Balga is a suburb of

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

, the capital city of

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, north of Perth city's central business district (CBD). Its

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 ...

is the

City of Stirling The City of Stirling is a local government area in the northern suburbs of the Western Australian capital city of Perth about north of Perth's central business district. The City covers an area of and has a population of over 223,000, making ...

. Mark Irwin is the current mayor. The name "Balga" was adopted in 1954 and is the

Noongar The Noongar (, also spelt Noongah, Nyungar , Nyoongar, Nyoongah, Nyungah, Nyugah, and Yunga ) are Aboriginal Australian people who live in the South West, Western Australia, south-west corner of Western Australia, from Geraldton, Western Aus ...

( Aboriginal) word for the indigenous grass tree ''Xanthorrhoea preissii''. It was designed by the State Housing Commission along with Nollamara and

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

as part of the "Mirrabooka Project", and the laying of streets and building of homes commenced in the 1960s.

Geography

Balga is north of Perth, and is bounded by

Wanneroo Road Wanneroo Road is a arterial highway in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia linking Joondanna and Yokine in the south with Wanneroo and Yanchep in the north. As part of State Route 60, it begins from Charles Street in the inner ...

to the west,

Reid Highway Reid Highway is a east-west highway and partial freeway in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, linking North Beach with Middle Swan. As part of State Route 3, it forms half of Perth's outer ring road along with Roe Highway, w ...

to the south, Mirrabooka Avenue to the east and Beach Road to the north.

Demographics

At the 2011 census, Balga had a population of 10,701. Balga residents had a median age of 31, and median incomes were well below average for the Perth metropolitan area and the region — $490 per week compared with $669 per week in Perth, and $685 in the Perth North West statistical region. The population of Balga was more ethnically diverse than the Perth average, with 49.1% born in Australia and significant minorities from

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, Macedonia, Vietnam and Burma identified in the 2011 census. At the 2011 census, 3.72% of residents identified as

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...

Education

Balga contains a state high school, Balga Senior High School which opened in 1970; three state primary schools, Balga (1965), North Balga (1968) and Warriapendi (1970); one special school, the Gladys Newton School; and one private school, Majella Catholic Primary School (1971). Additionally, a campus of North Metropolitan TAFE (formerly known as

Polytechnic West Polytechnic West (formerly Swan TAFE) was a State Training Provider established under section 35 of the Vocational Education and Training Act 1996 (WA) based in Perth, Western Australia. Polytechnic West is one of the largest training providers ...

) is in the southeast of the suburb. Balga Senior High School includes an Intensive English Centre for newly arrived refugee students, a program for teenage parents, a sports-based education program for indigenous students, and an emphasis on literacy, numeracy, health and careers through all levels of the school. It is one of the few high schools in Western Australia not to offer a Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE) program, although several students each year complete a university preparation course conducted by

Edith Cowan University Edith Cowan University (ECU) is a public research university in Western Australia. It is named in honour of the first woman to be elected to an Parliaments of the Australian states and territories, Australian parliament, Edith Cowan, and is, , t ...

Transport

The suburb is served by a number of

Transperth Transperth is the public transport system for Perth and surrounding areas in Western Australia. It is managed by the Public Transport Authority (PTA), a state government organisation, and consists of train, bus and ferry services. Bus operat ...

bus routes operated by

Swan Transit Swan Transit is an Australian bus company operating Buses in Perth, Transperth bus services under contract to the Public Transport Authority (Western Australia), Public Transport Authority. It is a subsidiary of Transit Systems. History On 21 ...

(374-375, 385-389) and

Path Transit Path Transit is an Australian bus company operating Transperth bus services under contract to the Public Transport Authority. It is a subsidiary of Keolis Downer. History On 29 September 1996, Path Transit commenced operating services in the ...

(371 and 376). The 374 (Mirrabooka-Darch-Whitfords) and 375 (Mirrabooka-Alexander Heights) covers Marangaroo Drive and inner portions of the Suburb, the 389 (Perth–Wanneroo) covers Wanneroo Road, and the 386 (Perth–Kingsway City Shopping Centre, Madeley), 385(Perth to Kingsway City Shopping Centre, Madeley)(limited stops), 371 (Warwick Station to Mirrabooka Station via Treen St) routes along with various routes from

Mirrabooka bus station Mirrabooka bus station is a Transperth bus station in Mirrabooka, Western Australia, Mirrabooka approximately 12 kilometres north of Perth, Western Australia. It has 12 stands and is served by 14 Transperth routes operated by Path Transit and S ...

, 376 covers eastern end of the suburb and 449 covers for the northern end.

Bus

* 374

Mirrabooka Bus Station Mirrabooka bus station is a Transperth bus station in Mirrabooka, Western Australia, Mirrabooka approximately 12 kilometres north of Perth, Western Australia. It has 12 stands and is served by 14 Transperth routes operated by Path Transit and S ...

to Whitfords Station – serves Mirrabooka Avenue, Balga Avenue and Princess Road * 375

to Alexander Heights Shopping Centre – serves Walderton Avenue, Fernhurst Crescent, Loxwood Road, Balga Avenue, Finchley Crescent, Redcliffe Avenue and Beach Road * 386

Perth Busport Perth Busport is an underground central bus station in Perth, Western Australia, located underneath Wellington Street. It was officially opened by then Premier of Western Australia Colin Barnett and then Minister for Transport Dean Nalder o ...

to Kingsway City – serves Princess Road * 386X

to Kingsway City (limited stops) – serves Princess Road * 388

to Warwick Station – serves

* 389

Wanneroo Wanneroo is a northern suburb of Perth, Western Australia, located within the City of Wanneroo. Geography As it is on the Swan Coastal Plain, the Wanneroo wetlands stretch parallel to the coastline and to the north and south of the suburb. Ed ...

– serves

* 448 Warwick Station to Kingsway City – serves Beach Road * 449 Warwick Station to Malaga – serves Beach Road * 970

to (high frequency) – serves Mirrabooka Avenue * 970X

to (high frequency / limited stops) – serves Mirrabooka Avenue * 975 Warwick Station to Bayswater Station (high frequency) – serves

, Culloton Crescent, Camberwell Road and Princess Road

References

{{City of Stirling suburbs Suburbs of Perth, Western Australia Suburbs in the City of Stirling