Municipality of Burwood

Municipality of Burwood
Local government area
Location in Metropolitan Sydney
Interactive map of Municipality of Burwood
Coordinates: 33°53′S 151°06′E / 33.883°S 151.100°E / -33.883; 151.100
Country	Australia
State	New South Wales
Region	Metropolitan Sydney
Established	27 March 1874 (1874-03-27)[1]
Council seat	Burwood
Government
• Mayor	John Faker
• State electorate	Strathfield
• Federal divisions	Reid Grayndler
Area
• Total	7 km^2 (2.7 sq mi)
Population
• Total	40,217 (2021 census)[3]
• Density	5,700/km^2 (14,900/sq mi)
Website	Municipality of Burwood
LGAs around Municipality of Burwood Canada Bay Canada Bay Inner West Strathfield Municipality of Burwood Inner West Canterbury Bankstown Canterbury Bankstown Inner West

The Municipality of Burwood (also known as Burwood Council) is a local government area in the inner-west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The mayor of the Municipality is Cr. John Faker, a member of the Labor Party. The municipality is 7 km², making it the second smallest Local Government Area in New South Wales, being larger than only Hunter's Hill.^[4]

History

The municipality was established on 27 March 1874. The council chambers are located on Conder Street and were designed and built by architect Jack Hennessy in 1877. Hennessy was later a mayor of Burwood.^[5]

A 2015 review of local government boundaries by the NSW Government Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal recommended that the Municipality of Burwood merge with adjoining councils of: Canada Bay and Strathfield Councils to form a new council with an area of 41 square kilometres (16 sq mi) and support a population of approximately 163,000 at the time.^[6]

In May 2016, Strathfield Council challenged the proposed merger and commenced proceedings in the New South Wales Land and Environment Court. After the court heard that there were legal flaws in the report from the state government-appointed delegate who examined the proposal for merging the councils, the NSW Government withdrew from the case and the merger proposal stalled.^[7] In July 2017, the Berejiklian government decided to abandon the forced merger of the Strathfield, Burwood and Canada Bay local government areas, along with several other proposed forced mergers.^[8]

Suburbs in the local government area

The following suburbs within the Municipality of Burwood are:

• Burwood
• Burwood Heights
• Enfield

• Croydon (shared with Inner West)
• Croydon Park (shared with Canterbury-Bankstown and Inner West)
• Strathfield (shared with the Canada Bay and Strathfield)

Demographics

At the 2021 census, there were 40,217 people in the Burwood local government area, of these, 48.9 per cent were male and 51.1 per cent were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 0.4 per cent of the population; significantly below the NSW and Australian averages of 2.9 and 2.8 per cent respectively. The median age of people in the Municipality of Burwood was 34 years. Children aged 0–14 years made up 4.2 per cent of the population and people aged 85 years and over made up 2.9 per cent of the population. The largest age group was 20–24 (12.4 per cent). Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 43.7 per cent were married and 9.4 per cent were either divorced or separated.^[3]

Population growth in the Municipality of Burwood between the 2001 census and the 2006 census was 5.26 per cent; and in the subsequent five years to the 2011 census, population growth was 4.84 per cent. At the 2016 census, the population in the Municipality increased by 13.53 per cent. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same period, being 8.8 per cent, population growth in Burwood local government area was significantly higher than the national average.^[9][10] The median weekly income for residents within the Municipality of Burwood of was generally on par with the national average.^[4]

At the 2021 census, the proportion of residents in Burwood local government area who stated their ancestry as Chinese was 6 times the national average; and the proportion of households where an Asian language was spoken at home was only slightly higher than the national average (1.4 times).^[3]

