The Kiwi capital of Queensland

IPSWICH is one of the Kiwi capitals of the country. The Ipswich statistical area has higher percentage of people born in New Zealand, according to 2011 Census.

Tiwana and Piripeti Kanuta, originally from New Zealand, have called Ipswich home for five years. Photo: Sarah Harvey

IPSWICH is now one of the Kiwi capitals of the country.

The Ipswich statistical area has a higher percentage of people born in New Zealand than the Queensland and Australian averages, according to 2011 Census data released yesterday.

New Zealand is the most common foreign country of birth for Ipswich residents, with 4.8% - or 13,410 - of the population born there.

This is above the Queensland average of 4.4% and more than double the national average of 2.2%.

The number of Kiwi-born Ipswich residents has dramatically risen since the 2006 Census, when 3.5% of people stated they were born in New Zealand.

It has leapfrogged England, which was the most commonly reported foreign country of birth in Ipswich in 2006.

East Ipswich resident Betty Kanuta moved from Gisborne on New Zealand's North Island to Ipswich in 2007.

She said much of her family had since followed her.

"We brought our grandchildren over here for a better life," she said.

"I wish we'd made the decision earlier.

"After we came here our son and his family of three followed us.

"We're all Maussies (Maori Aussies) now though."

England is the second most common foreign country of birth in Ipswich, with 3.6% of residents born there.

Australia remains the most common country of birth for Ipswich residents, with 73.2% of residents born here.

Following New Zealand and England, the next most common places of birth for Ipswich residents are Vietnam (2.3%), Samoa (0.8%) and the Philippines (0.8%).

However, the 2011 statistical area of Ipswich has been increased in size since the previous Census and now covers the eastern Lockyer Valley, Scenic Rim and Somerset regions and into the west of Brisbane.

The population for the Ipswich Statistical Area Level 4 in 2011 was 281,790, while the 2006 Ipswich City (Statistical Subdivision) had a population of 140,182.

New Zealand may be the most common country of birth outside Australia, but Vietnamese is the most spoken language other than English in the statistical area.

FAST FACTS

The census reported Ipswich as having a lower percentage of residents attending university than the Queensland or Australian averages. Only 9.6% of residents were attending a tertiary institution, compared to 13.5% statewide and 14.3% across the country.

Ipswich also had a higher percentage of single parents, with 19.2% of Ipswich residents raising children.

Originally published as The Kiwi capital of Queensland