, the total population has shrunk by 10% to 2,098 people.
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The community is far younger than the national figure, with 31.4% of people under 15 and only 5.1% aged 65 and over. De facto relationships are far more common here than in the rest of the state, at 29.1%.
Almost all residents were born in Australia, and only 1.7% were born overseas, which is far below the national figure. The most common ancestries reported are Australian and English.
There has been a huge increase in language diversity, with 40.7% of people using another language at home compared to just 3.1% in 2011. This is far above the national figure.
Most residents identify as Christian (76.2%). Those with no religion make up 16.5% of the population, which is far below the national figure of 38.9%.
Education levels are much lower than typical, with only 26.4% of people completing Year 12 and just 4.3% holding a bachelor degree or higher. The most common qualification is a Certificate III or IV.
Incomes are far below the national figure; the typical household earns $977 a week, and the typical personal weekly income is $380. Only 6.5% of households earn $3,000 or more per week.
Long-term health conditions are reported far less often here than in the rest of the state, with only 15.1% of people having a long-term condition. Mental health conditions are also reported at a very low rate of 2.2%.
Unpaid childcare is common, with 33% of people caring for children, which is well above the national figure. However, volunteering is very low at 4.7%.
First Nations people make up the bulk of the population, with 44.4% speaking a First Nations language. Typical personal income for First Nations residents is $365, which is well below the national figure.
Homes are much larger than usual, with 3.7 people per home and 24.4% of households containing six or more people. One-parent families are very common, making up 38.7% of households.
Rental is the dominant tenure, with 92.5% of homes rented, and only 1.4% owned outright. Weekly rent is very low at $125, far below the national figure.
Nearly half of all homes (49.5%) have no motor vehicle, which is far above the national figure. This helps explain why 32.7% of people walk to work.
The community is very stable, with only 14.1% of people moving in the last five years, far below the national figure. Interestingly, 25.7% of residents are recent arrivals from overseas.
Only 26.7% of adults are working or looking for work, which is far below the national figure. The unemployment rate is 9.8%, which is well above the national average.
The area faces extreme disadvantage, ranking at the lowest possible level for overall advantage, job skills, and access to resources. There are only 15 businesses in the area.
Palm Island is very wet, with average annual rainfall of 2,074mm, far above the Queensland average. Minimum temperatures are also well above the state figure.
Walking to amenities is difficult, as no homes are within a 15-minute walk of groceries or public transport. About 47% of homes are within a 15-minute walk of health services or schools.