New South Wales

Latest release
2021 Census Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people QuickStats
Geography type State/Territory
Area code 1
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people 278,043
Male 49.7%
Female 50.3%
Median age 23
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander families 102,388
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander households 128,318
Average number of people per household 3.1
Median weekly household income $1,558
Median monthly mortgage repayments $1,755
Median weekly rent (a) $340

(a) For 2021, median weekly rent calculations exclude dwellings being occupied rent-free.

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All tables refer to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander persons in New South Wales, unless otherwise stated.
Small random changes have been made to all cell values for privacy reasons. These changes may cause the sum of rows or columns to differ by small amounts from the table totals.

People and population

Indigenous status
All people 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander total 278,043 3.4 216,171 2.9 812,728 3.2
Aboriginal 267,067 3.3 207,256 2.8 742,882 2.9
Torres Strait Islander 5,127 0.1 4,842 0.1 33,765 0.1
Both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander 5,844 0.1 4,083 0.1 36,083 0.1
Non-Indigenous 7,404,499 91.7 6,826,288 91.3 23,375,949 91.9
Not stated 389,616 4.8 437,765 5.9 1,234,112 4.9

More information on Place of Usual Residence (PURP), Indigenous status (INGP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Age
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Median age 23 N/A 22 N/A 24 N/A
0-4 years 30,241 10.9 24,961 11.5 85,941 10.6
5-14 years 62,324 22.4 49,312 22.8 179,604 22.1
15-24 years 51,501 18.5 41,329 19.1 150,057 18.5
25-34 years 38,615 13.9 27,765 12.8 117,969 14.5
35-44 years 28,167 10.1 22,889 10.6 87,910 10.8
45-54 years 27,429 9.9 22,422 10.4 81,802 10.1
55-64 years 21,794 7.8 15,936 7.4 61,759 7.6
65 years and over 17,973 6.5 11,578 5.4 47,677 5.9

More information on Age (AGEP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Registered marital status
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Married 43,039 23.2 33,345 23.5 127,525 23.3
Separated 8,396 4.5 6,717 4.7 23,982 4.4
Divorced 14,070 7.6 10,932 7.7 37,473 6.8
Widowed 5,314 2.9 4,353 3.1 16,329 3.0
Never married 114,656 61.8 86,559 61.0 341,871 62.5

Note: In December 2017, amendments to the Marriage Act 1961 came into effect enabling marriage equality for all couples. For 2021, registered marriages include all couples.

More information on Registered marital status (MSTP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Social marital status
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over, usually resident and present in the household on Census night 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Registered marriage (a) 40,143 23.6 29,737 23.4 112,643 23.0
De facto marriage (b) 26,796 15.8 18,244 14.4 81,295 16.6
Not married 102,951 60.6 78,875 62.2 296,032 60.4

(a) In December 2017, amendments to the Marriage Act 1961 came into effect enabling marriage equality for all couples. For 2021, registered marriages include all couples.
(b) De facto marriage is when two people live together as partners who are not in a registered marriage. It includes people who report de facto, partner, common law husband/wife/spouse, lover, girlfriend or boyfriend.

More information on Social marital status (MDCP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Education

Type of educational institution attending
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people attending an educational institution 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Preschool 10,714 9.6 7,288 8.2 25,485 8.0
Primary 42,010 37.6 33,033 37.1 120,864 37.9
Secondary 29,355 26.2 22,638 25.4 83,631 26.2
Tertiary - Vocational education (including TAFE and private training providers) 9,856 8.8 6,508 7.3 21,273 6.7
Tertiary - University or higher education 7,490 6.7 5,623 6.3 21,149 6.6
Other 1,736 1.6 1,420 1.6 7,310 2.3
Not stated 10,664 9.5 12,588 14.1 38,814 12.2

More information Type of educational institution attending (TYPP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Level of highest educational attainment
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Bachelor Degree level and above 15,318 8.3 9,513 6.7 40,554 7.4
Advanced Diploma and Diploma level 13,047 7.0 8,904 6.3 34,681 6.3
Certificate level IV 8,858 4.8 5,294 3.7 23,374 4.3
Certificate level III 30,206 16.3 20,308 14.3 84,821 15.5
Year 12 24,609 13.3 17,641 12.4 82,998 15.2
Year 11 12,135 6.5 9,217 6.5 43,335 7.9
Year 10 34,013 18.3 26,666 18.8 102,707 18.8
Certificate level II 479 0.3 476 0.3 1,262 0.2
Certificate level I 52 0.0 43 0.0 241 0.0
Year 9 or below 27,113 14.6 23,509 16.6 75,326 13.8
Inadequately described 4,005 2.2 3,693 2.6 11,038 2.0
No educational attainment 1,048 0.6 794 0.6 5,242 1.0
Not stated 14,591 7.9 15,840 11.2 41,467 7.6

