Ararat

The community is older than the state and national averages, with 24.1% of people aged 65 and over. In contrast, children under 15 make up only 14.4% of the population, which is well below the national figure of 18.2%.

Most residents were born in Australia, and the area has far fewer overseas-born people (12.2%) than the national average of 27.7%. English and Australian are the most common ancestries reported.

English is the main language for nearly 80% of the population. While 6.2% of people use another language at home, this is far below the 22.3% seen across Australia.

The community is more likely to have no religion than the state or national average, with 44.0% of residents reporting no religious affiliation.

Educational attainment is much lower than in most areas, with only 35.5% of residents completing Year 12 compared to 58.8% nationally. Only 11.2% of adults hold a bachelor degree or higher, which is far below the national figure.

Incomes are generally lower than the state and national averages. The typical household earns $1,216 a week, which is well below the national figure of $1,746.

Health challenges are more common here than in most areas, with 34.8% of people living with a long-term health condition and 11.9% reporting a mental health condition.

Volunteering is slightly higher than the state average at 14.6%. However, fewer people provide unpaid care for children or perform unpaid housework compared to most other areas.

The First Nations community is notably older than the state average, with a typical age of 30. While unemployment for this group is very low at 0.0%, Year 12 completion is among the lowest at 15.0%.

Living arrangements are distinctive, as 34.1% of people live alone—well above the national figure of 25.6%. One-parent families are also much more common here than in most areas.

Separate houses are very common, making up 89.5% of dwellings. Many residents have stability in tenure, with 40.4% owning their homes outright, and typical monthly mortgage payments are far below the national average.

Cars are the primary way to get around, and working from home is much less common here (6.4%) than nationally (21.0%). While there are many public transport stops, very few people actually use them to commute.

The area has seen a high number of recent arrivals from overseas, with 21.4% arriving recently—a figure well above the national average of 14.5%.

Fewer adults are working or looking for work (48.4%) compared to the national average of 61.1%. Many residents work in health care and social assistance or manufacturing.

The town is somewhat walkable, and a very high proportion of homes (93.6%) are within a 10-minute walk of public transport. However, fewer people can walk to groceries within 15 minutes compared to the state average.