Wollondilly Shire

Wollondilly Shire New South Wales
Location in New South Wales
Coordinates	34°11′S 150°36′E / 34.183°S 150.600°ECoordinates: 34°11′S 150°36′E / 34.183°S 150.600°E
Population	46,295 (2013 est)[1]
• Density	18.08/km^2 (46.84/sq mi)
Area	2,560 km^2 (988.4 sq mi)
Mayor	Simon Landow (Independent)
Council seat	Picton[2]
Region	Macarthur
State electorate(s)	Wollondilly
Federal Division(s)	Hume Macarthur Fowler
Website	Wollondilly Shire
LGAs around Wollondilly Shire: Blue Mountains Penrith Camden Oberon Wollondilly Shire Campbelltown Upper Lachlan Wingecarribee Wollongong

Wollondilly Shire is a local government area on the south-western edge of Sydney, being part of the Macarthur region, in the state of New South Wales, Australia.

Wollondilly Shire is named after the Wollondilly River. The area is traversed by the Hume Highway and the Southern Highlands railway line. Wollondilly Shire contains several small towns and villages broken up by farms and sandstone gorges. To its west is wilderness and includes the Nattai Wilderness and the Burragorang Valley. The majority of the Shire is either national park or forms part of the water catchment for Sydney's water supply. The Shire provides 97% of Sydney's water supply.

The Mayor of Wollondilly Shire Council is Cr. Simon Landow, an independent politician.

Towns and localities

Towns and localities in the Wollondilly Shire are:

• Appin
• Bargo
• Bingara Gorge
• Belimbla Park
• Brownlow Hill
• Buxton
• Camden Park
• Cawdor
• Couridjah
• Douglas Park
• Glenmore
• Lakesland
• Maldon
• Menangle
• Mount Hunter
• Mowbray Park
• Oakdale
• Pheasants Nest
• Picton
• Razorback
• Silverdale
• Tahmoor
• Theresa Park
• The Oaks
• Orangeville
• Thirlmere
• Warragamba
• Werombi
• Wilton
• Yanderra
• Yerranderie

Demographics

At the 2011 census, there were 43,259 people in the Wollondilly local government area, with an equal proportion of males and females. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 2.4% of the population which is on par with the national average. The median age of people in the Wollondilly Shire was 36 years. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 23.1% of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 10.8% of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 54.9% were married and 10.4% were either divorced or separated.^[3]

Population growth in the Wollondilly Shire between the 2001 Census and the 2006 Census was 9.18%; and in the subsequent five years to the 2011 Census, population growth was 7.23%. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same periods, being 5.78% and 8.32% respectively, population growth in the Wollondilly local government area was higher than the national average.^[4] The median weekly income for residents within the Wollondilly Shire was marginally higher than the national average.^[3][5]

At the 2011 Census, the proportion of residents in the Wollondilly local government area who stated their ancestry as Australian or Anglo-Saxon exceeded 63% of all residents (national average was 65.2%). In excess of 69.6% of all residents in the Wollondilly Shire nominated a religious affiliation with Christianity at the 2011 Census, which was significantly above the national average of 50.2%. Meanwhile, as at the Census date, compared to the national average, households in the Wollondilly local government area had a lower than average proportion (8.3%) where two or more languages are spoken (national average was 20.4%); and a significantly higher proportion (91.2%) where English only was spoken at home (national average was 76.8%).^[3]

Selected historical census data for Wollondilly local government area
Census year			2001[4]	2006[5]	2011[3]
Population		Estimated residents on Census night	36,953	40,344	43,259
		LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales		26th
		% of New South Wales population			0.63%
		% of Australian population	0.20%	0.20%	0.20%
Cultural and language diversity
Ancestry, top responses		Australian			33.9%
		English			29.2%
		Irish			7.9%
		Scottish			6.2%
		Italian			2.9%
Language, top responses (other than English)		Italian	0.8%	0.8%	0.8%
		Arabic	0.5%	0.5%	0.4%
		Maltese	0.5%	0.4%	0.4%
		Greek	n/c	0.3%	0.3%
		German	0.4%	0.3%	0.3%
Religious affiliation
Religious affiliation, top responses		Anglican	33.4%	32.3%	32.5%
		Catholic	29.3%	30.1%	30.9%
		No Religion	11.2%	13.7%	15.4%
		Uniting Church	5.3%	4.2%	3.8%
		Presbyterian and Reformed	3.2%	2.8%	2.4%
Median weekly incomes
Personal income		Median weekly personal income		A$502	A$617
		% of Australian median income		107.7%	106.9%
Family income		Median weekly family income		A$1,186	A$1,661
		% of Australian median income		115.5%	112.2%
Household income		Median weekly household income		A$1,321	A$1,478
		% of Australian median income		112.8%	119.8%

Council

Current composition and election method

Wollondilly Shire Council is composed of nine Councillors elected proportionally as three separate wards, each electing three Councillors. All Councillors are elected for a fixed four-year term of office. The Mayor is elected by the Councillors at the first meeting of the Council. :^[6][7][8]

Party		Councillors
	Independents	9
	Total	9

The current Council, elected in 2012, in order of election by ward, is:

Ward	Councillor		Party	Notes
Central Ward[6]		Michael Banasik	Independent
		Col Mitchell	Independent
		Lou Amato	Independent
East Ward[7]		Benn Banasik	Independent
		Kate Terry	Independent
		Ray Law	Independent
North Ward[8]		Judith Hannan	Independent
		Simon Landow	Independent	Mayor
		Hilton Gibbs	Independent	Deputy Mayor

Local media

Wollondilly is home to two local newspapers, the Macarthur Chronicle Wollondilly edition and the Wollondilly Advertiser. Other regional media which serve the area are radio stations, 2MCR and C91.3FM, the District Reporter newspaper, and the Wollondilly Trumpeter, a newsletter.

Local attractions

References

1. "3218.0 Regional Population Growth, Australia. Table 1. Estimated Resident Population, Local Government Areas, New South Wales". 3 April 2014. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
2. "Wollondilly Shire Council". Division of Local Government. Retrieved 27 November 2006.
3. Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Wollondilly (A)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
4. Australian Bureau of Statistics (9 March 2006). "Wollondilly (A)". 2001 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 27 November 2012.
5. Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Wollondilly (A)". 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 27 November 2012.
6. "Wollondilly Shire Council - Central Ward". Local Government Elections 2012. Electoral Commission of New South Wales. 16 September 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2012.
7. "Wollondilly Shire Council - East Ward". Local Government Elections 2012. Electoral Commission of New South Wales. 16 September 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2012.
8. "Wollondilly Shire Council - North Ward". Local Government Elections 2012. Electoral Commission of New South Wales. 16 September 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2012.

External links