Youth Population

In 2016 there were 34,100 young people between 12-24 years old, making up 15.7% of the Wyndham population. Compared to Wyndham, there were proportionally more young people living across Greater Melbourne in 2016. 

Wyndham population 12 to 24 year olds, 2016

Population Forecast¹

The number of young people aged 12 to 17 is forecast to almost double from 22,056 people in 2021 to 42,250 by 2041. 

The population of 18 to 24 year olds is also forecast to increase substantially, growing from 26,046 in 2021 to 43,823 in 2041. Growth rates will be slowing in the 2021-2027 period, after which they will pick up again due to the increase in number of 12-17 year olds in Wyndham before 2027.

Age by suburb

^{In 2021, suburbs with the greatest forecast number of young people are:}

• • • • ^{12-17 years – Point Cook (5,512) and Tarneit (4,229)}
      • ^{18-24 years – Werribee (5,596, 10%) and Point Cook (5,001, 7.3%)}

^{By 2041, suburbs with the greatest forecast number of young people are:}

• • • • ^{12-17 years – Tarneit (10,829) and Werribee (7,491).}
      • ^{18-24 years – Tarneit (11,962) and Werribee, (8,389)}

Population forecast,12-17 and 18-24 year olds, Wyndham, 2019-2041

Youth Migration 

Those aged between 18-25 are characterised as transitioning to a new adult life stage, many will have completed school, training and/or looking for employment. Understanding the push and pull for this age group to live in Wyndham helps to plan for services needed and advocate to provide pull factors to retain or attract certain age groups (i.e. infrastructure, employment opportunities and facilities).

The age group with the highest out migration from Wyndham is the 25—34 year old age group, who also have the highest in migration (ABS 2016 Census).

For the 18-24 age group, 1,944 left Wyndham, while a greater number moved in, 2,684. Resulting in a net migration of 740 people.

According to the 2016 Census, there are 479 young people living in Wyndham aged 12 to 25 years who identify as Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander or both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander. The age group of 18 to 25 year olds is the largest (268 people). Young Indigenous residents account for approximately 2.6% of the total youth population in Wyndham in 2016, whereas in 2011 this was as low as 1.1%.

Country of Birth

Based on the proportion of people born overseas, Wyndham’s youth population is more culturally diverse than young people across Greater Melbourne. In Wyndham, 31% of 12 to 17 year olds were born overseas, compared to only 18% in Greater Melbourne. In the 18 to 25 year age group, cultural diversity is similar across both locations with around a third of residents born overseas.

The top 5 countries of birth other than Australia for 12 to 17 year olds in Wyndham and Greater Melbourne are similar. India, New Zealand, China and the Philippines feature in the top five for both areas. However, the proportion of residents born in these countries varies. For example, nearly 6% of Wyndham 12 to 17 year olds were born in New Zealand compared to less than 2% across Greater Melbourne. In Wyndham, Thailand is the fourth most common country of birth, while in Greater Melbourne, England takes fourth place.

Country of birth, 12 to 17 year olds, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne, 2016

India is the most common country of birth other than Australia amongst Wyndham’s 18 to 25 year olds, while China is most common across Greater Melbourne. Vietnam and Malaysia are the fourth and fifth most common countries of birth in this age group across Greater Melbourne, compared to China and Thailand in Wyndham.

Country of birth of 18 to 24 year olds, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne, 2016

Language Spoken

In the 12 to 17-year age group, 32% of people speak a language other than English. There is slightly more language diversity in the 18 to 25-year age group with 35% of people speaking one of over 100 languages other than English.

Language Spoken at Home

For 12 to 17 year olds in Wyndham, Arabic is the most commonly spoken language at home (other than English), followed by Karen, Mandarin, Hindi and Urdu. Across Greater Melbourne, Mandarin is the most commonly spoken language which coincides with China being the most common country of birth. Interestingly, despite Greece not making the top five most common countries of birth, Greek was the fourth most commonly spoken language amongst 12 to 17 year olds across Greater Melbourne.

Top five languages other than English spoken at home by 12 to 17 year olds, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne, 2016

The language profile of 18 to 25 year olds in Wyndham reflects the country of birth trends, where India is the most common country of birth and Punjabi, a language native to India, is the most commonly spoken language other than English.

