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AustraliaPopulation forecast

New South Wales

Population and age structure

Between 2021 and 2031, the age structure forecasts for New South Wales indicate a 1.8% increase in females under working age, a 27.4% increase in females of retirement age, and a 11.6% increase in females of working age.

Knowledge of how the age structure of the population is changing is essential for planning age-based facilities and services, such as child care, recreation and aged care.

The forecast age groups of Australia is a function of the current age of the population (people aging each year, being born and dying) as well as the age of people migrating into and out of the area. This in turn is driven by location (fringe, city centre, regional or rural) the existing housing stock (separate dwellings, medium or high density), the amount and type of new residential development (same as existing stock, or diversifying) and where the area is in a cycle of change. We call this the area’s residential role and function.

Forecast age structure - Service age groups
New South Wales - Total females202120312041Change between 2021 and 2041
Age group (years)Number%Number%Number%Number
Babies and pre-schoolers (0 to 4)232,1675.7244,8265.3272,6995.4+40,532
Primary schoolers (5 to 11)344,9478.5344,6017.5367,6977.3+22,750
Secondary schoolers (12 to 17)282,4796.9301,8746.6309,5936.1+27,114
Tertiary education and independence (18 to 24)330,9348.1417,7779.1417,6858.3+86,751
Young workforce (25 to 34)581,78814.3636,37913.9730,60514.4+148,817
Parents and homebuilders (35 to 49)816,58620.1934,48920.41,006,49319.9+189,907
Older workers and pre-retirees (50 to 59)500,01112.3517,05711.3603,24711.9+103,236
Empty nesters and retirees (60 to 69)451,19411.1484,39210.6501,2309.9+50,036
Seniors (70 to 84)420,63810.3558,62912.2627,30512.4+206,667
Elderly aged (85 and over)109,7932.7147,3543.2221,2234.4+111,430
Total persons4,070,537100.04,587,376100.05,057,778100.0+987,241
Source: .id SAFi National to State tops-down forecast, 5.1.0, published May 2023. Prepared by .id (informed decisions)

Key findings

In 2021, the dominant age structure for females in New South Wales was ages Parents and homebuilders (35 to 49), which accounted for 20.1% of the total females.

The largest increase in females between 2021 and 2031 is forecast to be in ages Seniors (70 to 84), which is expected to increase by 137,991 and account for 12.2% of the total females.

The largest female 5 year age group in 2031 is Parents and homebuilders (35 to 49) years, with a total of 934,489 females.

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