City of Maitland

A 2015 review of local government boundaries by the NSW Government Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal recommended the merger of a number of adjoining councils. In the initial proposal, the City of Maitland was not included in any amalgam[4] ation proposals. However, following the lodging of an alternate proposal by Mid-Coast Council Council to amalgamate the Gloucester, Great Lakes and Greater Taree councils, the NSW Minister for Local Government proposed a merger between the Dungog Shire with the City of Maitland.[9] In February 2017, the NSW Government announced that it will not proceed with the proposed amalgamation.[10]

At the 2011 census, there were 67,478 people in the City of Maitland local government area, of these 48.9 per cent were male and 51.1 per cent were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 3.5 per cent of the population, which was higher than the national and state averages of 2.5 per cent. The median age of people in the City of Maitland was 36 years, which was marginally lower than the national median of 37 years. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 22.0 per cent of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 12.7 per cent of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 50.9 per cent were married and 11.8 per cent were either divorced or separated.[11]

Population growth in the City of Maitland between the 2001 census and the 2006 census was 15.19 per cent; and in the subsequent five years to the 2011 census, population growth was 9.05 per cent. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same periods, being 5.78 per cent and 8.32 per cent respectively, population growth in the City of Maitland local government area was significantly higher than the national average.[12][13] The median weekly income for residents within the City of Maitland was approximately equal to the national average.[11]

At the 2011 census, the proportion of residents in the City of Maitland local government area who stated their ancestry as Australian or Anglo-Celtic exceeded 82 per cent of all residents (national average was 65.2 per cent). In excess of 67% of all residents in the City of Maitland nominated a religious affiliation with Christianity at the 2011 census, which was significantly higher than the national average of 50.2 per cent. Meanwhile, as at the census date, compared to the national average, households in the City of Maitland local government area had a significantly lower than average proportion (4.7 per cent) where two or more languages are spoken (national average was 20.4 per cent); and a significantly higher proportion (93.2 per cent) where English only was spoken at home (national average was 76.8 per cent).[11]

Selected historical census data for the City of Maitland local government area
Census year			2001[12]	2006[13]	2011[11]	2016[1]
Population		Estimated residents on Census night	53,718	61,880	67,478	77,305
		LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales				29th
		% of New South Wales population		0.98%	0.98%	1.03%
		% of Australian population	0.29%	0.31%	0.31%	0.33%
Cultural and language diversity
Ancestry, top responses		Australian			35.0%	33.0%
		English			32.1%	31.8%
		Irish			8.2%	8.9%
		Scottish			7.1%	7.8%
		German			3.6%	3.4%
Language, top responses (other than English)		Cantonese	0.3%	0.2%	0.2%	0.2%
		Afrikaans	n/c	n/c	0.2%	0.2%
		Tagalog	0.1%	n/c	0.1%	0.2%
		Mandarin				0.2%
		Malay				0.2%
		German	0.2%	0.2%	0.2%
		Polish	0.3%	0.2%	0.2%
Religious affiliation
Religious affiliation, top responses		Catholic	30.3%	29.4%	28.9%	26.6%
		Anglican	32.1%	30.2%	28.9%	24.1%
		No Religion	9.1%	12.0%	15.8%	24.0%
		Uniting Church	8.3%	7.1%	6.4%	4.9%
		Presbyterian and Reformed	4.4%	4.1%	3.7%
Median weekly incomes
Personal income		Median weekly personal income		A$428	A$562	A$644
		% of Australian median income		91.8%	97.4%	97.3%
Family income		Median weekly family income		A$1,159	A$1,664	A$1,555
		% of Australian median income		99.0%	105.0%	96.0%
Household income		Median weekly household income		A$1,025	A$1,292	A$1,415
		% of Australian median income		99.8%	104.7%	98.4%