# City of Newcastle

The City of Newcastle is a local government area in the Hunter region of New South Wales, Australia. The City of Newcastle incorporates much of the area of the Newcastle metropolitan area.
The Lord Mayor of the City of Newcastle Council is Councillor Dr. Ross Kerridge, an Independent Labor politician elected under the team campaign banner 'Our Newcastle' at the 2024 New South Wales mayoral elections.

## History

The Awabakal and Worimi peoples are acknowledged by council as the traditional custodians of the land and waters of Newcastle.
Following the passing of the Municipalities Act 1858 by the New South Wales parliament, the Municipality of Newcastle was proclaimed on 7 June 1859. The new Municipality was divided into three wards – City, Macquarie, and Honeysuckle. Eight years later, the Municipalities Act 1867 classified the Newcastle Municipality as a "Borough".
The Greater Newcastle Act 1937 merged the City of Newcastle with 10 of its suburban municipalities to form the City of Greater Newcastle. The Act also transferred parts of the Lake Macquarie Shire and Tarro Shire to the new city. The amalgamations and transfers took effect from 2 April 1938.
The newly created City of Greater Newcastle was subsequently renamed to City of Newcastle on 23 March 1949.
| Municipality | Date established | Population | Population | Population | Population |
| Municipality | Date established | 1891 | 1901 | 1911 | 1921 |
| Adamstown | 31 December 1885 | 2,030 | 2,420 | 2,660 | 3,959 |
| Carrington | 28 March 1887 | 2,137 | 2,547 | 2,685 | 3,115 |
| Hamilton | 11 December 1871 | 4,844 | 6,124 | 7,908 | 14,196 |
| Lambton | 26 June 1871 | 3,436 | 3,159 | 2,796 | 3,691 |
| Merewether | 20 August 1885 | 4,399 | 4,547 | 4,151 | 5,908 |
| New Lambton | 1 August 1889 | 1,548 | 1,578 | 1,827 | 3,550 |
| Stockton | 12 October 1889 | 2,417 | 2,549 | 2,106 | 4,598 |
| Wallsend | 27 February 1874 | 6,945 | 6,997 | 6,007 | 6,446 |
| Waratah | 23 February 1871 | 2,718 | 3,080 | 4,419 | 12,192 |
| Wickham | 25 February 1871 | 6,582 | 7,752 | 8,434 | 12,151 |

## Suburbs, towns and villages

The towns and villages in the City of Newcastle are split into four wards – Ward 1, Ward 2, Ward 3, Ward 4. These include:

## Proposed amalgamation

After a 2015 review by the NSW Government Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal found that Newcastle City Council was not "fit for the future", it was recommended that the City of Newcastle merge with Lake Macquarie City Council. However, the Minister for Local Government subsequently proposed that Newcastle City Council instead merge with Port Stephens Council to form a new council with an area of 1,045 km$^2$ (403 sq mi) and support a population of approximately 230,000. The outcome of an independent review was completed by mid–2016. On 14 February 2017, the NSW Government announced it would not be proceeding with further regional council mergers, including the Newcastle City Council and Port Stephens Council merger.

