City of Hawkesbury

City of Hawkesbury New South Wales
Location in New South Wales
Coordinates
Population	62,353 (2011 census)
• Density	22.46/km2 (58.2/sq mi)
Established	1989
Area	2,776 km2 (1,071.8 sq mi)
Mayor	Kim Ford (Liberals)
Council seat	Windsor
Region	Outer Metropolitan Sydney
State electorate(s)	Hawkesbury Londonderry Riverstone
Federal Division(s)	Macquarie
Website	City of Hawkesbury
LGAs around City of Hawkesbury: Mid-Western Singleton Cessnock Lithgow City of Hawkesbury Hills Blue Mountains Penrith Blacktown

The City of Hawkesbury is a local government area of New South Wales, Australia, part of which is at the fringe of the Sydney metropolitan area, about 50 kilometres (31 mi) north-west of the Sydney central business district. Hawkesbury City is named after the Hawkesbury River.

The Mayor of the City of Hawkesbury is Cr. Kim Ford, a member of the Liberal Party.

Suburbs and localities

Until recently the City of Hawkesbury remained largely rural, but urban expansion within Sydney has since transformed the southern part of the area into dormitory suburbs; the lack of quality roads and public transport is a major local issue. The northern part of the local government area still contains some farmlands, as well as a vast area of national park, which will remain untouched due to the inaccessible terrain.

Suburbs and localities in the City of Hawkesbury are:

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Demographics

At the 2011 Census, there were 62,353 people in the Hawkesbury local government area, of these 49.3% were male and 50.7% were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 2.6% of the population which on par with the national average. The median age of people in the City of Hawkesbury was 36 years. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 21.4% of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 11.6% of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 49.8% were married and 12.4% were either divorced or separated.

Population in the City of Hawkesbury between the 2001 Census and the 2006 Census decreased by 0.54%; and in the subsequent five years to the 2011 Census, population growth was 2.96%. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same periods, being 5.78% and 8.32% respectively, population growth in Hawkesbury local government area was significantly lower than the national average. The median weekly income for residents within the City of Hawkesbury was marginally higher than the national average.

At the 2011 Census, the proportion of residents in the Hawkesbury local government area who stated their ancestry as Australian or Anglo-Saxon approached 76% of all residents (national average was 65.2%). In excess of 64.8% of all residents in the City of Hawkesbury nominated a religious affiliation with Christianity at the 2011 Census, which was significantly above the national average of 50.2%. Meanwhile, as at the Census date, compared to the national average, households in the Hawkesbury local government area had a lower than average proportion (8.1%) where two or more languages are spoken (national average was 20.4%); and a significantly higher proportion (90.4%) where English only was spoken at home (national average was 76.8%).

Selected historical census data for Hawkesbury local government area
Census year			2001	2006	2011
Population		Estimated residents on Census night	60,887	60,561	62,353
		LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales		34th
		% of New South Wales population			0.90%
		% of Australian population	0.32%	0.31%	0.29%
Cultural and language diversity
Ancestry, top responses		Australian			32.6%
		English			29.5%
		Irish			7.6%
		Scottish			6.3%
		Maltese			3.1%
Language, top responses (other than English)		Maltese	0.8%	0.7%	0.8%
		Italian	0.6%	0.6%	0.5%
		Macedonian	0.4%	0.4%	0.3%
		German	0.3%	0.3%	0.3%
		Arabic	0.3%	0.3%	0.3%
Religious affiliation
Religious affiliation, top responses		Anglican	30.9%	29.9%	29.4%
		Catholic	26.6%	27.3%	28.2%
		No Religion	12.2%	14.8%	16.7%
		Uniting Church	5.7%	5.0%	4.4%
		Presbyterian and Reformed	3.0%	5.7%	2.8%
Median weekly incomes
Personal income		Median weekly personal income		A$527	A$622
		% of Australian median income		113.1%	107.8%
Family income		Median weekly family income		A$1,146	A$1,598
		% of Australian median income		111.6%	107.9%
Household income		Median weekly household income		A$1,290	A$1,385
		% of Australian median income		110.2%	112.2%

Council

Current composition and election method

Hawkesbury City Council is composed of twelve Councillors elected proportionally as one entire ward. 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 8 September 2012, and the makeup of the Council is as follows:

Party		Councillors
	Liberal Party of Australia	5
	Independents and Unaligned	5
	Australian Labor Party	1
	The Greens	1
	Total	12

The current Council, elected in 2012, in order of election, is:

Councillor		Party	Notes
	Kim Ford	Liberal	Mayor
	Christine Paine	Independent
	Warwick Mackay	Unaligned
	Barry Calvert	Labor
	Tiffany Tree	Liberal
	Bob Porter	Independent
	Mike Creed	Liberal
	Jill Reardon	Liberal
	Patrick Conolly	Liberal
	Mary Lyons-Buckett	Independent
	Leigh Williams	Greens
	Paul Rasmussen	Independent

History

It was first settled by Europeans in 1794 in a bid to acquire arable land to feed the increasing population of the penal colony at Sydney. In April 1794, Lieutenant Governor Francis Grose submitted plans for the first 22 farms on the Hawkesbury River in the present Pitt Town Bottoms area. In June 1795 a camp of aborigines opposing the landtakings was harassed by a British regiment commanded by Paterson (who later regretted the necessary injustice).

By 1811 Governor Lachlan Macquarie established the five Macquarie Towns in the area. They are Windsor, Richmond, Castlereagh, Wilberforce and Pitt Town. Many of the early 19th century buildings still survive today. Ebenezer has the oldest surviving church and school building in Australia. Windsor District Council was formed in 1843 and disbanded in 1846. In 1871 the Borough Council of Windsor was founded and the Richmond Borough Council followed in 1872. The two Councils amalgamated in 1949 to become Windsor Municipal Council. Colo Shire Council was established in 1906 and joined Windsor Municipal Council in 1981 to become Hawkesbury Shire Council. In 1989, Hawkesbury became a City.

Notable residents

• Brigadier General John Lamrock CB VD – a former President of Colo Shire Council
• Ashton Irwin - drummer of pop-rock band 5 Seconds of Summer

External links

• Hawkesbury - Sydney.com