Western Australia
Disadvantage is complex and concentrated in a small number of communities within Western Australia.
Just six local government areas (4.3% of total) account for 28.6% of the highest rank 
positions across 19 indicators of disadvantage. These localities show high rates of:
- no internet access
- young adults not fully engaged in work or study
- overall education
- Year 3 reading
- prison admissions
We can see that disadvantage is concentrated when we compare the 3% most disadvantaged LGAs to the rest of the state. Those living in the 3% most disadvantaged LGAs are:
- roughly eight times as likely to have spent time in prison
- six times as likely to have been unemployed for a lengthy period
- around five times more likely to have a low overall level of education, or to be disengaged from education or employment as young adults
- more than three times as likely to have a disability
- two-and-a-half times as likely to have suffered child maltreatment.
Locational disadvantage is entrenched
Due to the unavailability of some data in Western Australia (including criminal conviction, juvenile offending and domestic violence) comparison between 2015 and 2007 is difficult.
As a result, we have used a simple count of the number of times a location appeared in the ‘top’ or ‘most disadvantaged’ rankings across all indicators to create a list of ‘most’ and ‘next most’ disadvantaged.
For consistency, we have compared these findings to a similar list from 2007.
Most Disadvantaged LGAs in Western Australia – comparison with previous years
(Locations listed alphabetically within bands)
| Band | 2015 | 2007 |
|---|---|---|
| Most disadvantaged |
Derby-West Kimberley Halls Creek Meekatharra Menzies Mt Magnet Ngaanyatjarraku Wyndham-East Kimberley |
Dundas Halls Creek Menzies Ngaanyatjarraku Sandstone Upper Gascoyne |
| Next most disadvantaged |
Beverley Broome Kellerberrin Laverton Mullewa Murchison Tammin Trayning Upper Gascoyne Wiluna |
Carnarvon Denmark Kondinin Laverton Murchison Perth Trayning |