Employment
Unpaid care
About this topic
Unpaid care records whether people aged 15 years and over spent time providing unpaid help or assistance to someone because of disability, long-term illness, or problems related to old age. It captures informal care provided by family members or others in the community.
This topic is useful for understanding the demand placed on informal carers and the likely need for support services, respite, and home-based assistance. It does not measure the intensity or duration of care, so it should be read alongside need for assistance and other health and ageing indicators.
Interpretation notes
- This records whether a person aged 15 years and over provided unpaid help or assistance in the previous two weeks because of disability, long-term illness, or old age.
- It identifies whether care was provided, not the intensity, frequency, or number of hours of care.
Related topics
Key insight
In 2021, not providing unpaid care was the most common response among residents aged 15 and over in Byron Bay, accounting for 81% (4,557 people). This share was higher than Byron (A) (78.1%). Since 2016, the biggest change was in not providing unpaid care, which increased by 1,199 people and 11.6 percentage points.
Section overview
Unpaid care
Byron Bay - Persons aged 15+ (Usual residence)
This table summarises unpaid care for Byron Bay in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Byron (A) and change since 2016.
Unpaid care snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Byron Bay, with comparison markers for Byron (A).
Total Provided Unpaid Assistance
2021 count
467
% of total
8.3%
Change from 2016
-0.2pp
467
8.3%
-0.2pp
Total No Unpaid Assistance Provided
2021 count
4,557
% of total
81.0%
Change from 2016
+11.6pp
4,557
81.0%
+11.6pp
Total Unpaid Assistance Not Stated
2021 count
600
% of total
10.7%
Change from 2016
-11.5pp
600
10.7%
-11.5pp
Chart view
Unpaid care change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Total Provided Unpaid Assistance
+58
-0.2pp
Total No Unpaid Assistance Provided
+1,199
+11.6pp
Total Unpaid Assistance Not Stated
-473
-11.5pp
Data table
Unpaid care for Byron Bay. Unpaid care. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Byron (A).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Byron (A)% | Count | % | Byron (A)% | Count | pp | |
| Total Provided Unpaid Assistance | 467 | 8.3% | 11.1% | 409 | 8.5% | 11.2% | +58 | -0.2pp |
| Total No Unpaid Assistance Provided | 4,557 | 81.0% | 78.1% | 3,358 | 69.4% | 73.7% | +1,199 | +11.6pp |
| Total Unpaid Assistance Not Stated | 600 | 10.7% | 10.8% | 1,073 | 22.2% | 15.1% | -473 | -11.5pp |
| Total | 5,624 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 4,838 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +786 | 0.0pp |