More information on Level of highest educational attainment (HEAP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Cultural diversity

Australian Indigenous language, top responses
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Wiradjuri 1,151 0.4 355 0.2 1,479 0.2
Other Australian Indigenous Languages, nec 939 0.3 159 0.1 2,863 0.4
Australian Indigenous Languages, nfd 804 0.3 585 0.3 4,197 0.5
Gamilaraay 779 0.3 66 0.0 1,039 0.1
Bandjalang 363 0.1 84 0.0 443 0.1
 null  null  null  null  null  null  null
Australian Indigenous languages used at home 5,196 1.9 1,791 0.8 76,978 9.5
English only used at home 259,148 93.2 204,019 94.4 683,122 84.1

More information on Language used at home (LANP), Whether reported using an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander language at home (LNGP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Ancestry, top responses
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Australian Aboriginal 242,826 87.3 29,530 13.7 695,359 85.6
Australian 111,896 40.2 150,898 69.8 277,467 34.1
English 52,059 18.7 60,981 28.2 131,618 16.2
Irish 12,357 4.4 18,058 8.4 31,853 3.9
Scottish 9,392 3.4 11,705 5.4 24,549 3.0

Note 1: Respondents had the option of reporting up to two ancestries on their Census form, and this is captured by the Ancestry multi response (ANCP) variable used in this table. Therefore, the sum of all ancestry responses for an area will not equal the total number of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in the area.
Note 2: Calculated percentages represent a proportion of the number of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in the area (including those who did not state an ancestry).

More information on Ancestry multi response (ANCP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Income and work

Participation in the labour force
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
In the labour force 104,856 56.5 77,145 54.4 296,172 54.1
Not in the labour force 75,902 40.9 60,967 43.0 234,314 42.8
Not stated 4,722 2.5 3,787 2.7 16,695 3.1

Note 1: Calculated percentages represent a proportion of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 and over in the area.
Note 2: The ABS Labour Force Survey provides the official estimates of Australia's labour force. More information is provided in Comparing 2021 Census and Labour Force Survey.
Note 3: For information on Community Development Program participation (CDPP), please refer to the Census Dictionary. CDPP data is available in TableBuilder.

More information on Labour force status (LFSP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Employment status
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people who reported being in the labour force, aged 15 years and over 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Employed  null  null  null  null  null  null
Worked full-time 51,298 48.9 38,369 49.7 144,659 48.8
Worked part-time 31,894 30.4 22,334 29.0 87,019 29.4
Away from work (a) 11,341 10.8 4,615 6.0 28,075 9.5
Total employed 94,534 90.2 65,316 84.7 259,754 87.7
Unemployed 10,322 9.8 11,831 15.3 36,419 12.3

Note 1: Calculated percentages represent a proportion of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 and over, who reported being in the labour force in the area.
Note 2: The ABS Labour Force Survey provides the official estimates of Australia's labour force. More information is provided in Comparing 2021 Census and Labour Force Survey.
Note 3: For information on Community Development Program participation (CDPP), please refer to the Census Dictionary. CDPP data is available in TableBuilder.

(a) Counts employed people who reported 0 hours of work the week before the Census or did not state their hours of work.

More information on Labour force status (LFSP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Occupation, top responses
Employed Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Community and Personal Service Workers 16,851 17.8 11,168 17.1 45,221 17.4
Labourers 13,418 14.2 9,909 15.2 37,003 14.2
Technicians and Trades Workers 13,208 14.0 9,017 13.8 35,333 13.6
Professionals 12,938 13.7 8,803 13.5 36,013 13.9
Clerical and Administrative Workers 10,727 11.3 8,061 12.3 30,731 11.8
Sales Workers 8,639 9.1 5,997 9.2 22,365 8.6
Machinery Operators and Drivers 8,090 8.6 5,735 8.8 23,291 9.0
Managers 7,823 8.3 4,757 7.3 21,218 8.2