Top five languages other than English spoken at home by 18 to 25 year olds, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne, 2016

English Proficiency

Another indicator of cultural diversity is the proportion of people who speak only English at home.

Young people aged 18-25 years in Wyndham and Greater Melbourne is the most diverse, with around 59% of residents who only speak English. In the 12 to 17-year-age group, 63% from Wyndham only speak English, and 69% in Greater Melbourne. A relatively similar proportion of people can speak another language and English very well or well across both locations and all age groups.

Youth English proficiency, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne 2016

According to 2016 Census data, religious affiliation is more common amongst Wyndham's young people compared to young people across Greater Melbourne. Nearly 70% of 12 to 17 year olds in Wyndham were affiliated with a religion, compared to 60% of 12 to 17 year olds across Greater Melbourne. A much larger proportion of young people in Greater Melbourne reported no religion on the 2016 Census compared to young people in Wyndham (31% and 24% respectively).

Religious affiliation of 12 to 17 year olds, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne, 2016

Religious affiliation amongst 18 to 25 year olds in Wyndham is relatively high compared to Greater Melbourne. 63% of Wyndham’s 18 to 25-year-old population were affiliated with a religion, compared to just over 50% across Greater Melbourne. Christianity was the most popular religion in Wyndham, followed by Islam and Hinduism.

Religious affiliation of 18 to 25 year olds, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne, 2016

Education attending

In July 2020 there were 51,737 full time enrolments at Wyndham schools[1]. Of the 71 schools in Wyndham, 46 are primary schools (29 government schools) and 25 secondary schools, (18 government schools).

In 2016 approximately 6% of the Wyndham population were attending secondary school, which was the same for Greater Melbourne and Victoria. At 4%, a lower proportion of the Wyndham population were attending university than Greater Melbourne and Victoria, both 6%. However, university attendance increased in Wyndham between 2016 and 2011. The increase in university attendance since 2011 has been driven by young families featuring highly educated parents moving to Wyndham from elsewhere in Victoria and overseas.

[1] https://www.education.vic.gov.au/about/department/Pages/factsandfigures.aspx

Qualifications

In Wyndham, the most common qualification held by young people is a certificate (12.9%), followed by bachelor degrees (11.7%) and advanced diplomas/diplomas (7.6%). Across Greater Melbourne, education attainment is higher, with 15.1% of young people with a bachelor degree or higher, compared to 11.7% of Wyndham young people.

Secondary School Retention

In 2016, 78.8% of 17-year-old students in Wyndham were attending secondary school. This was slightly lower than the retention rates across Greater Melbourne (83.4%) and Victoria (80.0%).

Secondary school retention – 17 year olds, 2016

 School completion

For the 20-25 age group, we can see that in 2016 71.9% of residents had completed year 12 or equivalent, compared to 79.7% of 20 to 25 year olds across Greater Melbourne. This suggests a lower proportion of high school retention youth in Wyndham.

Literacy and Numeracy²

Naplan results

The National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is an annual assessment for all students in Year 3,5,7 and 9. The tests cover skills in reading, writing, spelling, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy. The assessments are undertaken every year in the second full week in May.

NAPLAN scores for the latest available data in 2019 offer an indication of how Wyndham students are faring in comparison to the national benchmark.

Literacy

The percentage of students not meeting the benchmark in Year 7 for literacy decreased from 7.9% in 2009 to 5.3% in 2019; however, increased for Year 9, from 8.7% in 2009 to 9.8% in 2019. 

Numeracy

Both year levels decreased in the percentage of students not meeting the national benchmark in Wyndham between 2009 and 2019 for numeracy:

• Year 7 results declined from 6.1% in 2009 to 5.0% in 2019.
• Year 9 saw the smallest decrease in meeting the national benchmark with 5.5% in 2009 to 5.0% in 2019.  

The figure below shows the percentage of students who did not meet or exceed the national benchmark for literacy and numeracy in Wyndham for all age groups over the years 2009, 2014 and 2019. 

_{Naplan results for Wyndham, year 3, 5, 7 and 9}

School Connectedness³

Feelings of connectedness to school were determined by surveying students in years 5 to 9. Results illustrate that generally, year 5 and 6 students feel more connected to their schools despite where they are from. Wyndham students in both year 5 to 6 and 7 to 9 were less connected than students across Victoria. From 2011 to 2015, feelings of connectedness to school increased for Wyndham Year 7 to 9 students from 56.4% to 61.3%.

