Figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics [ABS] this week showed the Orange North area had the third largest population growth in regional NSW in the year to June 2017.

The ABS divides districts into separate statistical areas. Orange is divided into Orange, Orange North, Orange Region and Blayney.

It said there were now 571 more people living in the Orange North area.

That figure also accounted for more than half the increase for all of the Central West [1106].

Only Queanbeyan and Maitland West had larger growth than Orange North.

ABS Demography Director Andrew Grubb said the figures showed for the first time what was driving population growth in various areas.

“It is now possible to not only see how much population is changing in an area, but to understand why this change is occurring,” he said.

In the case of Orange North it found the number of people moving to the area, the amount of births over the number deaths and the number of overseas migrants were all higher than at June 2016.

Orange North excelled in the number of births over deaths indicating a younger family population.

That figure for Orange North [194 more people over the year] was three times higher than any other region of the Central West with the Orange Region next on 62 more births than deaths.

The ABS figures showed that when adding all the Orange areas together, the district population increased by 427 people in the year.

Orange Region was up by 105 however the number of residents in the Orange area was down by 247 over the year and Blayney had two less residents.

The Bathurst district is made up of four ABS areas, including Oberon, and the total figure increased by 474 people in the same period.

Mudgee’s three ABS areas, when totalled, had 200 more residents.

The population of the Orange City Council area following the 2016 census was 41,384 with 996 more women than men.

Bureau of Statistics area population increases in the year to June 2017: