Barkly

The community is far younger than the national average, with 26.7% of people under 15 and only 5.1% aged 65 or over. First Nations people make up 72.4% of the population, which is far above the national figure of 3.2%.

Most residents were born in Australia (91.8%), and the area has one of the lowest proportions of overseas-born people at 3.9%, far below the national average of 27.7%.

Language diversity is very high, with 54.7% of people using a language other than English at home, far above the 22.3% national figure. This is consistent with the very high proportion of First Nations residents.

Most people identify as Christian (60.5%), though the number of residents reporting no religion rose 10 points since 2011 to reach 29.8%.

Educational attainment is much lower than most areas, with only 26.6% of residents completing Year 12. This is far below the national figure of 58.8%.

Incomes are far below the national and state figures, with a typical family earning just $846 a week. Only 6% of households earn $3,000 or more weekly, compared to 22.6% across Australia.

Long-term health conditions are reported by 16.3% of people, which is far below the national figure of 27.7%. Similarly, only 1.7% of residents need help with daily activities.

Unpaid work is common here; 40.4% of people care for children unpaid, which is far above the national figure of 26.3%. However, only 6.7% of residents volunteer, among the lowest in the region.

The First Nations community is large and culturally strong, with 73.4% of people speaking a First Nations language. However, this group faces significant challenges, including a 34.4% unemployment rate.

Households are larger than usual, with 3.7 people per home and 22.9% of homes containing six or more people. One-parent families are also common at 25.3%, well above the national figure.

Rental properties are very common at 56.6%, far above the national average of 30.6%. Most residents live in separate houses, and typical weekly rent is very low at $70.

Car ownership is very low, with 46.1% of homes having no motor vehicle, far above the national figure of 7.4%. Consequently, 40.9% of workers walk to their jobs.

Recent movement is low, as only 29.5% of people moved in the last five years, far below the national average of 40.7%.

Agriculture, forestry and fishing is the main industry, employing 47% of the workforce. While 71.3% are employed full-time, the overall unemployment rate is very high at 15.6%.

Barkly is ranked among the most disadvantaged areas in the country, with the lowest possible score for overall advantage, education, and job skills.

The area is hot and dry, with an average maximum temperature of 34.9 degrees and low annual rainfall of 391mm.

The area is mostly car-dependent with a low walkability score of 2.2. There are no public transport stops or routes available for the community.