Nambucca Valley Council
Nambucca Valley Council is a local government area in the mid north coast region of New South Wales, Australia.
| Nambucca Valley Council New South Wales | |||||||||||||||
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 Location in New South Wales | |||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 30°43′S 152°55′E | ||||||||||||||
| Population |
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| • Density | 12.885/km2 (33.373/sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Established | 15 December 1915 | ||||||||||||||
| Area | 1,491 km2 (575.7 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Mayor | Rhonda Hoban (Independent) | ||||||||||||||
| Council seat | Macksville | ||||||||||||||
| Region | Mid North Coast | ||||||||||||||
| State electorate(s) | Oxley | ||||||||||||||
| Federal Division(s) | Cowper | ||||||||||||||
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| Website | Nambucca Valley Council | ||||||||||||||
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The shire services an area of 1,491 square kilometres (576 sq mi) and is located adjacent to the Pacific Highway and the North Coast railway line. At the 2016 census, Nambucca Valley Council had a high proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people residing within its boundaries; being 7.6 per cent of the population, nearly treble the national and state averages of 2.8 and 2.9 per cent respectively.[1] Within the Shire's boundaries is Bowraville, one of the most socially disadvantaged areas in Australia.[3]
The Mayor of the Nambucca Valley Council is Rhonda Hoban, an independent politician.[4]
The local government area was created on 15 December 1915, from land excised from Bellingen Shire, and was originally called Nambucca Shire.[5] The area was renamed Nambucca Valley from 4 December 2019.[6]
Towns and localities
Towns and localities in the Nambucca Valley Council area:
- Allgomerra
- Bowraville
- Burrapine
- Congarinni
- Eungai Creek
- Eungai Rail
- Gumma
- Hyland Park
- Macksville
- Medlow
- Missabotti
- Nambucca Heads
- Newee Creek
- Scotts Head
- Talarm
- Tamban
- Taylors Arm
- Tewinga
- Thumb Creek
- Utungun
- Valla
- Valla Beach
- Warrell Creek
- Wirrimbi
- Yarranbella
Heritage listings
The Nambucca Valley has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
- Macksville, North Coast railway: Macksville railway station[7]
Demographics
At the 2016 census, there were 19,212 people in the Nambucca Valley local government area, of these 49 per cent were male and 51 per cent were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 7.6 per cent of the population, nearly treble the national and state averages of 2.8 and 2.9 per cent respectively. The median age of people in the Nambucca Valley Council was 51 years; some thirteen years higher than the national median. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 16.6 per cent of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 27.6 per cent of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 44.9 per cent were married and 17 per cent were either divorced or separated.[1]
The median weekly income for residents within the Nambucca Valley Council was significantly below the national average,[1][8] being one of the factors that place parts of the Nambucca Valley Council in an area of social disadvantage.[3]
significantly higher proportion (90.1 per cent) where English only was spoken at home (national average was 72.7 per cent). Of the 90 Australian residents who stated that they speak Gumbaynggir, an Australian Aboriginal language, 28 live within the Nambucca Valley Council.[1]
| Selected historical census data for Nambucca local government area | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Census year | 2001[9] | 2006[10] | 2011[8] | 2016[1] | ||
| Population | Estimated residents on census night | 17,660 | 17,897 | 18,644 | 19,212 | |
| LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales | 71st | |||||
| % of New South Wales population | 0.27% | |||||
| % of Australian population | 0.09% |  0.09% | 0.09% |
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| Cultural and language diversity | ||||||
| Ancestry, top responses | Australian | 33.4% | 33.2% | |||
| English | 32.6% | 31.9% | ||||
| Irish | 8.7% | 8.6% | ||||
| Scottish | 7.9% | 7.8% | ||||
| German | 3.0% | 2.9% | ||||
| Language, top responses (other than English) | German | 0.3% | 0.3% |  0.2% |
0.1% | |
| Gumbaynggir | n/c |  0.1% | 0.2% |
0.1% | ||
| French | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.2% |
0.2% | ||
| Dutch | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.2% |
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| Italian | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.1% | |||
| Religious affiliation | ||||||
| Religious affiliation, top responses | Anglican | 30.3% | 28.1% | 25.7% |
21.7% | |
| Catholic | 22.1% | 21.4% | 21.8% |
19.4% | ||
| No Religion | 13.5% | 17.8% | 21.2% |
29.2% | ||
| Presbyterian and Reformed | 6.2% | 5.8% | 5.5% |
4.8% | ||
| Uniting Church | 6.8% | 6.4% | 5.3% |
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| Median weekly incomes | ||||||
| Personal income | Median weekly personal income | A$296 | A$377 | A$467 | ||
| % of Australian median income | 63.5% | 65.3% |
70.5% | |||
| Family income | Median weekly family income | A$562 | A$853 | A$1080 | ||
| % of Australian median income | 54.7% | 57.6% |
62.2% | |||
| Household income | Median weekly household income | A$642 | A$700 | A$835 | ||
| % of Australian median income | 54.8% | 56.7% |
58.1% | |||
Council
Current composition and election method
Nambucca Valley Council is composed of nine Councillors, including the Mayor, for a fixed four-year term of office. The Mayor is directly elected while the eight other Councillors are elected proportionally as one entire ward. The most recent election was held on 10 September 2016, and the makeup of the Council is as follows:[4][11]
| Party | Councillors | |
|---|---|---|
| Independents and Unaffiliated | 8 | |
| Country Labor | 1 | |
| Total | 9 | |
The current Council, elected in 2016, in order of election, is:[11]
| Councillor | Party | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rhonda Hoban | Independent | Mayor[4] | |
| John Ainsworth | Unaligned | ||
| Susan Jenvey | Country Labor | ||
| Martin Ballangarry | Independent | ||
| Brian Finlayson | Unaligned | ||
| Anne Smyth | Independent | ||
| Janine Reed | Unaligned | ||
| John Wilson | Independent | ||
| David Jones | Independent | ||
References
- Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Nambucca (A)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
- "3218.0 – Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2017-18". Australian Bureau of Statistics. 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2019. Estimated resident population (ERP) at 30 June 2018.
- Horin, Adele (26 February 2007). "Economic boom bypasses nation's poor". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 1 December 2012.
- "Nambucca Valley Council - Mayoral Election". Local Government Election 2016. Electoral Commission of New South Wales. 19 September 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
- "Proclamation (222)". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 15 December 1915. p. 7468. Retrieved 8 January 2020 – via National Library of Australia.
- "Local Government Act 1993. Proclamation (165)" (PDF). Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 6 December 2019. p. 5467. Retrieved 8 January 2020 – via Government Printer.
- "Macksville Railway Station group". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Office of Environment and Heritage. H01184. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
- Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Nambucca (A)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
- Australian Bureau of Statistics (9 March 2006). "Nambucca (A)". 2001 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 1 December 2012.
- Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Nambucca (A)". 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 1 December 2012.
- "Nambucca Valley Council - Summary of First Preference Votes for each Candidate". Local Government Election 2016. Electoral Commission of New South Wales. 19 September 2016. Retrieved 6 November 2016.