Sandstone, WA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Sandstone is a small town in the Goldfields region of Western Australia, about 661 kilometres north of Perth, and the seat of the Shire of Sandstone. Gold drew the first settlers after the Adelaide mine struck a reef on New Year's Day in 1903, pegged by George Dent and the brothers Wilton and Theodore Hack; the townsite was gazetted in 1906. A branch railway reached the town from Mount Magnet in 1910, and a state battery treated ore here from 1904 until 1982. Three kilometres south, a natural rock arch known as London Bridge anchors the Sandstone Heritage Trail, and the brick-built National Hotel of 1909 is the last of the town's original hotels. The town also inspired Randolph Stow's 1963 novel 'Tourmaline'.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Sandstone is more socio-economically advantaged than about 13% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 906, where about 1000 is the national average).
A socio-economic measure from ABS Census data — not a measure of how good a suburb is to live in or visit. How we calculate this.
Sandstone at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 109
- Median age
- 60
- Median weekly household income
- $949
- SEIFA score
- 906
- Coordinates
- -28.3027, 118.9849
Sandstone demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Sandstone using the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census; every percentage is a share of a clearly stated Census count, so each one traces back to the source. At a glance, the largest age group is mid-life (45–64) at 41%, 8% of homes are rented, and 23% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 0 | 0% |
| Youth (15–24) | 4 | 4% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 20 | 19% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 42 | 41% |
| Seniors (65+) | 37 | 36% |
Share of the 103 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 18 | 49% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 3 | 8% |
| Rented | 3 | 8% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 34 | 77% |
| Townhouses & semis | 0 | 0% |
| Flats & apartments | 0 | 0% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 44 occupied private dwellings in Sandstone.
- Median weekly rent
- $70
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,517
- Average household size
- 1.5 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,833
- Median weekly personal income
- $675
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 16 (23%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 3 (4%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 0 (0%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 29 (26%)
- Labour-force participation
- 41.3%
- Unemployment rate
- 6.7%
- Employed full-time
- 23
- Employed part-time
- 14
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021 (General Community Profile, by Suburb and Locality). © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. How we group bands and derive each share is set out on our methodology page.
Common questions about Sandstone
Where is Sandstone?
Sandstone is a suburb of Western Australia, Australia.
What is the population of Sandstone?
At the 2021 Census, Sandstone had a population of about 109.
Is Sandstone an advantaged area?
Sandstone has an ABS SEIFA score of 906, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 13 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 13% of Australian suburbs.
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