Feeling of connectedness to school, Wyndham and Victoria 2011-2015

Disengaged Youth

Disengaged youth include young people 15 to 25 years of age who are not studying or engaged in work. In 2016, 10.8% of 15 to 25 year olds in Wyndham were disengaged, compared to 8.0% across Greater Melbourne and 10.1% in the Western Region. The proportion of 15-25 year olds disengaged in Wyndham has increased slightly since 2011 (from 10.5% to 10.8%).

Engagement in the labour and education market is highly dependent on age. Retirees are generally disengaged, while stay-at-home parents are also likely to be disengaged. The rate of engagement, particularly in the younger and working age groups can be affected by access to strong employment and education markets and is a measure of socio-economic status and the level of welfare dependency in an area (profile id).

There are also notable differences in disengagement by gender. The proportion of Wyndham female youths from 15 to 24 years of age not studying, not in employment or not looking for work is 11.4% compared to 10.3% males. This is also a higher proportion of disengagement than the 8.1% of Victorian females, 15 to 24 years of age, and 8.3% of males.

Werribee East has the highest percentage of disengagement and Point Cook North the lowest when exploring disengagement at the smaller area level (SA2) in Wyndham (all ages).

_{Disengaged youth in Wyndham by Suburb, 2016}

Destination after year 12

The Victorian On Track Survey records the destination of students who have completed and not completed year 12. The following results are students who finished year 12 at schools in Wyndham in 2018, and their destinations in 2019. In Wyndham 878 year 12 completers were surveyed, and 57 who had exited before completing year 12.

The great majority of completers and non-completers were either in education and training, or employment in 2019.

Year 12 completers

Of the students in Wyndham who completed 12 in 2018, 78.9% went on to further education and training in 2019, a higher percentage compared to 75.2% for Victoria.

• • • • The top 3 fields of study for completers enrolled in campus based study was "Health' (17.9%) followed by 'society and culture' (16.6%) and 'management and commerce' (15.1%).
      • The top 3 occupation groups for completers in an apprenticeship or traineeship in 2019 was 'building and construction' (23.2%), 'food hospitality and tourism' (17.4%) & 'electrical and electronics trades' (11.6%).

Of the 21.1% of Wyndham completers who did not continue in further education or training, 15% were instead employed, and 5.4% were looking for work.

Only 0.7% of Wyndham year 12 completers did not have an employment or education destination in 2019, this is a total of 6 people. Victoria had a similar result with 0.8% completers who did not have an employment or education destination in 2019.

In 2019 the top reason for not continuing study for completers was wanting to start working/earning their own money (84% selected this option), followed by 'just needed a break from study' (64% selected this option); 29% indicated they had never planned to study and 16.8% selected the option that the course wasn’t available locally.

Year 12 non completers

The post school destinations in 2019, for non-completers in 2018, was 59.6% in further education and training (including certificates, diplomas or apprenticeships), and 40.4% not continuing in further education or training, and were employed or looking for work.

Push and Pull factors for leaving:

• • • • The main push factor was 'did not like school/teachers/not interested in going' and 'not coping well at school/failing subjects/too hard'. The first reasons is the same for Victoria, but the second reason for Victoria was 'school not for me/not good environment/not learning'.
      • The main pull factors were work or career reasons, and this was the same for Victoria.

Employment Status

Employment rates amongst young people are relatively similar between Wyndham and Greater Melbourne. In 2016, 49% of Wyndham 15 to 25 year olds were employed compared with 51% of 15 to 25 year olds across Greater Melbourne. Similarly, around 35% of young people in both Wyndham and Greater Melbourne were not in the labour force. This is not equivalent to an unemployment rate given that many young people are enrolled in an educational institute.

Employment status of 15 to 25 year olds, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne, 2016

Youth Unemployment

There is no available data for age at the LGA geography level, however an indication of youth unemployment can be taken from the SA4 level (Australian Bureau of Statistics, Statistical Area Level 4).  In Melbourne's West youth unemployment is higher than for the total population. In December 2021, 17.0% of youth were unemployed, compared to an unemployment rate of 6.4% for the total population. In March 2021, 21.6% of youth were unemployed, compared to 8.8% of the total population. Unemployment is a significant indicator of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic upon youth and the general population. 

