Australia’s Fastest Growing Towns
While millions live in Australia’s capital cities the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show our regional towns continue to grow.
It says 18 million Australians live across the eight capital cities with the largest number living in Greater Sydney including the Central Coast (5.5 million) followed by Greater Melbourne with 5.2 million residents.
But the fastest growing location in the past ten years is Warragul-Drouin in Victoria.
Its population rose by 41% (13,284) to reach 45,597 residents, making it the 33rd largest town in Australia (up from 45th position in 2013).
Morisset-Cooranbong in New South Wales had the second highest growth of 27% to bring its population to 29,421 residents, taking it that 49th largest town in Australia while Yeppoon in Central Queensland grew by 22% to 21,688 residents making it the 62nd on the list.
The report also shows that Victor Harbor-Goolwa in South Australia is the top seachange retirement town with 43% of its population over the age of 65.
Social demographer Bernard Salt says the towns that grew the most varied, from those with job opportunities for those in the construction industry to seachange locations.
“Seachange towns remain as popular as ever to the extent that I suspect many are siphoning skills and labour from traditional inland centres,” he says.
“Most Australians may live in the vast suburbs of a capital city but this exploration of the largest cities in Australia shows that across the life cycle, there is movement between cities and towns – and that among the smaller cities and towns of Australia, there’s a place and a community that will suit everyone, eventually.”
