Urban Centre · Area profile
Hammond Island
16 km²
Set apart by its remote island geography, Hammond Island is a small community where 96.9% of residents identify as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander. The population is remarkably young, with a typical age of just 23 and over a third of the community being children under 15. This creates a family-focused atmosphere where households are larger than the national average and many people spend their time caring for children. While the population has shrunk slightly since 2011, the island remains a distinct cultural hub.
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The community is very young, with a typical age of 23 and 33.7% of residents under 15, which is far above the national figure. Conversely, seniors aged 65 and over make up only 6.9% of the population, far below the 17.2% seen across Australia.
Almost everyone was born in Australia, with only 1.5% of the population born overseas. This is far below the 27.7% national average.
Language diversity is very high here, as 93.5% of people use a language other than English at home, far above the national figure of 22.3%. About 8% of residents speak little or no English, a rate well above the Australian average.
Most residents identify as Christian (69%), while those with no religion make up 10.7%, which is far below the national figure of 38.9%.
While only 2.4% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, 61.4% have completed Year 12, which is higher than both the state and national averages.
Incomes are much lower than in most areas, with the typical household earning $933 a week, far below the national figure of $1,746. Only 4.2% of households earn $3,000 or more per week.
Residents report fewer long-term health conditions (18%) than the national average (27.7%). No residents reported having a mental health condition.
Unpaid care is very common here, with 50% of people caring for children and 21.2% providing general unpaid care, both well above national levels. Volunteering is also more common than usual, at 20%.
Homes are larger than average, with 3.4 people per household. One-parent families make up 24.2% of the community, which is far above the national average of 14.1%.
Rentals are very common, with 77.5% of households renting, far above the national rate of 30.6%. Typical weekly rent is very low at $120, and 19.7% of homes are owned outright.
Car dependency is low, as 45.7% of homes have no motor vehicle, far above the national figure of 7.4%. Many residents walk to work, which 19% of the workforce do.
The area has seen more movement recently, with 39.4% of people moving in the last five years, though recent overseas arrivals remain low at 6.4%.
Full-time employment is high at 78.5%, far above the national figure, though the unemployment rate is also high at 12.8%. Half of the workforce is employed in public administration and safety.
The island is highly car-dependent with a very low walkability score of 0.4, as there are no grocery stores, schools, or health services within a 15-minute walk.