TASMANIA


Total population

Age and sex distribution

Median age

Children (under 15 years of age)

Working age population (aged 15-64 years)

People aged 65 years and over

Sex ratio


TOTAL POPULATION

At June 2011, the estimated resident population of Tasmania was 511,200 people. The state's population increased by 39,400 in the ten years to 2011, with all Tasmanian SA4s experiencing population growth. Hobart SA4 had the largest growth (up 18,000 people), followed by Launceston and North East (10,400), West and North West (7,100) and South East (3,800).

AGE AND SEX DISTRIBUTION

The age distribution of Tasmania's population at June 2011 was characterised by a lower proportion of people aged 20 to 44 years than the total Australian population. As a proportion of the Tasmanian population, 20 to 44 year olds made up 31% (down from 34% in 2001) compared to 36% for Australia as a whole. This in part reflects a net outflow of young adults from Tasmania to pursue education and employment opportunities interstate. Tasmania also had a higher proportion of people aged 45 years and over (44%, up from 38% in 2001) than Australia as a whole (39%). This partly reflects a trend of adults in this age group moving to the state.

MEDIAN AGE

At June 2011, the median age (the age at which half the population is older and half is younger) of the Tasmanian population was 40.4 years. Since 2001, Tasmania has overtaken South Australia to have the oldest median age of all states and territories. Tasmania also had the largest increase in median age over the decade, increasing by 3.2 years. The median age of males in 2011 was 39.6 years compared with 41.2 years for females.

Between 2001 and 2011, the median age increased in most of Tasmania’s SA2s. The area with the highest median age was Triabunna - Bicheno (52.8 years), followed by Forestier - Tasman (50.6) and St Helens - Scamander (49.8). All three of these SA2s are located on Tasmania's eastern seaboard. The lowest median age was in Mowbray (29.1 years) in Launceston, which is adjacent to tertiary education. Dropping by 3.0 years, Mowbray was one of the few Tasmanian SA2s where the median age declined from 2001 to 2011. Bridgewater - Gagebrook (29.8 years) and Rokeby (31.6), both in Greater Hobart, had the next lowest median ages in the state.
CHILDREN (UNDER 15 YEARS OF AGE)

Tasmania had 95,500 children under 15 years of age at June 2011. The proportion of the population aged less than 15 years decreased from 21% in 2001 to 19% in 2011.

Bridgewater - Gagebrook and Rokeby in Greater Hobart had the highest proportions of children in Tasmania in 2011 (29% and 25% respectively), followed by Ravenswood (25%) in Launceston.

Between 2001 and 2011, the largest increases in the number of children were in the SA2s of Margate - Snug (up 400 people), Brighton - Pontville (340) and Howrah - Tranmere (320), all within commuting distance from Hobart. However, the proportion of children under the age of 15 decreased in the majority of SA2s in Tasmania over this period.
WORKING AGE POPULATION (AGED 15-64 YEARS)

Between June 2001 and June 2011, Tasmania’s working age population grew by 25,900 people to reach 333,700. As a proportion of the total population, the working age population remained at 65%, the same as in 2001. This was the lowest proportion of all states and territories.

Hobart SA2 had the highest proportion of its population aged 15 to 64 years (77%) in Tasmania, followed by Invermay in Launceston and Mount Nelson - Dynnyrne (both 74%) in Greater Hobart.

Kingston - Huntingfield (up 1,800 people) and Margate - Snug (1,200), both in the south of Greater Hobart, and Dodges Ferry - Lewisham in Hobart's north-east (also up 1,200) had the largest growth in working age population between 2001 and 2011.

PEOPLE AGED 65 YEARS AND OVER

At June 2011, there were 82,100 people aged 65 years and over in Tasmania, making up 16.1% of the state's total population. This was an increase from 13.8% in 2001. Tasmania had the highest proportion of people aged 65 years and over among the states and territories, just ahead of South Australia (15.9%).

The SA2 of Triabunna - Bicheno on the east coast had the highest proportion of people aged 65 years and over (25.2%) in 2011, reflecting its popularity as a place to retire. This was followed by Norwood (24.6%) in Launceston, and Lindisfarne - Rose Bay (23.6%) on Hobart’s eastern shore, both of which contain large aged care facilities.
SEX RATIO

At June 2011, the population of Tasmania consisted of 254,400 males and 256,800 females, a ratio of 99.1 males per 100 females.

Risdon Vale, in Hobart's northern suburbs, was the SA2 with the highest sex ratio (134.9 males per 100 females) due in part to the male population of Risdon Prison. The next highest sex ratios were in Derwent Valley, west of Hobart, with 117.0 males per 100 females, and Waratah (116.1) in the north-west of the state. Newstead, in Launceston, had the lowest sex ratio (89.1), followed by Lindisfarne - Rose Bay (89.3) in Greater Hobart, and Parklands - Camdale (89.5), west of Burnie.

For Tasmania as a whole, the highest age-specific sex ratio occurred in the 15 to 19 year age group (108.2 males per 100 females). The lowest age-specific sex ratios were in the older age groups, reflecting the longer life expectancy of females.