Population
Assistance
About this topic
Need for assistance measures people who report needing help with self-care, body movement, or communication because of a disability, a long-term health condition, or older age. It is a high-needs indicator rather than a general measure of disability.
This topic is useful for planning accessible facilities, care services, respite, and support for carers. The measure is based on self-report in the Census, so it should be interpreted with care and read alongside unpaid care and other disability-related indicators.
Interpretation notes
- The measure is self-reported and records need for help with core activities, so it is not a complete measure of disability prevalence.
- It applies to all persons and is strongest as an indicator of higher support need when read with unpaid care and ageing data.
Key insight
In 2021, 85+ year olds was the most common age group among residents who needed assistance with core activities in Ballina (A), accounting for 43.9% (806 people). This share was lower than Regional NSW (46.5%). Since 2016, the biggest change was in 75-84 year olds, which increased by 181 people and 1.9 percentage points.
Section overview
Need for assistance with core activities by age
Ballina (A) - Persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises assistance for Ballina (A) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional NSW and change since 2016.
Need for assistance with core activities by age snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Ballina (A), with comparison markers for Regional NSW.
Bars reflect 2021 counts; benchmark rates remain in the metrics.
0-4
5-14
15-19
20-24
25-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
65-74
75-84
85+
Chart view
Need for assistance with core activities by age change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
0-4
-3
-0.2pp
5-14
+62
+0.8pp
15-19
+31
+1.2pp
20-24
+5
-0.5pp
25-34
+21
0.0pp
35-44
+45
+0.7pp
45-54
-12
-0.3pp
55-64
+32
+0.5pp
65-74
+104
+0.4pp
75-84
+181
+1.9pp
85+
+116
+4.6pp
Data table
Assistance for Ballina (A). Need for assistance with core activities by age. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional NSW.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | % | Regional NSW% | Count | pp | |
| 0-4 | 29 | 1.3% | 1.6% | 32 | 1.5% | 1.3% | -3 | -0.2pp |
| 5-14 | 254 | 4.8% | 5.2% | 192 | 4.0% | 3.8% | +62 | +0.8pp |
| 15-19 | 104 | 4.3% | 4.2% | 73 | 3.1% | 3.2% | +31 | +1.2pp |
| 20-24 | 77 | 4.1% | 3.4% | 72 | 4.6% | 2.6% | +5 | -0.5pp |
| 25-34 | 117 | 2.7% | 2.6% | 96 | 2.7% | 2.4% | +21 | 0.0pp |
| 35-44 | 150 | 2.9% | 2.8% | 105 | 2.2% | 3.0% | +45 | +0.7pp |
| 45-54 | 182 | 3.1% | 4.2% | 194 | 3.4% | 4.4% | -12 | -0.3pp |
| 55-64 | 317 | 4.9% | 6.0% | 285 | 4.4% | 6.2% | +32 | +0.5pp |
| 65-74 | 449 | 6.7% | 9.1% | 345 | 6.3% | 8.7% | +104 | +0.4pp |
| 75-84 | 625 | 15.8% | 18.9% | 444 | 13.9% | 17.8% | +181 | +1.9pp |
| 85+ | 806 | 43.9% | 46.5% | 690 | 39.3% | 43.8% | +116 | +4.6pp |
| Total | 3,117 | 6.7% | 6.8% | 2,518 | 6.0% | 6.3% | +599 | +0.7pp |