Urban Centre · Area profile
Horn Island
53 km²
Set within the Torres Strait, Horn Island is a small community that has seen a significant shift in its makeup over the last decade. It is now a young area where the typical resident is just 28, and more than 70% of the population identifies as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander. While the total population shrank by 43% since 2011, the community remains family-focused, with a high proportion of children and larger-than-average households.
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The area is far younger than the national figure, with 25.7% of people being children under 15. This is consistent with a small senior population, as those aged 65 and over fell to just 5.8% since 2011.
Most of the 533 residents were born in Australia (82.6%), while those born overseas make up 11.8%, which is far below the national figure of 27.7%.
A majority of residents (53.8%) use a language other than English at home, a figure that rose 44 points since 2011. About 9% of people speak little or no English, which is well above the Queensland average.
Christianity is the most common faith at 61.9%. Those reporting no religion make up 28%, which is far below the national figure of 38.9%.
Over half of residents (52.7%) have completed Year 12, a figure that rose 20 points since 2011. However, those with a bachelor degree or higher (10.6%) are far below the national average.
Typical weekly household income is $1,578, which is a little below the national figure. Higher earners are more common now than in 2011, with 17.5% of households earning $3,000 or more per week.
Residents generally report good health; only 15% have a long-term health condition and 1.1% have a mental health condition, both of which are far below the national figures.
Unpaid care for children is very common here (33.5%), well above the national figure. Conversely, volunteering has fallen 18 points since 2011 to just 7.3%.
Homes are larger than usual, with an average of 3.0 people per home. One-parent families make up 25% of households, which is far above the national average of 14.1%.
Renting is the dominant tenure at 70.5%, far above the national figure. While typical weekly rent is much lower than the national figure at $201, typical monthly home-loan payments are very high at $2,875.
Many households (34.6%) do not own a motor vehicle, which is far above the national figure. About 13.2% of people commute using public transport, a figure that rose 12 points since 2011.
About 36.1% of the community moved in the last five years, which is well below the national figure of 40.7%. Recent arrivals from overseas make up 11.1% of the population.
The workforce is active, with 63% of adults working or looking for work, and an unemployment rate of 2.8% that is much lower than most areas. Many people work in transport, warehousing, or public administration.
The area is mostly car-dependent, with no homes within walking distance of a school or health service. However, most people can walk to groceries (92.2%) and a park (90.8%) within 15 minutes.