Altona Meadows is a suburb in

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, south-west of Melbourne's

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, located within the City of Hobsons Bay

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...

. Altona Meadows recorded a population of 18,479 at the . Located partly within Altona Meadows, Cheetham Wetlands is a large park with numerous boardwalks traversing its network of lagoons. The wetlands attract large numbers of migratory birds, making it popular with walkers and birdwatchers alike.

History

Altona Meadows Post Office opened on 15 March 1996 as the suburb developed.

Population

Comparing between and , the data revealed a changing population in Altona Meadows. While the population (19,160 people in 2016 compared to 18,479 in 2021) as well as the proportion of people who is born in Australia (59.2% in 2016 and 62.2 in 2021) remained relatively stable, the proportion of people who is born in India dropped by about a third (4.2% in 2016 and 2.7% in 2021). Besides Australia and India, the next most common countries of birth were England (2.6% in 2016 vs 2.7% in 2021), Malta (2.5% in 2016 and 2.3% in 2021), Vietnam (2.3% in both 2016 and 2021) and the Philippines (2.1% in both 2016 and 2021). The proportion of people who only spoke English at home increased from 59.6% in 2016 to 63.6% in 2021. Other common languages spoken at home included Vietnamese (3.0% in 2016 and 3.1% in 2021), Greek (2.5% in 2016 and 2.1% in 2021), Arabic (3.0% in 2016 and 2.5% in 2021), Maltese (2.7% in 2016 and 2.1% in 2021), and Italian (2.4% in 2016 and 2.0% in 2021). The number of people identified as "No Religion" rose by over a quarter from 24.4% to 31.0% from 2016 to 2021, but the most common religion remained as Catholic (31.1% in 2016 and 30.6% in 2021). In terms of employment, there is a slight shift away from labourers (11.1% in 2016 and 8.7% in 2021) to professionals (17.3% to 19.9%). The number of people who is 65 or above also rose from 14.3% in 2016 to 18% in 2021, and the number of people between 25 and 49 experienced a slight drop from 36.7% to 34.6%.

Education

Altona Green Primary School

Altona Green Primary School is a state-run

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

established in 1990. In 2020, the school had an enrolment of 388 students from Prep to Year 6, 35.13 equivalent full-time staff; 2 principal class, 21.6 teachers (1 Leading Teacher and 1 Learning Specialist) and Education Support Officers. The school has specialist and support programs for the students, which includes; The Arts, Physical Education, Italian, STEM, Kitchen and Garden program and Literacy Intervention. The school is spacious, safe and well-maintained which attracts students from diverse multicultural and socio-economic backgrounds.

Altona Meadows Primary School

Altona Meadows Primary School is a state-run

that first opened in 1982. The school has a stable enrolment of around 350 students from Prep to Year 6. There is a diverse multicultural and socio-economic background. Notable former pupils include

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...

Daniel Giansiracusa Daniel Giansiracusa (born 11 March 1982) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Western Bulldogs in the Australian Football League (AFL). He had been used in various positions such as the midfield, half back flanks and hal ...

Queen of Peace Parish Primary School

Queen of Peace Parish Primary School is a Catholic co-educational primary school. Approximately 560 pupils from grades Prep to 6 are at the school. The school was opened in 1982. In 2011, the new gym was opened, along with a new music and performing arts centre.

Transport

Bus

* Route 411: Laverton Station to Footscray (via Altona Meadows and Altona) * Route 412: Laverton Station to Footscray (via Altona Meadows and Altona) * Route 415: Laverton Station to Williamstown (via Altona) * Route 496: Laverton Station to Sanctuary Lakes * Route 498: Laverton Station to Hoppers Crossing Station * Route 944: City to Point Cook (

Night Bus Night service, sometimes also known as owl service, is a mode of public transport service operated during the night hours. As an intermediate approach – between providing full service around the clock and stopping services altogether – it p ...

Service)

Politics

Altona Meadows falls within the federal electorate of Gellibrand (currently held by the ALP's Tim Watts), the state electorate of Point Cook, as well as the local council area of the City of Hobsons Bay. Typically for a working-class western suburb of Melbourne, it has consistently been a very safe area for the ALP. However, as new housing estates have been established within the area and it becomes increasingly middle-class, it witnessed some larger-than-average swings towards the Liberals during the

Howard Howard is a masculine given name derived from the English surname Howard. ''The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names'' notes that "the use of this surname as a christian name is quite recent and there seems to be no particular reason for ...

years (despite remaining solidly Labor).

Notable residents

Greg Inglis Gregory Paul Inglis (born 15 January 1987), also known by the nickname of "G.I.", is a retired Indigenous Australian professional rugby league footballer, who regularly played as a centre, fullback, five-eighth and wing. From 2011 to 2019, Ing ...

– Rugby league player

References

External links

Cr Tony Briffa JP – Deputy Mayor of the City of Hobsons Bay (includes Altona Meadows)Hobsons Bay Community Online ForumCheetham Wetlands, Parks Victoria
{{City of Hobsons Bay suburbs Suburbs of Melbourne Suburbs of the City of Hobsons Bay