Central Darling

New South Wales · Far West and Orana · 1,757 people · 6 suburbs · 3 postcodes

Central Darling at a glance

1,757

Population

#128 of 130 in NSW

63,099

km² area

42.0

Median age

+2.3 vs NSW

872

SEIFA IRSAD

#129 of 130 in NSW

Schools

4 gov, 1 Cath, 0 indep

3.4%

Born overseas

41.6%

Renting

Map shows the Central Darling LGA boundary in blue with a marker per suburb. Hover for suburb name, click for details.

Marker colour reflects SEIFA IRSAD decile: ● 1-2 (most disadvantaged), ● 3-4, ● 5-6, ● 7-8, ● 9-10 (most advantaged).

Boundary source: ABS ASGS 2021. Map tiles: OpenStreetMap contributors.

Federal electorate boundaries can be toggled on the map. Boundary source: ABS ASGS 2021 CED boundaries.

Central Darling is a Local Government Area in New South Wales, in the Sydney region. It covers 6 suburbs across 3 postcodes and an area of 63,099 km². Central Darling has a population of 1,757 , ranking #128 most populous in NSW. The most populous suburb is Wilcannia (735 residents).About 3.4% of residents were born overseas and 1.4% speak a language other than English at home.

Who lives here

Age structure

17.6%

11.4%

23.5%

27.5%

20.0%

0–14 (17.6%) 15–24 (11.4%) 25–44 (23.5%) 45–64 (27.5%) 65+ (20.0%)

Show counts

0–14 years	308 (17.6%)
15–24 years	199 (11.4%)
25–44 years	411 (23.5%)
45–64 years	482 (27.5%)
65+ years	351 (20.0%)

3.4%

Born overseas

1.4%

Speak a language other than English at home

35.3%

First Nations

2.4

Avg household size

How they live

Housing tenure

47.4%

11.0%

41.6%

Owned outright (47.4%) Mortgaged (11.0%) Renting (41.6%)

Dwelling type mix

96.6%

Separate house (96.6%) Semi/townhouse (2.3%) Flat/apartment (1.0%)

$154

Median weekly rent

$864

Median monthly mortgage

56.7%

Households with 0-1 cars

43.3%

Households with 2+ cars

Work and learning

6.1%

Unemployment rate

393

In full-time work

124

In part-time work

Schools in Central Darling

5 schools across Central Darling: 80.0% Government, 20.0% Catholic, 0% Independent. The NSW average is 69.6% / 16.9% / 13.5%. Schools here have a median ICSEA of 747 (range 673 to 873). NSW median is 1005; national mean is 1000.

Sector mix

80.0%

20.0%

NSW average for comparison

69.6%

16.9%

13.5%

Government Catholic Independent

Type breakdown

40.0%

60.0%

Primary (40.0%) Secondary (0%) Combined (60.0%) Special (0%)

ICSEA range

700 National mean 1000 1300

LGA median 747 NSW median 1005LGA range 673 to 873

ICSEA (Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage) summarises the socio-economic background of each school's families. Higher values indicate more advantage. Source: ACARA 2025.

All 5 schools in Central Darling, sorted by enrolment:

School	Sector	Type	Suburb	Students	ICSEA
Menindee Central School	Government	Combined	Menindee	74	760
Wilcannia Central School	Government	Combined	Wilcannia	65	673
Ivanhoe Central School	Government	Combined	Ivanhoe	29	747
St Therese's Community Parish School	Catholic	Primary	Wilcannia	25	740
White Cliffs Public School	Government	Primary	White Cliffs	17	873

Source: ACARA School Profiles 2025. ICSEA shown where reported; some schools (notably small primaries) do not publish ICSEA.

SEIFA socio-economic indexes

SEIFA 2021 ranks Australian areas across four dimensions. Scores are population-weighted averages of suburb-level SEIFA scores within Central Darling. Higher scores indicate more advantage; the national mean is 1000.

IRSAD

Relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage

872

Ranked #129 of 130 NSW LGAs

IRSD

Relative disadvantage only (lower = more disadvantaged)

831

IER

Economic resources: income, wealth, housing

857

IEO

Education and occupation: qualifications, skill levels

931

Suburbs in Central Darling

Central Darling contains 6 suburbs and 3 postcodes. Sorted by population.

Suburb	Postcode	Population	Median income	Median age
Wilcannia	2836	735	$1,211/wk	32
Menindee	2879	537	$885/wk	50
Ivanhoe	2878	261	$1,416/wk	42
White Cliffs	2836	156	$617/wk	56
Sunset Strip	2879	42	$537/wk	63
Mossgiel	2878	26	$450/wk	44

Postcodes covered

2836, 2878, 2879

Compare Central Darling with neighbouring LGAs

Side-by-side demographic and socio-economic snapshot of Central Darling and its closest neighbouring LGAs.

LGA	Population	Median age	SEIFA IRSAD	% renting	% overseas-born
Central Darling (NSW)	1,757	42.0	872	41.6%	3.4%
Unincorporated NSW	837	44.2	1022	29.2%	11.8%
Carrathool	3,394	37.9	964	31.0%	12.5%
Cobar	4,094	37.1	938	32.9%	7.3%
Balranald	2,133	42.8	931	26.7%	8.6%
Wentworth	7,475	43.6	949	21.8%	6.1%

Services and amenities

Climate & weather Climate data for Wilcannia

Frequently asked questions about Central Darling

What is the population of Central Darling?

The 2021 Census recorded 1,757 people living in Central Darling, across 6 suburbs.

What suburbs are in Central Darling?

Central Darling contains 6 suburbs. The most populous are Wilcannia, Menindee, Ivanhoe, White Cliffs, Sunset Strip.See the full list in the Suburbs section above.

What postcodes are in Central Darling?

Central Darling covers 3 postcodes: 2836, 2878, 2879.

How many schools are in Central Darling?

Central Darling has 5 schools, including 4 government, 1 Catholic, and 0 independent schools (ACARA 2025).

What is the SEIFA score for Central Darling?

Central Darling has a population-weighted SEIFA IRSAD score of 872, where the national average is 1000. Higher scores indicate more relative advantage.

Page last reviewed June 2026. Data sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census (CC BY 4.0), SEIFA 2021 (IRSD, IRSAD, IER, IEO), ACARA School Profiles 2025, ABS ASGS 2021 LGA boundaries. How this data is sourced.