95% of Northern Suburbs residents work or study in Rockhampton

Published on 14 June 2022

Data from independent statistics company Roy Morgan has shown that 95% of Northern Suburbs residents who work or go to school do so in the Rockhampton Region.

Communities Councillor Drew Wickerson said the research was commissioned as part of Council’s submission to the Local Government Change Commission Review, which is now publicly available on the Electoral Commission Queensland (ECQ) website.

“When we say that people in the Northern Suburbs live their lives in Rockhampton this is precisely what we mean,” Cr Wickerson said.

“We’re not talking about a few people commuting back and forth, we’re talking about almost the entire population spending their days here.  

“The research shows that for these residents 87% of their activities take place in Rockhampton – that includes weekends and leisure time.

“If we’re just looking at work and education it jumps to 95%.

“This is from Australia’s leading company for this kind of research. It’s the kind of data that is regularly used by local governments across the world to ensure planning is evidence driven.

“There are heatmaps included in our submission which show where residents are spending their time and I have to say it paints an incredibly compelling picture.

“We’ve all heard individual stories from people who live in these suburbs and feel like they belong to Rockhampton. This data goes to show that’s a story repeated across nearly every single household.

“It’s impossible to look at this and deny that the Northern Suburbs are part of our community.”

Rockhampton Regional Council’s full submission can be found here: https://www.ecq.qld.gov.au/electoral-boundaries/local-government-boundary-reviews/external-boundary-and-electoral-arrangement-reviews/livingstone-shire-council-and-rockhampton-regional-council-external-boundary-review