South Taranaki is a

territorial authority Territorial authorities are the second tier of local government in New Zealand, below regional councils. There are 67 territorial authorities: 13 city councils, 53 district councils and the Chatham Islands Council. District councils serve a c ...

on the west coast of

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

that contains the towns of

Hāwera Hāwera is the second-largest centre in the Taranaki region of New Zealand's North Island, with a population of . It is near the coast of the South Taranaki Bight. The origins of the town lie in a government military base that was established ...

(the seat of the district), Manaia,

Ōpunake Ōpunake is a small town on the southwest coast of Taranaki in New Zealand's North Island. It is located 45 kilometres southwest of New Plymouth. Rahotu is 16 km to the northwest. Manaia is 29 km to the southeast. State Highway ...

Patea Patea ( ) is the third-largest town in South Taranaki District, New Zealand. It is on the western bank of the Pātea River, 61 kilometres north-west of Whanganui on . Hāwera is 27 km to the north-west, and Waverley 17 km to the ea ...

Eltham Eltham ( ) is a district of southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is east-southeast of Charing Cross, and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. The three wards of Elt ...

, and

Waverley Waverley may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Waverley'' (novel), by Sir Walter Scott ** ''Waverley'' Overture, a work by Hector Berlioz inspired by Scott's novel * Waverley Harrison, a character in the New Zealand soap opera ''Shortland Stree ...

. The District has a land area of 3,575.46 km² (1,380.49 sq mi) and a population of It is part of the greater

Taranaki Region Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth Dist ...

. The district straddles the boundary separating the

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

and

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth Dist ...

provinces, resulting in the town of Waverley celebrating Wellington Anniversary Day in January, and the town of Patea 15 kilometres away celebrating Taranaki Anniversary Day in March. Council facilities include the South Taranaki LibraryPlus, Mania, Kaponga, Patea, Eltham, Opunake, Hāwera and Waverley libraries.

History

The South Taranaki District was established as part of the

1989 local government reforms The 1989 New Zealand local government reform was the most significant reform of local government in New Zealand in over a century. Some 850 local bodies were amalgamated into 86 local authorities, made up of regional and territorial levels. Backg ...

, merging Egmont, Eltham, Hawera, Patea and Waimate West counties.

Demographics

South Taranaki District covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². South Taranaki District had a population of 27,534 at the

2018 New Zealand census Eighteen or 18 may refer to: * 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19 * one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018 Film, television and entertainment * ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the sho ...

, an increase of 954 people (3.6%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 1,047 people (4.0%) since the

2006 census 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

. There were 10,668 households. There were 13,971 males and 13,566 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.03 males per female. The median age was 38.5 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 6,219 people (22.6%) aged under 15 years, 4,719 (17.1%) aged 15 to 29, 12,264 (44.5%) aged 30 to 64, and 4,332 (15.7%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 80.6% European/Pākehā, 27.6% Māori, 2.2% Pacific peoples, 3.4% Asian, and 1.8% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 8.9, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people objected to giving their religion, 51.0% had no religion, 35.8% were Christian, 0.7% were Hindu, 0.3% were Muslim, 0.3% were Buddhist and 3.3% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 2,007 (9.4%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 6,162 (28.9%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $28,800, compared with $31,800 nationally. 2,862 people (13.4%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 10,398 (48.8%) people were employed full-time, 3,051 (14.3%) were part-time, and 942 (4.4%) were unemployed.

History

Demographics

Governement

References

External links