The latest snapshot of the makeup of the Lithgow community has been released as part of the latest Census data.
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The information released gives an overall picture of the makeup of the Lithgow community and its population, salary rates and more.
Key statistics
Compared to the Australian average, residents of the Lithgow local government area individually earn about $150 less a week than the average.
That blows out to a disparity of about $500 when looking at the median total household income.
This is a gain on Lithgow’s previous Census results, which had a median personal income of just $353 in 2006 and $450 in 2011. The median household income is also up by $135 on the last Census.
On the plus side, living is relatively cheaper than the average, with median rents sitting at $230 a week compared to the nationwide average of $330 or a median monthly mortgage burden of $1387 rather than $1755.
But these costs have jumped significantly since 2011, when the median rent was $170 a week in the Lithgow LGA.
The average Lithgow mortgage repayment amount has fallen slightly since 2011.
Population growth
The average age of Lithgow residents is creeping up – now 45, up from 42 in 2011 and 40 in 2006.
Here is a quick look at our population in age within the Lithgow LGA:
The population is continuing to grow slowly as a whole, up to 21,090 people from the 2006 Census of 19,760 and the 2011 Census of 20,162.
A key area of population growth is in the 65-74 age bracket, which grew by more than a thousand people since the 2006 Census. The number of people living in Lithgow aged between 35 and 54 has dropped slightly while youth has remained relatively steady.
Our melting pot
Reflecting a trend throughout the country, the number of people identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander has doubled in Lithgow since 2006.
It is now up to 1158 people, equaling roughly 5.4 per cent of Lithgow’s population.
Most of the people living in Lithgow were born in Australia, with a very rich mix of ancestry.
Christianity is still the most popular religion, with 12978 people identifying as Christian. The second largest religion followed after Christianity is Buddhism, a long way behind at 146. Other beliefs represented were Hinduism (62), Islam (57) and Judaism (14).
The number of people with secular beliefs and no religious affiliations has risen to 4846, reflecting an Australia-wide shift.