State Electorate · Area profile
Charlestown
63 km²
Higher numbers of seniors and university-qualified adults than most similar areas make Charlestown a mature and educated community. This large suburb of Lake Macquarie has grown slowly to nearly 76,000 people, with a population that is slightly older than the national figure. It is a stable area where many residents own their homes outright and few move in or out. The community is marked by a strong shift away from religion, with nearly 45% of people now reporting no faith.
34 schools within reach make Charlestown convenient for families.
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The typical resident is 40, which is a little older than the national figure. Seniors make up 19.5% of the population, a figure that has risen by 5.7 percentage points since 2011.
Charlestown is less diverse than most areas, with only 11.3% of people born overseas—far below the New South Wales figure of 29.3%. Most residents claim English or Australian ancestry.
English is the primary language for 90.2% of the community. Those using another language at home make up only 6.3% of the population, which is far below the national figure.
A significant 44.9% of residents have no religion, which is well above the Australian average. This figure has climbed 27 percentage points since 2011.
Education levels have risen sharply, with 25.5% of adults now holding a bachelor degree or higher, up from just 6.6% in 2011. The area has a high number of schools and strong school advantage scores.
Typical weekly family income is $2,285, which is higher than in most similar areas. Higher-earners are common, with 13.9% of people earning $2,000 or more a week.
Long-term health conditions are much more common here than in most areas, affecting 33.1% of people. This includes a mental health rate of 11.4%, which is well above the state average.
Unpaid care is a key feature here, as 30.6% of people care for children and 13.6% provide other unpaid care—both figures are well above the national average.
Most homes are headed by couples with children (57.8%), though one-parent families are slightly more common here than in most similar areas at 15.0%.
Housing is dominated by detached houses, and 36.6% of homes are owned outright, which is well above the national figure. Renting is less common here than across the state.
While the area has many public transport stops, very few people actually use them to commute (0.7%). Instead, 23.4% of workers now work from home, a massive increase from 2011.
The community is very stable, as only 34.5% of people moved in the last five years, which is well below the national average of 40.7%.
Healthcare and social assistance is the biggest employer, accounting for 20.1% of jobs. The unemployment rate is 4.2%, which is lower than the national figure.
Most homes are within a short walk of a park or school, but only 52.1% are within 15 minutes of groceries, which is far below the state average.