Dungog Shire

The major population centres within the Shire are Dungog, Gresford, Paterson, Vacy, Martins Creek and Clarence Town. It also includes three main rivers, the Paterson River and Allyn River to the west and the Williams River to the east.

At the 2011 census, there were 8,318 people in the Dungog Shire local government area, of these 50.3 per cent were male and 49.7 per cent were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 3.2 per cent of the population, which was higher than the national and state averages of 2.5 per cent. The median age of people in the Dungog Shire was 44 years, significantly higher than the national median of 37 years. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 18.8 per cent of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 17.6 per cent of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 54.7 per cent were married and 11.5 per cent were either divorced or separated.[7]

Population growth in the Dungog Shire between the 2001 census and the 2006 census was 2.37 per cent; and in the subsequent five years to the 2011 census, population growth was 3.18 per cent. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same periods, being 5.78 per cent and 8.32 per cent respectively, population growth in the Dungog Shire local government area was approximately one-third of the national average.[8][9] The median weekly income for residents within the Dungog Shire was lower than the national average.[7]

At the 2011 census, the proportion of residents in the Dungog Shire local government area who stated their ancestry as Australian or Anglo-Celtic exceeded 85 per cent of all residents (national average was 65.2 per cent). In excess of 56% of all residents in the Dungog Shire nominated a religious affiliation with Christianity at the 2011 census, which was slightly higher than the national average of 50.2 per cent. Meanwhile, as at the census date, compared to the national average, households in the Dungog Shire local government area had a significantly lower than average proportion (2.0 per cent) where two or more languages are spoken (national average was 20.4 per cent); and a significantly higher proportion (95.0 per cent) where English only was spoken at home (national average was 76.8 per cent).[7]

Selected historical census data for the Dungog Shire local government area
Census year			2001[8]	2006[9]	2011[7]
Population		Estimated residents on Census night	7,875	8,062	8,318
		LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales
		% of New South Wales population			0.12%
		% of Australian population	0.04%	0.04%	0.04%
Cultural and language diversity
Ancestry, top responses		Australian			35.4%
		English			33.5%
		Irish			8.8%
		Scottish			7.6%
		German			4.0%
Language, top responses (other than English)		German	0.2%	0.2%	0.2%
		Tagalog	0.1%	n/c	0.1%
		Italian	0.1%	0.1%	0.1%
		Afrikaans	0.1%	n/c	0.1%
		French	n/c	0.1%	0.1%
Religious affiliation
Religious affiliation, top responses		Anglican	36.4%	34.2%	35.0%
		Catholic	19.6%	20.1%	20.0%
		No Religion	11.2%	13.7%	16.8%
		Uniting Church	7.8%	8.2%	6.6%
		Presbyterian and Reformed	7.0%	6.5%	6.6%
Median weekly incomes
Personal income		Median weekly personal income		A$385	A$484
		% of Australian median income		82.6%	83.9%
Family income		Median weekly family income		A$1,059	A$1,278
		% of Australian median income		90.4%	86.3%
Household income		Median weekly household income		A$873	A$1,005
		% of Australian median income		85.0%	81.4%

A 2015 review of local government boundaries by the NSW Government Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal recommended that the Dungog Shire merge with adjoining councils. The government considered two proposals. The first proposed a merger of Dungog Shire and Mid-Coast Council councils to form a new council with an area of 5,200 square kilometres (2,000 sq mi) and support a population of approximately 14,000.[13] Following the lodging of an alternate proposal by Mid-Coast Council Council to amalgamate the Gloucester, Great Lakes and Greater Taree councils, the NSW Minister for Local Government proposed a merger between the Dungog Shire and City of Maitland.[14] In response to the government's proposal to merge the Newcastle and Port Stephens local government areas, Port Stephens Council has formally asked the government to evaluate a merger between Port Stephens and Dungog Shire.[15][16][17] Although the Dungog Shire mayor is opposed to this merger, it is reported that the proposal has community support within both local government areas.[17][18] The proposal was debated in the New South Wales parliament on 23 March 2016, with the Minister for Local Government confirming that the proposal had been referred to the Office of Local Government.[19][20]