Selected historical census data for Burwood local government area
Census year			2001[9]	2006[10]	2011[11]	2016[4]	2021[3]
Population		Estimated residents on census night	29,381	30,926	32,423	36,809	40,217
		LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales			57th	55th	55th
		% of New South Wales population			0.46%	0.49%	0.50%
		% of Australian population	0.16%	0.16%	0.15%	0.16%	0.16%
Median weekly incomes
Personal income		Median weekly personal income		A$403	A$490	A$552	A$739
		% of Australian median income		86.5%	84.9%	83.4%	91.8%
Family income		Median weekly family income		A$1,194	A$1,441	A$1,725	A$2,101
		% of Australian median income		102.0%	97.3%	99.5%	99.1%
Household income		Median weekly household income		A$1,017	A$1,310	A$1,569	A$1,867
		% of Australian median income		104.3%	106.2%	109.1%	106.9%
Dwelling structure
Dwelling type		Flat or apartment	34.5%	35.3%	35.6%	42.9%	49.1%
		Semi-detached, terrace or townhouse	9.9%	9.7%	11.2%	16.5%	15.2%
		Separate house	53.7%	54.4%	52.5%	39.4%	34.5%

Selected historical census data for Burwood local government area
Ancestry, top responses
2001[9]		2006[10]		2011[11]		2016[4]		2021[3]
No Data		No Data		Chinese	21.8%	Chinese	28.1%	Chinese	32.8%
				Australian	10.4%	English	9.2%	English	10.7%
				English	9.9%	Australian	8.8%	Australian	9.6%
				Italian	8.0%	Italian	6.8%	Nepalese	7.4%
				Irish	4.6%	Irish	4.4%	Italian	7.3%
Country of Birth, top responses
2001[9]		2006[10]		2011[11]		2016[4]		2021[3]
Australia	46.0%	Australia	42.3%	Australia	41.7%	Australia	37.4%	Australia	37.0%
China	7.8%	China	11.9%	China	14.9%	China	20.6%	China	18.1%
South Korea	5.0%	India	4.6%	India	4.7%	India	4.3%	Nepal	7.6%
Italy	4.6%	South Korea	4.2%	South Korea	3.8%	Nepal	3.5%	India	3.1%
Lebanon	2.5%	Italy	4.0%	Italy	3.5%	South Korea	3.4%	Vietnam	2.7%
India	2.3%	Lebanon	2.2%	Nepal	2.9%	Italy	2.8%	South Korea	2.4%
Language, top responses (other than English)
2001[9]		2006[10]		2011[11]		2016[4]		2021[3]
Cantonese	7.8%	Mandarin	10.1%	Mandarin	12.7%	Mandarin	20.3%	Mandarin	19.9%
Italian	7.3%	Cantonese	8.5%	Cantonese	8.8%	Cantonese	8.6%	Cantonese	8.2%
Mandarin	5.8%	Italian	6.5%	Italian	5.7%	Italian	4.4%	Nepali	7.3%
Arabic	5.7%	Arabic	4.9%	Korean	4.5%	Korean	3.9%	Arabic	3.5%
Korean	5.4%	Korean	4.7%	Arabic	4.4%	Arabic	3.7%	Italian	3.3%
Religious affiliation, top responses
2001[9]		2006[10]		2011[11]		2016[4]		2021[3]
Catholic	36.9%	Catholic	33.4%	Catholic	30.2%	No Religion	32.7%	No Religion	34.6%
No Religion	12.6%	No Religion	16.6%	No Religion	21.5%	Catholic	24.6%	Catholic	22.0%
Anglican	9.5%	Anglican	7.4%	Buddhism	7.3%	Not Stated	8.2%	Hinduism	10.0%
Orthodox	7.0%	Buddhism	6.3%	Hinduism	7.2%	Hinduism	7.5%	Buddhism	7.8%
Buddhism	5.8%	Eastern Orthodox	6.1%	Anglican	6.5%	Buddhism	6.8%	Not Stated	6.8%

Council

Burwood Municipal Council
Type
Type	Unicameral
Leadership
Mayor	John Faker, Labor since 2011
Deputy Mayor	George Mannah, Labor since 2022
Structure
Seats	7 (6 councillors & 1 mayor)
Political groups	Labor (5)   Liberal (2)
Elections
Voting system	Proportional preferential voting (councillors) Optional preferential voting (mayor)
First election	1897 (council) 2012 (mayor)
Last election	2024
Meeting place
Burwood Council Chambers 2 Conder St, Burwood, New South Wales