## Demographics

At the 2021 census, there were 168,873 people in the City of Newcastle local government area, of these 49.1 per cent were Male and 50.9 per cent were Female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 4.4 per cent of the population, which was higher than the national and state averages of 3.2 and 3.4 per cent respectively. The median age of people in the City of Newcastle was 37 years, just below the national median of 38. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 16.2 per cent of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 16.9 per cent of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 38.7 per cent were married and 12.7 per cent were either divorced or separated.
Population growth in the City of Newcastle between the 2001 census and the 2006 census was 3.91 per cent; and in the subsequent ten years to the 2016 census, population growth was 9.64 per cent. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same periods, being 5.78 per cent and 17.86 per cent respectively, population growth in the City of Newcastle local government area was significantly lower than the national average. The median weekly income for residents within the City of Newcastle was marginally higher than the national average.
At the 2021 census, 80.8% of residents in the City of Newcastle local government area stated their country of birth as Australia significantly exceeding the national average of 66.9%. Almost 60% of all residents in the City of Newcastle nominated a religion with Catholicism being at almost 25%, which was slightly higher than the national average of 22.6%. As at the 2016 census, households in the City of Newcastle local government area had a significantly lower than average proportion (11.6%) where a language other than English is spoken (national average was 22.2%).
Selected historical census data for the City of Newcastle local government area :
| Census year | Census year | Census year | 2001 | 2006 | 2011 | 2016 | 2021 |
| Population | Population | Estimated residents on Census night | 136,413 | 141,753 | 148,535 | 155,411 | 168,873 |
| Population | Population | LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales | | | | 18th | |
| Population | Population | % of New South Wales population | | | 2.15% | 2.08% | 2.09% |
| Population | Population | % of Australian population | 0.73% | 0.71% | 0.69% | 0.66% | 0.66% |
| Cultural and language diversity | Cultural and language diversity | Cultural and language diversity | Cultural and language diversity | | | | |
| Ancestry, top responses | Ancestry, top responses | English | | | 29.2% | 29.3% | 40.7% |
| Ancestry, top responses | Ancestry, top responses | Australian | | | 30.4% | 27.7% | 37.8% |
| Ancestry, top responses | Ancestry, top responses | Irish | | | 8.9% | 9.6% | 12.5% |
| Ancestry, top responses | Ancestry, top responses | Scottish | | | 8.0% | 8.3% | 11.6% |
| Ancestry, top responses | Ancestry, top responses | German | | | 2.9% | 3.0% | – |
| Ancestry, top responses | Ancestry, top responses | Australian Aboriginal | – | – | – | – | 4.2% |
| Language, top responses (other than English) | Language, top responses (other than English) | Mandarin | n/c | 0.4% | 0.6% | 1.2% | 1.0% |
| Language, top responses (other than English) | Language, top responses (other than English) | Macedonian | 1.1% | 0.9% | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.6% |
| Language, top responses (other than English) | Language, top responses (other than English) | Italian | 0.9% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.5% | 0.4% |
| Language, top responses (other than English) | Language, top responses (other than English) | Greek | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.4% |
| Language, top responses (other than English) | Language, top responses (other than English) | Religious affiliation | Religious affiliation | | | | |
| Religious affiliation, top responses | Religious affiliation, top responses | No Religion | 12.7% | 16.3% | 22.6% | 32.8% | 44.8% |
| Religious affiliation, top responses | Religious affiliation, top responses | Catholic | 26.6% | 26.1% | 25.3% | 22.2% | 18.9% |
| Religious affiliation, top responses | Religious affiliation, top responses | Anglican | 27.0% | 25.0% | 22.3% | 17.0% | 12.3% |
| Religious affiliation, top responses | Religious affiliation, top responses | Uniting Church | 8.2% | 7.0% | 5.9% | 4.2% | 2.9% |
| Religious affiliation, top responses | Religious affiliation, top responses | Presbyterian and Reformed | 4.1% | 3.5% | 3.2% | – | – |
| Median weekly incomes | Median weekly incomes | Median weekly incomes | Median weekly incomes | | | | |
| Personal income | Personal income | Median weekly personal income | | A$409 | A$563 | A$660 | A$852 |
| Personal income | Personal income | % of Australian median income | | 87.8% | 97.6% | 99.7% | 105.8% |
| Family income | Family income | Median weekly family income | | A$1,132 | A$1,530 | A$1,778 | A$2,264 |
| Family income | Family income | % of Australian median income | | 96.7% | 103.3% | 102.5% | 106.7% |
| Household income | Household income | Median weekly household income | | A$885 | A$1,165 | A$1,368 | 1,760 |
| Household income | Household income | % of Australian median income | | 86.2% | 94.4% | 95.1% | 100.8% |
| Dwelling structure | Dwelling structure | Dwelling structure | Dwelling structure | | | | |
| Dwelling type | Dwelling type | Separate house | 74.6% | 73.3% | 73.5% | 71.1% | 69.0% |
| Dwelling type | Dwelling type | Semi-detached, terrace or townhouse | 10.0% | 10.9% | 12.1% | 15.4% | 16.2% |
| Dwelling type | Dwelling type | Flat or apartment | 14.1% | 14.9% | 13.9% | 12.7% | 14.2% |

