Urban Centre · Area profile
Swan Reach
3 km²
Set in a quiet rural pocket of the Mid Murray region, Swan Reach is a small community of 274 people that has become remarkably aged. The typical resident is now 61, with seniors making up 42% of the population. This shift is stark compared to 2011, when the area had many more children and a much younger average age. It is now a place of retirees and single dwellers, where most people own their homes outright and live a slower, car-dependent pace of life.
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The population has shrunk by 31% since 2011, and the community is now far older than the national figure. Children under 15 make up only 5.8% of residents, a huge drop from 23.1% a decade ago.
About 10.6% of residents were born overseas, which is far below the national average. Australian and English are the most common ancestries, accounting for 31% and 29.6% of the community respectively.
English is the only language used at home, with 0.0% of people using another tongue. This is far below the figures for both South Australia and the rest of the country.
Religious affiliation is split, with 30.7% of people identifying as Christian and another 30.7% reporting no religion. The share of people with no religion is well below the national figure.
Education levels are much lower than most areas, with only 3.1% of adults holding a bachelor degree or higher. Those who completed Year 12 make up 16.2% of the population, which is far below the state average.
Typical incomes are much lower than the national figure, with a typical household earning $782 a week. No households in the area earn $3,000 or more per week.
Long-term health issues are common, and 39.1% of people have a condition, which is far above the national average. About 10.2% of residents need help with daily activities, a figure that has risen sharply since 2011.
The number of people providing unpaid care or looking after children has fallen since 2011. However, the area has a higher proportion of former Defence Force members than most other similar places.
More than half of all residents (53.3%) live alone, which is far above the state average. This explains why the typical home is small, with only 1.6 people per household.
A high 59% of homes are owned outright, far above the national figure. While 84.8% of dwellings are separate houses, typical weekly rent is much lower than average at $200.
The community is almost entirely reliant on cars, with 68% of workers driving to work and 0% using public transport. About 6% of homes have no motor vehicle.
The population is very stable, with only 16.5% of people moving in the last five years. There were no recent arrivals from overseas reported in the 2021 census.
Only 19.9% of adults are working or looking for work, far below the national figure of 61.1%. Those employed work mainly in accommodation, food, agriculture, or education.
The area is mostly car-dependent with a low walkability score of 2.7. Residents have very limited access to services on foot, with no health services within a 15-minute walk.