More information on Occupation (OCCP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Industry of employment, top responses
Employed Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Other Social Assistance Services 3,923 4.1 2,306 3.5 10,154 3.9
Hospitals (except Psychiatric Hospitals) 3,714 3.9 2,307 3.5 9,313 3.6
Supermarket and Grocery Stores 3,323 3.5 1,884 2.9 8,816 3.4
Takeaway Food Services 3,150 3.3 1,938 3.0 7,371 2.8
Primary Education 2,496 2.6 1,831 2.8 6,313 2.4

More information on Industry of employment (INDP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Median weekly incomes (a)
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Personal (b) 600 N/A 472 N/A 540 N/A
Family (c) 1,636 N/A 1,249 N/A 1,527 N/A
Household (d) 1,558 N/A 1,214 N/A 1,507 N/A

(a) Incomes are collected in ranges. The medians are then calculated using information from the Survey of Income and Housing.
(b) Excludes people aged 15 years and over who did not state their income.
(c) Excludes families where at least one family member aged 15 years and over did not state their income.
(d) Excludes households where at least one household member aged 15 years and over did not state their income.

More information on Total personal income (weekly) (INCP), Total family income (weekly) (FINF), Total household income (weekly) (HIND), Indigenous household indicator (INGDWTD), Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander family indicator (INGF)
Personal income data is based on place of usual residence
Family and household income data is based on place of enumeration

Unpaid work and care

Unpaid work and care
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Did unpaid domestic work (week before Census Night) 110,089 59.4 86,767 61.1 328,022 59.9
Provided unpaid care for child/children (during two weeks before Census Night) 53,152 28.7 42,762 30.1 166,628 30.5
Provided unpaid assistance to a person with a disability, health condition or due to old age (during two weeks before Census Night) 27,147 14.6 20,602 14.5 76,568 14.0
Did voluntary work through an organisation or group (last 12 months) 19,979 10.8 21,595 15.2 58,029 10.6

More information on Unpaid domestic work: number of hours (DOMP), Unpaid child care (CHCAREP), Unpaid assistance to a person with a disability, health condition, or due to old age (UNCAREP), Voluntary work for an organisation or group (VOLWP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Health

Type of long-term health condition
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Arthritis 20,559 7.4 N/A N/A 50,807 6.3
Asthma 42,047 15.1 N/A N/A 107,162 13.2
Cancer (including remission) 5,090 1.8 N/A N/A 12,927 1.6
Dementia (including Alzheimer's) 1,168 0.4 N/A N/A 3,610 0.4
Diabetes (excluding gestational diabetes) 15,018 5.4 N/A N/A 47,688 5.9
Heart disease (including heart attack or angina) 9,917 3.6 N/A N/A 30,160 3.7
Kidney disease 3,298 1.2 N/A N/A 10,053 1.2
Lung condition (including COPD or emphysema) 7,101 2.6 N/A N/A 17,552 2.2
Mental health condition (including depression or anxiety) 42,533 15.3 N/A N/A 107,776 13.3
Stroke 2,577 0.9 N/A N/A 7,059 0.9
Any other long-term health condition(s) 25,483 9.2 N/A N/A 70,592 8.7
No long-term health condition(s) 151,423 54.5 N/A N/A 462,348 56.9
Not stated 20,971 7.5 N/A N/A 65,539 8.1

Note 1: Measures the number of people who reported that they have been told by a doctor or nurse that they have any of these long-term health conditions.
Note 2: Respondents had the option of reporting multiple long-term health conditions. Therefore, the sum of all long-term health condition responses for an area will not equal the total number of people in the area.
Note 3: Calculated percentages represent a proportion of the number of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in the area (including those who did not answer the long-term health conditions question).
Note 4: 2016 comparison data is not available for this table. Long-term health conditions is a new question for the 2021 Census.

More information on Type of long-term health condition (LTHP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Count of selected long-term health conditions
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
None of the selected conditions 161,915 58.2 N/A N/A 493,110 60.7
One condition 61,953 22.3 N/A N/A 167,204 20.6
Two conditions 20,494 7.4 N/A N/A 54,174 6.7
Three or more conditions 12,706 4.6 N/A N/A 32,701 4.0
Not stated 20,971 7.5 N/A N/A 65,539 8.1

Note 1: Selected long-term health conditions include arthritis, asthma, cancer (including remission), dementia (including Alzheimer's), diabetes (excluding gestational diabetes), heart disease (including heart attack or angina), kidney disease, lung condition (including COPD or emphysema), mental health condition (including depression or anxiety) and stroke. Other long-term health conditions are not included in this count.
Note 2: 2016 comparison data is not available for this table. Long-term health conditions is a new question for the 2021 Census.