## Council elections
### Current composition and election method

Newcastle City Council is composed of thirteen councillors, including the Lord Mayor, generally for a fixed four-year term of office. The Lord Mayor is directly elected while the twelve other Councillors are elected proportionally as four separate wards, each electing three Councillors. The most recent election was held on 14 September 2024. The current makeup of the council, including the Lord Mayor, is as follows:
| Party | Councillors |
| Labor | 5 |
| Greens | 3 |
| Our Newcastle | 3 |
| Liberal | 2 |
| Total | 13 |
The current Council, elected in September 2024, in order of election by ward is:
| Ward | Councillor | Party | Notes |
| Lord Mayor | Ross Kerridge | Our Newcastle | Councillor since 2024 |
| Ward One | Declan Clausen | Labor | Councillor since 2017 by-election |
| Ward One | Charlotte McCabe | Greens | Councillor since 2021 |
| Ward One | Peter Gittins | Our Newcastle | Councillor since 2024 |
| Ward Two | Paige Johnson | Labor | Councillor since 2024 |
| Ward Two | Jenny Barrie | Liberal | Councillor since 2021 |
| Ward Two | Joel Pringle | Greens | Councillor since 2024 |
| Ward Three | Nuatali Nelmes | Labor | Councillor since 2008 |
| Ward Three | Mark Brooker | Our Newcastle | Councillor since 2024 |
| Ward Three | Sinead Francis-Coan | Greens | Councillor since 2024 |
| Ward Four | Elizabeth Adamczyk | Labor | Councillor since 2021 |
| Ward Four | Deahnna Richardson | Labor | Councillor since 2021 |
| Ward Four | Callum Pull | Liberal | Councillor since 2021 |

## Election results
### 2024

2024 New South Wales local elections: Newcastle :
| Party | Party | Party | Votes | % | Swing | Seats | Change |
| | Labor | Labor | 35,324 | 35.6 | −5.2 | 5 | 1 |
| | Greens | Greens | 20,719 | 20.9 | +4.3 | 3 | 1 |
| | Our Newcastle | Our Newcastle | 23,306 | 23.5 | | 2 | 2 |
| | Liberal | Liberal | 16,594 | 16.7 | −1.7 | 2 | 1 |
| | Independent Liberal | Independent Liberal | 2,324 | 2.3 | | 0 | |
| | Socialist Alliance | Socialist Alliance | 707 | 0.7 | −0.2 | 0 | |
| | Christians For Community | Christians For Community | 257 | 0.3 | | 0 | |
| | Independents | Independents | 87 | 0.1 | | 0 | |
| Formal votes | Formal votes | Formal votes | 99,319 | 93.5 | | | |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 6,924 | 6.5 | | | |
| Total | Total | Total | 106,243 | | | | |

## Sister cities

Newcastle Council has sister city relations with the following cities:
| City | Prefecture/State | Country | Year |
| Ube | Yamaguchi | Japan | 1980 |
| Dubbo | New South Wales | Australia | 1995 |
| Arcadia | California | United States | |

## Coat of arms

Coat of arms of the City of Newcastle :
* AdoptedFormal grant by the Kings of Arms, 20 March 1961 (Earl Marshal's Warrant, 8 March 1961).
* CrestOut of a Mural Crown Or a Mount Vert thereon a Lighthouse proper.
* HelmA closed Helmet, mantling per pale Vert and Azure, doubled Or.
* EscutcheonVert, on a Pile Or another Azure charged with a Lymphad the sail furled proper Flagged Gules, on a Chief Gold a Fleece also proper banded also Gold between a Lozenge and Wheel Sable.
* SupportersOn either side a Seagull wings elevated and addorsed proper gorged with a Mural Crown Or.
* CompartmentSand and foaming waves.
* MottoEnterprise
* SymbolismThe escutcheon elements represent the status of Newcastle as a port city, with the blue waters projecting into the fertile green of the land. The gold chief and chevron represent wealth and fertility and the chevron also symbolises the beaches between land and sea. The Lymphad symbolises shipping and maritime trade. In the chief, the gold field also represents wealth and fertility, with a golden fleece for the produce and wealth of agriculture. The black lozenge represents the coal industry, upon which much of Newcastle's wealth is built, and the wheel represents the wheels of industry and trade. The compartment comprises sand and waves for the numerous beaches of the area, while the seagull supporters are a common aquatic bird of the city and are symbolic of the coastal position. The supporters are gorged (collared) by a mural crown to represent civic authority. The crest comprises a lighthouse upon a green mount representing the Nobbys Head Light on Nobbys Head, a prominent feature of the city that also alludes to the importance of shipping. The crest emerged from a gold Mural crown that represents civic authority.
* Previous versions Following the proclamation of Newcastle as a city in 1885, the Council engaged James Sayers, Newcastle manager of the London Chartered Bank, to design a Council Seal. Sayers' design featured a shield surmounted by a scroll with the words "City of Newcastle" and another scroll beneath with the Latin motto "Finis coronat opus" ("The end crowns the work"). The shield featured Nobbys Head and Lighthouse, with three sailing ships, a loaded coal truck, and three bales of wool. This badge was readopted in 1938 by the new City of Greater Newcastle with the amended council name.
* Other versionsThe flag adopted by the Council features the full armorial achievement on a bicolour of the city's official colours adopted in 1923, Cinnamon Brown and Emerald Green   . The colours are those used by the 35th Battalion "Newcastle's Own Regiment".