Households
Family blending
About this topic
Family blending classifies couple families with children according to whether the children are shared by both partners, from a previous relationship, or a mix of both. It applies only to couple families with children, not to all family types or all households.
This topic can help show patterns of repartnering and family complexity within an area. It should be interpreted with household type and households with children, because it is a specialised family-structure measure rather than a summary of all families.
Interpretation notes
- This derived family view applies only to couple families with children, not all families or all households.
- It classifies whether children are shared, step, or blended within the couple family, so it should not be compared directly with headline household totals.
Key insight
In 2021, intact families was the most common family type among couple families with children in Brinsmead, accounting for 83.9% (648 families). This share was higher than Cairns (R) (82.4%). Since 2016, the biggest change was in intact families, which increased by 645 families, while its share fell by 16.1 percentage points.
Section overview
Family blending
Brinsmead - Total couples with children (Enumerated)
This table summarises family blending for Brinsmead in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Cairns (R) and change since 2016.
Family blending snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Brinsmead, with comparison markers for Cairns (R).
Intact Family
2021 count
648
% of total
83.9%
Change from 2016
-16.1pp
648
83.9%
-16.1pp
Step family
2021 count
92
% of total
11.9%
Change from 2016
+11.9pp
92
11.9%
+11.9pp
Blended family
2021 count
31
% of total
4.0%
Change from 2016
+4.0pp
31
4.0%
+4.0pp
Other couple family
2021 count
6
% of total
0.8%
Change from 2016
+0.8pp
6
0.8%
+0.8pp
Chart view
Family blending change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Intact Family
+645
-16.1pp
Step family
+92
+11.9pp
Blended family
+31
+4.0pp
Other couple family
+6
+0.8pp
Data table
Family blending for Brinsmead. Family blending. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Cairns (R).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Cairns (R)% | Count | % | Cairns (R)% | Count | pp | |
| Intact Family | 648 | 83.9% | 82.4% | 3 | 100.0% | 86.7% | +645 | -16.1pp |
| Step family | 92 | 11.9% | 12.5% | 0 | 0.0% | 8.1% | +92 | +11.9pp |
| Blended family | 31 | 4.0% | 4.4% | 0 | 0.0% | 4.5% | +31 | +4.0pp |
| Other couple family | 6 | 0.8% | 0.6% | 0 | 0.0% | 0.7% | +6 | +0.8pp |
| Total couples with children | 772 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 3 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +769 | 0.0pp |