Population
Assistance
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.
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 Penrith, accounting for 24.4% (251 people). This share was higher than Penrith (C) (23.8%). Since 2016, the biggest change was in 85+ year olds, which decreased by 83 people and 25.6 percentage points.
Section overview
Need for assistance with core activities by age
Penrith - Persons (Usual residence)
This table summarises assistance for Penrith in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Penrith (C) and change since 2016.
Need for assistance with core activities by age snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Penrith, with comparison markers for Penrith (C).
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
+8
+0.5pp
5-14
+23
+0.3pp
15-19
+10
+1.2pp
20-24
+19
-0.1pp
25-34
+47
+0.6pp
35-44
+31
0.0pp
45-54
+38
+0.8pp
55-64
+32
-0.1pp
65-74
+40
-1.1pp
75-84
+53
-2.2pp
85+
-83
-25.6pp
Data table
Assistance for Penrith. Need for assistance with core activities by age. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Penrith (C).
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Penrith (C)% | Count | % | Penrith (C)% | Count | pp | |
| 0-4 | 19 | 1.8% | 1.8% | 11 | 1.3% | 1.5% | +8 | +0.5pp |
| 5-14 | 105 | 6.4% | 5.6% | 82 | 6.1% | 4.4% | +23 | +0.3pp |
| 15-19 | 38 | 5.1% | 3.8% | 28 | 3.9% | 3.1% | +10 | +1.2pp |
| 20-24 | 49 | 2.9% | 2.7% | 30 | 3.0% | 2.3% | +19 | -0.1pp |
| 25-34 | 94 | 2.6% | 2.1% | 47 | 2.0% | 1.8% | +47 | +0.6pp |
| 35-44 | 106 | 4.3% | 2.4% | 75 | 4.3% | 2.5% | +31 | 0.0pp |
| 45-54 | 125 | 6.2% | 3.9% | 87 | 5.4% | 3.7% | +38 | +0.8pp |
| 55-64 | 160 | 9.1% | 6.4% | 128 | 9.2% | 6.1% | +32 | -0.1pp |
| 65-74 | 220 | 14.9% | 11.3% | 180 | 16.0% | 11.0% | +40 | -1.1pp |
| 75-84 | 251 | 24.4% | 23.8% | 198 | 26.6% | 25.7% | +53 | -2.2pp |
| 85+ | 185 | 32.9% | 45.7% | 268 | 58.5% | 58.0% | -83 | -25.6pp |
| Total | 1,348 | 7.5% | 5.5% | 1,127 | 8.5% | 5.2% | +221 | -1.0pp |