Population

Need for 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, 75-84 year olds was the most common age group among residents who needed assistance with core activities in Scoresby, accounting for 19.9% (54 people). This share was lower than Knox (C) (22.5%). Since 2016, the biggest change was in 75-84 year olds, which increased by 54 people and 19.9 percentage points.

Section overview

Need for assistance with core activities by age

Scoresby - Persons (Usual residence)

This table summarises need for assistance for Scoresby in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Knox (C) and change since 2016.

Need for assistance with core activities by age change

Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.

2016
2021

0-4

+3

+1.1pp

5-14

+29

+3.8pp

15-19

+17

+4.0pp

20-24

+8

+2.0pp

25-34

+11

+1.6pp

35-44

+12

+1.3pp

45-54

+19

+2.1pp

55-64

+29

-5.7pp

65-74

+48

+8.0pp

75-84

+54

+19.9pp

85+

+31

+48.4pp

Data table

Need for assistance for Scoresby. Need for assistance with core activities by age. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Knox (C).

Need for assistance for Scoresby. Need for assistance with core activities by age. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Knox (C).
Need for assistance for Scoresby. Need for assistance with core activities by age. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Knox (C).
Category20212016Change
Count%Knox (C)%Count%Knox (C)%Countpp
0-431.1%1.3%00.0%1.6%+3+1.1pp
5-14293.8%4.5%00.0%3.5%+29+3.8pp
15-19174.0%3.6%00.0%2.7%+17+4.0pp
20-2482.0%2.7%00.0%2.1%+8+2.0pp
25-34111.6%2.3%00.0%1.7%+11+1.6pp
35-44121.3%2.1%00.0%1.9%+12+1.3pp
45-54192.1%2.8%00.0%2.7%+19+2.1pp
55-64324.3%4.2%310.0%3.8%+29-5.7pp
65-74488.0%8.3%00.0%7.9%+48+8.0pp
75-845419.9%22.5%00.0%20.7%+54+19.9pp
85+3148.4%53.5%00.0%48.9%+31+48.4pp
Total2694.4%5.8%32.4%4.8%+266+2.0pp