Irwell was a small rural township in

Canterbury, New Zealand Canterbury () is a Regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand, located in the central-eastern South Island. The region covers an area of , making it the largest region in the country by area. It is home to a population of The region in it ...

on the intersection of Leeston and Selwyn Lake Roads. All that remains are the former school hall, a church, and a small number of houses.

History

In the 1870s it consisted of a two stores, two bake houses, a flour mill, a hotel, and a blacksmiths. In 1879 a small school was established with 32 pupils. By the 1920s it had 50 pupils. The school was closed at the end of 1937 and merged with Leeston School. In 1944 the Ellesmere Guardian reported that the old mills at Irwell were one of the few early buildings still standing in area.Relics of the past - Landmarks of Early Christchurch, Ellesmere Guardian, 28 April 1944, Page 4

Heritage buildings

Two buildings at Irwell are listed as heritage sites 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 b ...

Plan. They are the former Irwell school hall from 1879 and St Mary's Anglican Church on Selwyn Lake Road from 1895.

Demographics

Irwell statistical area, which also includes Doyleston and Selwyn Huts, covers . It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². The statistical area had a population of 1,278 at the

2018 New Zealand census The 2018 New Zealand census, which took place on Tuesday 6 March 2018, was the thirty-fourth national census in New Zealand. The population of New Zealand was counted as 4,699,755 – an increase of 457,707 (10.79%) over the 2013 census. Resu ...

, an increase of 3 people (0.2%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 96 people (8.1%) since the 2006 census. There were 513 households, comprising 681 males and 597 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.14 males per female. The median age was 44.6 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 222 people (17.4%) aged under 15 years, 186 (14.6%) aged 15 to 29, 672 (52.6%) aged 30 to 64, and 198 (15.5%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 92.7% European/

Pākehā ''Pākehā'' (or ''Pakeha''; ; ) is a Māori language, Māori-language word used in English, particularly in New Zealand. It generally means a non-Polynesians, Polynesian New Zealanders, New Zealander or more specifically a European New Zeala ...

, 9.9%

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

, 1.4% Pasifika, 2.6% Asian, and 1.9% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 14.6, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 54.9% had no religion, 33.1% were

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

, 0.7% were

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

, 0.5% were

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

and 1.4% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 183 (17.3%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 198 (18.8%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $37,300, compared with $31,800 nationally. 165 people (15.6%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 609 (57.7%) people were employed full-time, 168 (15.9%) were part-time, and 12 (1.1%) were unemployed.

References

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