State Electorate · Area profile
Melton (Western Victoria)
255 km²
Far more families with children live here than in most similar areas, making Melton a notably young community. The typical resident is just 34, and the population has grown by 24% since 2016 to nearly 98,000 people. This rapid growth is matched by a surge in cultural diversity, with a significant rise in people using languages other than English at home. It is a place of large households and detached houses, situated in the western part of Greater Melbourne.
Melton (Western Victoria) has many young families but fewer schools per child than most areas.
Families are well catered for: 31 schools serve Melton (Western Victoria).
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The area is much younger than the state and national figures, with a typical resident aged 34. Children under 15 make up 24.3% of the population, which is well above the national average of 18.2%.
People born overseas make up 27.6% of the community, a figure that has risen by 6.8 percentage points since 2016. Australian and English are the most common ancestries, with Indian ancestry also representing 5.3% of residents.
Language diversity is growing quickly, with 25.8% of people using another language at home, up 9.2 points since 2016. This is well above the national figure of 22.3%, and Punjabi is the most common non-English language.
Religious affiliation is more common here than in other similar areas, as the 34.6% who claim no religion is well below the national figure of 38.9%. Christianity remains the most common affiliation at 43.9%.
Qualifications are lower than the national average, with only 16% of adults holding a bachelor degree or higher. However, there has been a positive trend, as the number of people who finished Year 12 rose by 7.9 points since 2016.
Typical weekly household income is $1,581, which is a little below the national figure of $1,746. While incomes have risen since 2016, only 15.2% of households earn $3,000 or more a week, a rate well below most other areas.
A higher number of people here need help with daily activities compared to most areas. Mental health conditions are also more common, affecting 10% of residents, which is a little above the national figure.
The community has a high rate of unpaid childcare, with 31.5% of people caring for children, well above the national figure. In contrast, only 8.9% of people volunteer, which is much lower than most other areas.
Homes are larger than usual, with an average of 2.8 people per household. This is consistent with the high number of couples with children and a one-parent family rate that is well above the national average.
The landscape is dominated by separate houses, which make up 90.9% of all homes. Most are large, with 90.3% of dwellings having three or more bedrooms, far above the state average.
Cars are essential here, as only 2% of people commute by public transport and 95.6% of homes own at least one vehicle. Working from home has become more common, rising from 2.7% in 2016 to 16.3% in 2021.
The population is quite mobile, with 44% of residents moving in the last five years, which is well above the national figure. Recent arrivals from overseas make up 12.6% of the community.
The unemployment rate is 6.8%, which is a little above the national figure of 5.1%. Many residents work in construction, health care, or transport and warehousing.
While 95.8% of homes are near a park, the area is generally less walkable than the state average. Only 45.8% of residents can walk to groceries within 15 minutes, which is far below the state figure of 74%.