More information on Count of selected long-term health conditions (CLTHP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Housing

Dwelling characteristics
Occupied private dwellings (excl. visitor only households and other non-classifiable households) where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Number of dwellings requiring one or more extra bedroom(s) (a) 9,059 7.1 7,821 8.2 31,268 8.9
Average number of people per household 3.1 N/A 3.1 N/A 3.1 N/A
Average number of persons per bedroom 1 N/A 1 N/A 1 N/A
Average number of registered motor vehicles per dwelling 1.9 N/A 1.8 N/A 1.9 N/A

(a) The Canadian National Occupancy Standard for Housing Appropriateness is used to determine whether there are enough bedrooms in the dwelling for the usual residents. See Housing suitability information below for more details.

More information on Number of bedrooms in private dwelling (BEDD), Household composition (HHCD), Indigenous household indicator (INGDWTD), Housing suitability (HOSD)
Table based on place of enumeration

Mortgage and Rent
Occupied private dwellings (excl. visitor only households and other non-classifiable households) where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Median weekly rent (a) $340 N/A $275 N/A $300 N/A
Median monthly mortgage repayments $1,755 N/A $1,733 N/A $1,721 N/A

(a) Median rent calculations exclude dwellings being occupied rent-free. The 2016 figure presented above is conceptually comparable with the 2021 data, however this is not comparable with historical QuickStats as dwellings being occupied rent-free were included in the rented categories.

More information on Rent (weekly) dollar values (RNTD), Mortgage repayments (monthly) dollar values (MRED), Indigenous household indicator (INGDWTD)
Table based on place of enumeration

Family household composition
Occupied private dwellings (excl. visitor only households and other non-classifiable households) where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
One family household: Couple family with no children 23,297 18.2 15,491 16.2 62,751 17.8
One family household: Couple family with children 38,705 30.2 29,268 30.7 104,435 29.7
One family household: One parent family 31,924 24.9 25,478 26.7 86,135 24.5
One family household: Other family 2,314 1.8 1,796 1.9 7,040 2.0
Multiple family household: Couple family with no children 784 0.6 743 0.8 2,130 0.6
Multiple family household: Couple family with children 2,040 1.6 1,461 1.5 6,813 1.9
Multiple family household: One parent family 2,759 2.2 1,862 1.9 8,606 2.4
Multiple family household: Other family 84 0.1 89 0.1 412 0.1
Other household 26,407 20.6 19,294 20.2 73,717 20.9

Note: This table counts the types of families within family households at the dwelling level. In multiple family households, only the family composition of the primary family is recorded. Other household includes lone person households and group households.

More information on Family household composition (dwelling) (HCFMD)
Table based on place of enumeration

Dwelling structure
Occupied private dwellings where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Separate house 102,340 79.8 75,719 79.3 281,729 80.0
Semi-detached, row or terrace house, townhouse etc. 12,581 9.8 9,281 9.7 38,396 10.9
Flat or apartment 12,013 9.4 8,817 9.2 27,919 7.9
Other dwelling 1,018 0.8 1,147 1.2 2,861 0.8

More information on Dwelling structure (STRD)
Table based on place of enumeration

Tenure type
Occupied private dwellings (excl. visitor only households and other non-classifiable households) where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander 		New South Wales, 2021 % New South Wales, 2021 New South Wales, 2016 % New South Wales, 2016 Australia, 2021 % Australia, 2021
Owned outright 20,418 15.9 13,856 14.5 48,452 13.8
Owned with a mortgage (a) 36,603 28.5 26,061 27.3 96,647 27.5
Rented (b) 66,587 51.9 50,418 52.8 192,703 54.7
Other (c) 1,837 1.4 1,609 1.7 5,582 1.6
Not stated 2,878 2.2 3,555 3.7 8,652 2.5

(a) Includes dwellings purchased under a shared equity scheme.
(b) Excludes dwellings being occupied rent-free. The 2016 figure presented above is conceptually comparable with the 2021 data, however this is not comparable with historical QuickStats as dwellings being occupied rent-free were included in the rented categories.
(c) Comprises dwellings occupied rent-free, occupied under a life tenure scheme and other tenure type

More information on Tenure type (TEND)
Table based on place of enumeration

Please note that there are small random adjustments made to all cell values to protect the confidentiality of data. These adjustments may cause the sum of rows or columns to differ by small amounts from table totals.