By - penny population expert
The tantalising idea of an annual census dataset
A recent review of the administrative data (i.e. data from other government sources) used in New Zealand’s 2018 census has confirmed its value and revealed its potential. Penny takes a closer look at the strengths and weaknesses of...
Targeting affected communities
Recent changes to the Local Government Act in Victoria require Councils to develop an Engagement Policy. A central feature of this new challenge is to ensure affected communities are represented in the...
What does the 2018 Census tell us about New Zealand?
Any Census is a mighty undertaking that provides invaluable data for community planning and development. The 2018 New Zealand Census was no exception. In this blog, Penny pulls out some highlights from our new...
How are you going with your community engagement?
Recent changes to the Local Government Act in Victoria require each Local Government to develop an Engagement Policy. A key feature of this policy is to ensuring affected community groups are represented in...
Final external report on 2018 NZ Census looks to future Censuses
The third and final report from the external committee investigating the 2018 census was released recently. As we continue rolling out Census data in our Community Profiles, Penny Bloomberg takes a look at this...
Confused about NZ Population (ERP) figures?
If you’ve recently been looking at the population (ERP) for your Territorial Authority, you may have noticed some strange patterns in the charts. In this piece, Penny explains why. At this point in the rollout...
Data quality in the 2018 census: Comparability problems
The 2018 Census has been unique in many ways. Issues with under-counts resulted in the deployment of new methods to source and validate data. One of the core approaches was the use of administrative records to...
Ageing on hold in New Zealand?
Despite the limited amount of data released from the 2018 Census thus far, interesting stories are starting to emerge. In this piece, Penny explores a slowdown in ageing across the population: the role...
First data from the 2018 NZ Census: Growth is the story
Today, Stats NZ has released the first round of data from the 2018 Census. In this piece, we share some highlights from the first release and explain how we’ll be updating our Community Profiles as data...
A profile of Ashburton, New Zealand
We’ve recently welcomed New Zealand’s Ashburton District to our list of local councils who make their community profiles available to the general public. In this post, Penny digs a little deeper into the...
NZ Census Update: September 2019 for the first release
Following yesterday’s announcement from Stats NZ, Penny Bloomberg updates us on the latest plan for releasing data from the 2018 New Zealand Census.
What’s happening with the New Zealand 2018 Census results?
We’re continuing to receive questions from our friends in local government about the New Zealand Census – what happened, when is it being released, and what do the changes mean for me? Penny Bloomberg gives you...
Whangarei District- riding the Auckland wave?
Whangarei District Council recently joined the .id stable with the launch of their Community Profile and Social Atlas tools. Penny looks at what’s behind the rapid population growth in this idyllic corner of...
Intelligent smaller communities adapting to the digital economy
Picture a small New Zealand council (population 40,000), blessed with magnificent natural beauty and history, but challenged with government centralist policies, a stuttering economy and an ageing population.
Forecasting the future of Wellington: Telling complex stories of change
Wellington City is changing – fast. In this piece, Penny shares how we forecast population change in rapidly growing areas, to help local councils make informed planning decisions. She also explores how the...
National migration series | Part 5: Why is it important to understand migration patterns?
Immigration data can be misleading. Arrival card data simply captures intentions, yet where immigrants plan to go and where they end up settling often varies.
National migration series | Part 4: National versus regional/local migration profiles
From the earlier blogs in our New Zealand migration series we have established that:
National migration series | Part 3: The link between departures and arrivals
In the last blog in our series on national migration, we discussed inward migration and confirmed that the total arrivals figure is currently high, but that the components making up that result point to lower...
National migration series | Part 2: Understanding incoming migrants
In part two of our National migration series, we begin to explore the nuances of inbound migration, to help you understand how the mix of inbound migration affects how migration is likely to affect the future...
National migration series | Part 1: Trend or no trend?
Planners know that migration is a powerful influence on future population – an influence much stronger than natural increase (births and deaths).
Measuring generosity in communities
Gisborne is a place known for its sunshine hours and great surf beaches. However I have a different memory of the town after a recent visit. It was raining and I was umbrella-less so consigned to getting wet on...