Source: https://lmip.gov.au/maps.aspx?layer=LabourForceRegions&region=Melbourne-West, 12 month average of original ABS labour force survey data

Employment Industries

The most common industries of employment for young people in Wyndham and Greater Melbourne are retail and accommodation and food services. Both of these industries facilitate part time work that students can perform while attaining an education.

Most common industries of employment for 15 to 25 year olds, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne, 2016

Occupations

The employment profile of young people in Wyndham and Greater Melbourne is relatively similar. There is a large proportion of youth working in sales, and as technicians and in trades. Interestingly, nearly 7% of young people across Greater Melbourne work in professional occupations making it the 4th most common occupation type. In Wyndham, professional jobs do not make the top 5 most common occupations; with only 8% of Wyndham's young people being employed in professional occupations.

Most common occupations of 15 to 25 year olds, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne, 2016

The proportion of young people walking to work is higher in Greater Melbourne compared to Wyndham (4.6% and 2.2% respectively). The vast majority of employed young people in Wyndham either drove to work or was the passenger in a car (70.4%). Compared with all Wyndham residents who travel to work, young people are more likely to walk or take the bus (1.5% and 7.5% respectively), and less likely to drive to work. This indicates that it is likely that young people’s place of employment is usually closer to home.

Method of travel to work of 15 to 25 year olds, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne, 2016

Young people in Wyndham were less likely to volunteer for an organisation or group, than those from Greater Melbourne, and Victoria wide. In 2016, 14.2% of 15 to 24 year olds from Wyndham were volunteers, compared to 18.3% Wyndham Greater Melbourne Victoria in Greater Melbourne, and 19.0% Victoria wide.

Percentage of 15 to 25 year old who volunteer, Wyndham, Greater Melbourne, and Victoria 2016

Homelessness

The Australian Bureau of Statistics collect information about homelessness on Census night. Homelessness status is not a distinct question asked in the Census. Estimates are derived from multiple variables and a complex methodology. A person is considered homeless if they do not have suitable accommodation alternatives and their current living arrangement is:

• in a dwelling that is inadequate, or
• has no tenure, or if their initial tenure is short and not extendable, or
• does not allow them to have control of, and access to space for social relations (refers to overcrowding).

Based on this definition, and as seen in the table below, the ABS categorises homelessness into ‘operational groups’ and ‘marginal housing’.

Wyndham ranks eighth in the top ten Victorian areas for the greatest number of homeless people.On Census night 814 people were categorised as homeless and 1,204 in marginal housing. The most prominent type of homelessness was ‘severely’ crowded dwellings (70%) followed by supported accommodation for the homes (13%).

Of the 814 counted as homeless in Wyndham, 52.5% were aged under 24 years, which is considerably higher than Greater Melbourne, with 39.3% homeless under 24 years. In Wyndham the homeless population under 24 years of age was made up of:  

• more than 10% were 0-4 years old,
• 11.6% were 5-11 years old,
• 8.6% were 12-17 years
• 21.6% were 18-24 years.

Youth and young people also made up a large proportion of the national homeless count, with 60% of homeless people under 35 years of age and 42% of the increase in homelessness was in the 25 to 34 age group.

Homelessness underestimated

For several reasons, it is generally accepted that the homeless population is underestimated (Chamberlain) and the ABS has previously identified that youth homeless will be underestimated from the Census[1]. In addition, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2018) reports that many people in Australia will experience events that increase the risk of homelessness, for example “It is estimated that just over half (51%) of lower income households experience housing affordability issues due to rental stress (ABS 2017a), and around 1 in 6 women (1.6 million) have experienced some form of domestic and family violence in their lifetime, putting them at risk of homelessness (ABS 2017b).” (AIHW, 2018).

[1] For some youth who are homeless and 'couch surfing', a usual residence may still be reported in the Census. Their homelessness is masked because their characteristics look no different to other youth who are not homeless but are simply visiting on Census night. A usual address may be reported for 'couch surfers' either because the young person doesn't want to disclose to the people they are staying with that they are unable to go home, or the person who fills out the Census form on behalf of the young person staying with them assumes that the youth will return to their home. Homeless youth will be underestimated within the group: 'Persons staying temporarily with other households.

