Outback - North and East

The area is far more diverse in its First Nations identity than the state, though the total population shrank by 9.4% since 2011 to 25,560 people. De facto relationships are very common here, occurring in 16.5% of households, which is well above the national figure.

People born overseas make up 9.9% of the population, a figure far below both the state and national averages. Australian and English are the most common ancestries, and this low level of overseas birth has remained steady since 2011.

About 15.2% of residents use a language other than English at home, which is a little below the state average. This figure has risen by 2.4 percentage points since 2011, though English remains the dominant language for 72.8% of the community.

A large proportion of the community reports no religion at 46.4%, which is well above the national figure. This reflects a significant shift over the last decade, as the number of people identifying as non-religious rose by 18 percentage points since 2011.

Educational attainment is among the lowest for similar areas, with only 10.1% of adults holding a bachelor degree or higher. While 34.4% of residents completed Year 12, this is far below the national figure of 58.8%.

Typical weekly household income is $1,393, which is well below the national figure. While incomes have risen since 2011, the area remains much lower than most other regions, and only 15.7% of households earn $3,000 or more per week.

Residents are less likely to have long-term health conditions than the state average, and the rate of mental health conditions at 7.1% is much lower than in most other areas.

Volunteering is around the middle for similar areas at 15%, though this is down 3.5 percentage points since 2011. Unpaid care for children is common, with 26.2% of people providing this support.

First Nations people make up a large part of the community, and 40.4% speak a First Nations language, which is far above the national figure. However, this group faces significant disadvantage, with an unemployment rate of 23.8% and a typical personal income of just $378 per week.

One-parent families are very common here at 19.7%, well above the national figure. Similarly, 34% of people live alone, which is also well above the state and national averages.

Renting is far more common than usual, with 41.3% of households renting their home. While the typical weekly rent of $187 is far below the national figure, the area has a high proportion of separate houses at 84.7%.

Most people rely on cars, with 61.3% driving to work, and 10.2% of homes have no motor vehicle, which is a little above the national figure. Working from home is very rare at 4.6%, far below the national average.

The population is less mobile than other areas, with only 33.5% having moved in the last five years. Interestingly, recent arrivals from overseas are well above the national figure at 21.8%.

Full-time employment is well above the national average at 64.1%, with mining (15.2%) and health care (11.8%) being the top industries. However, the overall number of adults working or looking for work is much lower than in most other areas.

The population has continued to decline, with a growth rate of -0.6% since 2021, placing it among the lowest for similar areas and well below the state's 5.6% growth.

The region is very hot and dry, with an average maximum temperature of 30.3°C and annual rainfall of 110mm, which is well below the state average.

The area is mostly car-dependent, with a walkability score of 3.6. Access to basics is limited, as only 46.8% of homes are within a 15-minute walk of groceries, far below the state figure of 64.4%.