Waddington is a small village located in the

Selwyn District Selwyn District is a predominantly rural district in central Canterbury, on the east coast of New Zealand's South Island. It is named after the Selwyn River / Waikirikiri, which is in turn named after Bishop George Selwyn, the first Anglican bis ...

of the

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

region of New Zealand's

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

, near the

Waimakariri Gorge The Waimakariri Gorge is located on the Waimakariri River in inland Canterbury in the South Island of New Zealand. The height of the Waimak gorge bridge is 30m. Like its neighbour, the Rakaia River, the Waimakariri runs through wide shingle beds ...

Description

Waddington was named by and for William Waddington, who purchased part of the

Homebush Homebush is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 12 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the Municipality of Strathfield. The name of ...

run that had previously been held by John Deans, and laid out the township in 1873. Waddington has a close association with its neighbouring village

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

, which is further north-west along State Highway 73. The two villages share a community committee. The two villages are located between Darfield and Springfield on both State Highway 73 and the Midland Line railway. The towns were settled in the 19th century by farmers attracted to the area because of its suitability for sheep grazing. Waddington is situated at the intersection of three major roads (two of them popular tourist roads) that service the inland regions of Canterbury, including the Inland Scenic Route and the Great Alpine Highway / State Highway 73. Waddington's cemetery was initially called the East Malvern Cemetery, but in 1880 the trust changed its name to Waddington Cemetery Trust. Its first burial was in 1882. Waddington is also home to the St John Youth/Cadets South Island Region Camp.

Demographics

Sheffield and Waddington are described by Statistics New Zealand as a rural settlement. Waddington covers . It is part of the statistical area of Torlesse. Waddington had a population of 132 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 9 people (7.3%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 9 people (7.3%) 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 51 households. There were 69 males and 63 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.1 males per female. The median age was 42.1 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 27 people (20.5%) aged under 15 years, 18 (13.6%) aged 15 to 29, 63 (47.7%) aged 30 to 64, and 24 (18.2%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 93.2% European/Pākehā, 18.2% Māori, 2.3% Pacific peoples, 4.5% Asian, and 4.5% other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100% since people could identify with multiple ethnicities). Although some people objected to giving their religion, 43.2% had no religion, and 36.4% were Christian. Of those at least 15 years old, 18 (17.1%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 21 (20.0%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $23,500, compared with $31,800 nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 45 (42.9%) people were employed full-time, 24 (22.9%) were part-time, and 6 (5.7%) were unemployed.

References

{{Selwyn District, New Zealand Selwyn District Populated places in Canterbury, New Zealand