A slightly larger proportion of young people in Wyndham require assistance with core activities including communication and self-care. In 2016, 3.5% of 12 to 17 year olds and 2% of 18 to 25 year olds from Wyndham required assistance.

Percentage of young people with a need for assistance, Wyndham and Greater Melbourne, 2016

Mission Australia Youth Survey 2020

The Mission Australia Youth Survey is Australia’s largest online youth survey and is open to all young people aged 15 to 19. The 2020 survey had a special focus on young people’s experiences of unfair treatment and COVID-19.

Of the 25,800 young people who responded to the Youth Survey 2020, 5,826 respondents were from VIC, and 556 from Wyndham (64.5% female, 34.5% male, 0.2% gender diverse). Because the survey aims to give youth a voice, it was open to all young people aged 15-19 and is not intended to be a representative sample of Australian youth as a population group, or any LGA. However, with a total of 556 it can be argued the sample size is large enough to allow generalisations.[1]

Young people were asked to indicate how concerned they were about a number of issues over the past year on a 5-point scale. The top issues of personal concern for young people from Wyndham were coping with stress, body image, mental health and school or study problems. Females were more likely to be concerned about these issues than males.

· Close to half (47.1%) of young people from Wyndham were extremely or very concerned about coping with stress. And more than four in 10 (43.3%) young people from Wyndham felt stressed either all of the time or most of the time.

· More than four in 10 (41.3%) respondents from Wyndham felt extremely or very concerned about body image.

· Over one third of respondents were extremely or very concerned about mental health (36.9%) and school or study problems (36.0%).

[1] To get a representative sample for the 15-19 age group (12,735) in Wyndham requests 373 participants (with a 5% margin or error, and 95% confidence rate).

^{Figure: Mission Australia Youth Survey 2020 - Wyndham Results}

An issue impacting mental health, and other domains of health and wellbeing are experiences of being treated unfairly. More than one quarter (26.1%) of young people from Wyndham reported they had been treated unfairly in the past year with a higher proportion of females (29.2% compared to 20.0% males). The top 3 reasons selected for being treated unfairly were:

• 48.9% reported they had been treated unfairly due to their race/cultural background (compared with 30.9% of VIC respondents).
• More than one third (36.5%) reported they had been treated unfairly due to their gender (compared with 41.5% of VIC respondents).
• Close to one in five (18.2%) respondents reported experiencing unfair treatment due to their mental health.

Adding evidence to these reported experiences, young people were asked if they had witnessed someone being treated unfairly:

• Close to seven in 10 (67.8%) witnessed unfair treatment due to a person’s race/cultural background
• Close to half (46.4%) of young people witnessed unfair treatment due to a person’s sexuality
• Close to four in 10 (37.7%) witnessed unfair treatment due to a person’s gender

Sources of support offers opportunities to consider the gaps and opportunities to provide further support for young people. A friend, parent/s or guardian and relative/family friends were the most frequently cited sources of help for young people in Wyndham.

Respondents were asked to rate their family’s ability to get along with one another. Responses to this question were rated on a 5-point scale that ranged from excellent to poor. Six in 10 (60.9%) respondents from Wyndham rated their family’s ability to get along very positively: 27.3% rated it as excellent and 33.6% rated it as very good. One in five (21.2%) of Wyndham respondents rated their family’s ability to get along as good. Close to one in five (17.9%) young people from Wyndham indicated their family’s ability to get along was either fair (14.7%) or poor (3.2%).

Long term health conditions

The table below shows diagnosis numbers estimates of long-term health conditions by age[1]. People aged 0-24 have the highest numbers for allergy, and second highest for anxiety disorders and asthma.

Sexually Transmitted Infections

Sexually transmitted infections (STI) are largely preventable diseases spread through sexual contact (chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis). Data from the 2019 annual Victorian Department of Health Infectious Disease Surveillance reports show those aged 20-24 had the highest rate of Chlamydia and Gonorrhoea, followed by the age groups 25-29 and 15-19[i].

[1] Source: Health Modelling Service Planning in Wyndham report, 2020. The data are estimates based on the National Health Survey (ABS, 2018) for Victoria and applied to the 2020 forecasted population for Wyndham by id Forecast. They are averaged over the state so will either over or underestimate the region-specific values. When used as a guide, they can be beneficial in determining the disease burden.

[i] Health Modelling Service Planning in Wyndham Report, 2020