Camden Council (New South Wales)
| Camden Council New South Wales | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Location in Metropolitan Sydney | |||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 34°03′S 150°42′E / 34.050°S 150.700°ECoordinates: 34°03′S 150°42′E / 34.050°S 150.700°E | ||||||||||||
| Population | 72,256 (2015 Est.)[1] | ||||||||||||
| • Density | 359.5/km2 (931/sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Area | 201 km2 (77.6 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Mayor | Lara Symkowiak (Liberal) | ||||||||||||
| Council seat | Camden | ||||||||||||
| Region | Metropolitan Sydney | ||||||||||||
| State electorate(s) | Camden | ||||||||||||
| Federal Division(s) | |||||||||||||
 | |||||||||||||
| Website | Camden Council | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
Camden Council is a local government area in the Macarthur region, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The area is located south west of the Sydney central business district and comprises 201 square kilometres (78 sq mi).
The Mayor of Camden is Cr. Lara Symkowiak, a member of the Liberal Party.
Suburbs in the local government area
Suburbs serviced by Camden Council are:
Demographics
At the 2011 Census, there were 56,720 people in the Camden local government area, of these 49.2% were male and 50.8% were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 2.0% of the population. The median age of people in the Camden Council area was 34 years, which is slightly lower than the national median of 37 years. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 24.3% of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 9.7% of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 55.7% were married and 10.3% were either divorced or separated.[2]
Population growth in the Camden Council area between the 2001 Census and the 2006 Census was 13.35%; and in the subsequent five years to the 2011 Census, population growth was 14.25%. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same periods, being 5.78% and 8.32% respectively, population growth in Camden local government area was nearly double the national average.[3] The median weekly income for residents within the Camden Council area was generally slightly higher than the national average.[2][4]
At the 2011 Census, the proportion of residents in the Camden local government area who stated their ancestry as Australian or Anglo-Saxon approached 70% of all residents. In excess of 56.0% of residents in the Camden Council area nominated a religious affiliation with Christianity at the 2011 Census, compared with the national average of 50.2%; and the proportion of residents with no religion was about half the national average. Meanwhile, as at the Census date, compared to the national average, households in the Camden local government area had a low proportion (14.1%) where two or more languages are spoken (national average was 20.4%); and a very high proportion (86.3%) where English only was spoken at home (national average was 76.8%).[2]
| Selected historical census data for Camden local government area | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Census year | 2001[3] | 2006[4] | 2011[2] | ||
| Population | Estimated residents on Census night | 43,799 | 49,645 | 56,720 | |
| LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales | |||||
| % of New South Wales population | 0.82% | ||||
| % of Australian population | 0.23% |  0.25% | 0.26% | ||
| Cultural and language diversity | |||||
| Ancestry, top responses | Australian | 25.4% | |||
| English | 25.9% | ||||
| Irish | 7.5% | ||||
| Scottish | 6.1% | ||||
| Italian | 4.6% | ||||
| Language, top responses (other than English) | Italian | 1.7% |  1.6% | 1.5% | |
| Spanish | 0.7% | 0.8% | 0.9% | ||
| Arabic | 0.6% | 0.7% | 0.8% | ||
| Cantonese | 0.7% |  0.7% | 0.6% | ||
| Maltese | 0.5% | n/c | 0.4% | ||
| Religious affiliation | |||||
| Religious affiliation, top responses | Catholic | 33.5% | 34.7% | 35.4% | |
| Anglican | 30.9% | 29.1% | 28.3% | ||
| No Religion | 9.6% | 11.3% | 12.9% | ||
| Uniting Church | 4.8% | 4.0% | 3.5% | ||
| Presbyterian and Reformed | 3.0% | 2.6% | 2.4% | ||
| Median weekly incomes | |||||
| Personal income | Median weekly personal income | A$566 | A$690 | ||
| % of Australian median income | 121.5% | 119.6% | |||
| Family income | Median weekly family income | A$1,353 | A$1,865 | ||
| % of Australian median income | 131.7% | 125.9% | |||
| Household income | Median weekly household income | A$1,465 | A$1,727 | ||
| % of Australian median income | 125.1% | 140.0% | |||
Council
Current composition and election method
Camden 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. The most recent election was held on 10 September 2016, and the makeup of the Council is as follows:[5][6][7]
| Party | Councillors | |
|---|---|---|
| Liberal Party of Australia | 5 | |
| Labor | 3 | |
| Independents | 2 | |
| Total | 9 | |
The current Council, elected in 2016, in order of election by ward, is:
| Ward | Councillor | Party | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Ward[5] | Robert Mills | Independent | ||
| Ashleigh Cagney | Labor | |||
| Therese Fedeli | Liberal | Deputy Mayor[8] | ||
| North Ward[6] | Lara Symkowiak | Liberal | Mayor[8] | |
| Cindy Cagney | Labor | |||
| Michael Morrison | Liberal | |||
| South Ward[7] | Eva Campbell | Independent | ||
| Paul Farrow | Labor | |||
| Peter Sidgreaves | Liberal | |||
Development
Being a significant part of the South-Western Sydney Growth Area, Camden Council represents a rapidly growing region which is expected to house a large portion of Sydney's population growth over the coming decade. To the north are residential developments including Oran Park (8000 homes)[9] and Gregory Hills (2600 homes),[10] whilst to the south are further developments of the Elderslie estate.
At a public rally in early November 2007 the development application in the Camden area South West of Sydney on behalf of a Muslim group, the Quranic Society, for an A$19 million Muslim school with the capacity for 1,200 students, was met with protest amongst some State members of parliament, the local Camden Council and neighbouring residents.
References
- ↑ "3218.0 – Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2014–15". Australian Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 29 September 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Camden (A)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
- 1 2 Australian Bureau of Statistics (9 March 2006). "Camden (A)". 2001 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
- 1 2 Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Camden (A)". 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
- 1 2 "Camden Council – Central Ward". Local Government Elections 2016. Electoral Commission of New South Wales. 19 September 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
- 1 2 "Camden Council – North Ward". Local Government Elections 2016. Electoral Commission of New South Wales. 19 September 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
- 1 2 "Camden Council – South Ward". Local Government Elections 2016. Electoral Commission of New South Wales. 19 September 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
- 1 2 Zautsen, Daniel (28 September 2016). "Camden Mayor Lara Symkowiak will serve a fifth consecutive term after being re-elected in a silent ballot". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
- ↑ "Oran Park Town Official Website".
- ↑ "Gregory Hills Official Website".