Victoria

 Locational disadvantage is concentrated

A limited number of communities disproportionately occupy the most disadvantaged positions across the various indicators:

• Five areas, about 1% of locations, account for 9% of the most disadvantaged rank positions across all indicators. This is a nine-fold overrepresentation.

• 24 areas, about 5% of locations, account for more than 29% of the most disadvantaged rank positions. This is a five-fold overrepresentation.

The disproportionate distribution of disadvantage within Victoria is seen most clearly in comparing the most 3% of most disadvantaged communities with the rest of the state. Those living in the 3% most disadvantaged areas (13 communities) are:

• More than three times more likely to be living in public housing (3.1 times).

• Nearly three times more likely to have high levels of prison admissions or families with jobless parents (2.9 times).

• Nearly three times more likely to experience child maltreatment (2.7 times).

• More than twice as likely (2.5 times) to experience overcrowding and 2.4 times more likely to be exposed to family violence.

 ...AND OCCURS ON MULTIPLE FRONTS

Disadvantage is difficult to shift when it occurs across multiple areas of life, as these challenges combine to create what can seem to be insurmountable hurdles.

In Victoria, 24 areas (5% of locations) had eight indicators or more in the top 5% most disadvantaged. These 24 areas accounted for 29% of all possible indicator positions.

This was similar to the results in 2015, which used larger areas (postcodes) and found that 27 postcodes (4% of the total postcodes) accounted for 29% of the top rank positions. The results in 2007 were similar: 44 postcodes (6.6% of the total) accounted for 35% of the top positions.

Different areas rank highly on different indicators, highlighting the diversity of disadvantage between communities, and the need to explicitly consider the individual community context when addressing disadvantage.