Current composition and election method

Burwood Council comprises seven councillors, including the mayor, for a fixed four-year term of office. Since 2012, the mayor has been directly elected, while the six other councillors are elected proportionally as one ward. The most recent election was held on 14 September 2024, and the makeup of the council, including the mayor, was as follows:^[12]

Party		Councillors
	Australian Labor Party	5
	Liberal Party of Australia	2
	Total	7

The current council, elected in 2024, in order of election, is:

Mayor		Party	Notes
	John Faker	Labor	Councillor 2000–2012; mayor 2001–2002, 2005–2008, 2011–date.[13][14][15][16][17]
Councillor		Party	Notes
	Deyi Wu	Liberal	Elected 2024
	George Mannah	Labor	Elected 2012; deputy mayor 2016–2017, 2022–date.[18]
	Pascale Esber	Labor	Elected 2021
	David Hull	Liberal	Elected 2021
	Alex Yang	Labor	Elected 2024
	Sukirti Bhatta	Labor	Elected 2024

Election results

2024

2024 New South Wales local elections: Burwood^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labor	1. John Faker 2. George Mannah (elected 1) 3. Pascale Esber (elected 3) 4. Alex Yang (elected 5) 5. Sukirti Bhatta (elected 6) 6. Chris Gray 7. Victoria Holland	10,387	61.7	+9.5
	Liberal	1. Deyi Wu (elected 2) 2. David Hull (elected 4) 3. Raj Dixit	5,122	30.4	+6.9
	Unity	1. Guitang Lu 2. Yi Shen 3. Hua Yang 4. Qun Ping Guo	1,317	7.8	+7.8
Total formal votes			16,826	93.4	−1.0
Informal votes			1,129	6.6	+1.0
Turnout			18,018	84.9	−2.1

2021

Elected councillor		Party
	Heather Crichton	Labor
	George Mannah	Labor
	Pascale Esber	Labor
	David Hull	Liberal
	Hugo Robinson	Liberal
	Ned Cutcher	Greens

2021 New South Wales local elections: Burwood^[20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labor		9,002	52.2	+1.1
	Liberal		4,050	23.5	−2.4
	Greens		2,196	12.7	+12.7
	Independent		1,277	7.4	+7.4
	Major Independent Group		725	4.2	+4.2
Total formal votes			17,250	94.4
Informal votes			1,030	5.6
Turnout			18,280	87.0
Party total seats				Seats	±
	Labor			3
	Liberal			2
	Greens			1	1

2017

Elected councillor		Party
	Heather Crichton	Labor
	Joseph Del Duca	Liberal
	Lesley Furneaux-Cook	ICV
	George Mannah	Labor
	Ernest Chan	Labor
	Raj Dixit	Liberal

2017 New South Wales local elections: Burwood^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labor		7,912	51.1	+7.2
	Liberal		4,002	25.8	−1.8
	Independent Community Voice		3,575	23.1	+0.0
Total formal votes			15,489	93.66
Informal votes			1,048	6.34
Turnout			16,537	79.97

State and federal government

In the NSW Legislative Assembly, the Municipality of Burwood falls into the electorate of Strathfield.

For Federal elections it is in the electorates of Reid (north of Hume Highway) and Watson (south of Hume Highway).

Heritage listings

The Municipality of Burwood has a number of heritage-listed sites, including the following sites listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register:

• Burwood, 168a Burwood Road: Burwood Post Office^[22]
• Burwood, 205 Burwood Road: St Paul's Anglican Church, Burwood^[23]
• Burwood, 213 Burwood Road: The Priory, Burwood^[24]
• Burwood, 223 Burwood Road: St. Cloud, Burwood^[25]
• Burwood, 4 Clarence Street: Lynton, Burwood^[26]
• Burwood, Great Southern and Western railway: Burwood rail underbridge^[27]
• Burwood, Great Southern and Western railway: Burwood railway station, Sydney^[28]
• Burwood, Railway Parade: Burwood Sewer Vent^[29]
• Croydon, Boundary Street: Shubra Hall^[30]
• Croydon, Paisley Road: Croydon Sewer Vent^[31]
• Strathfield, 62 The Boulevarde: Trinity Uniting Church, Strathfield^[32]

Council logo

Burwood Council introduced in September 2019 a new logo designed to reflect the changes which have made it a vibrant and multicultural destination while retaining its heritage. The new logo design, based on the letter 'B', is divided into six parts for the suburbs of the area: Burwood, Burwood Heights, Croydon, Croydon Park, Enfield and Strathfield. Residents' priorities are represented by the colour scheme: harmony and friendship (pink), trust and stability (light blue), creativity and vibrancy (orange), heritage and heart (red), the natural environment (green) and energy and optimism (yellow). Traditional typeface has been used in keeping with the commitment to heritage.^[33]

The previous 'Municipality of Burwood' logo was designed in 1936.^[34]

See also

• List of local government areas in New South Wales
• Local government areas of New South Wales

References

1. "Government Gazette Proclamations and Legislation – New South Wales Government Gazette (Sydney, NSW : 1832 – 1900) – 27 Mar 1874". nla.gov.au. 27 March 1874. Retrieved 3 March 2017.
2. Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Burwood (Local Government Area)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022. 
3. Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Burwood (A)". 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
4. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Burwood (A)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
5. "Burwood Council Chambers, 2-4 Conder St, Burwood, NSW, Australia". Australian Heritage Database. Australian Government. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
6. "Merger proposal: Burwood Council, City of Canada Bay Council, Strathfield Council" (PDF). Government of New South Wales. January 2016. p. 7. Retrieved 27 February 2016.
7. Raper, Ashleigh (31 May 2016). "NSW council amalgamations: Strathfield, Burwood and Canada Bay merger stopped". Australia: ABC News. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
8. Blumer, Clare; Chettle, Nicole (27 July 2017). "NSW council amalgamations: Mayors fight to claw back court dollars after backflip on merger". Australia: ABC News. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
9. Australian Bureau of Statistics (9 March 2006). "Burwood (A)". 2001 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 1 November 2012.
10. Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Burwood (A)". 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 1 November 2012.
11. Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Burwood (A)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 1 November 2012.
12. "Burwood".
13. "Report to the Minister for Local Government under section 14(2) of the Independent Commission Against Corruption Act 1988 into the conduct of two Burwood councillors" (PDF). Parliament of NSW. Independent Commission Against Corruption. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
14. McClymont, Kate (2 April 2011). "Corruption cloud hangs over mayor of Burwood". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
15. Green, Antony. "Burwood Council". 2012 NSW Local Council Elections. ABC News. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
16. "Burwood – Mayoral Contest". NSW Local Council Elections 2017. NSW Electoral Commission. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
17. "Burwood – Mayoral Election". NSW Local Council Elections 2021. NSW Electoral Commission. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
18. "Mayor and Councillors". Burwood Council. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
19. "Burwood - Councillor Election". 1 October 2024. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
20. "Burwood". ABC News.
21. "Burwood". ABC News.
22. "Burwood Post Office (former)". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01490. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
23. "St. Paul's Anglican Church and Pipe Organ". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00436. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
24. "Priory and Grounds". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00287. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
25. "St. Cloud and Site". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00564. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
26. "Lynton". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00284. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
27. "Burwood rail underbridge". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01030. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
28. "Burwood Railway Station group". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01106. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
29. "Burwood Sewer Vent". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01638. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
30. "Shubra Hall, including stables and garden". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01939. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
31. "Croydon Sewer Vent". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01639. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
32. "Trinity Uniting Church". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01671. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
33. "An exciting new look for Burwood | Burwood Council". Archived from the original on 4 September 2019.
34. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 February 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2019.

External links

• Burwood Council website