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Placemaker: October 2026 Updates

October 2026 Placemaker updates – shade the map by Census data, search for data layers by keyword and read demographic charts for your catchment.

See who lives in your catchment, not only how many will live there

 

Shade the map by Census data

Choose 'Demographics' in Data layers, then step through theme, sub-theme and category – country of birth, household income, need for assistance and more – and the map shades every SA1 by it. Click an area to see its share, count, total, a trend line across Census years and the source, or start a catchment from it. Network planners can now see where the people a service is for live.

See population forecasts by sex

Population forecasts now split by sex. Choose persons, male or female for total population or any age range, from 2021 to 2046 and down to SA1. Male and female also show as a share of total persons, so you can see where that share is shifting.

Demographic charts in Insights

A new Demographics tab in Insights shows Census charts for your catchment beside a benchmark you choose, under six headings from cultural diversity to housing. Headline stats give median age, income, rent and mortgage repayment at a glance. Compare 2011, 2016 and 2021, filter categories, switch any chart to a table and download it as PNG or CSV.

Choose what your catchment is compared against

In Insights, pick the benchmark your catchment is compared against – the state, capital city or rest of state, SA4 or local government area it sits in. Search to find other local government areas and larger regions you have access to. Placemaker remembers your choice for that catchment, and each person you share it with keeps their own.

See more about an area from the map

Click an area to see its start, end and change for the population or dwellings layer you have on. Select View details to see growth year by year, age structure by service age group – such as primary schoolers (5–11) – and residential development sites with their capacity.

Data updates

  • ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2011, 2016 and 2021 – down to SA1.
  • Market share by school type, derived by Informed Decisions from the 2021 Census.
  • Population forecasts by sex (persons, male and female), 2021–2046 – down to SA1.

Improvements & bug fixes

  • Choose a population or dwellings layer and Placemaker sets the year to 2026–2046, the boundary to SA1 and, where there’s only one, the measure. Change any of them before you select Apply.
  • Colour the map from only the areas in view: in the legend, open Display settings and set the data range to visible area. Ranges update when the map stops moving.
  • Scroll past the maps in Insights without the map catching the page. To zoom, hold Ctrl (Cmd on a Mac) as you scroll.
  • Points on the map stay separate until you zoom further out, so you can see individual locations across a wider area.
  • Uploaded layers:
    • Show on map now zooms to the layer.
    • A new ‘View data in Locations’ link takes you straight to the layer’s locations.
    • ‘Colour by’ only appears when a layer has a field to colour by.
    • Legend headings wrap instead of cutting off.
  • Forecast values for an SA2, SA3, SA4, capital city area or state now cover the whole region, even when your subscription covers only part of it.

Questions?

Contact support, or read these: