Shenton Park, Western Australia

Shenton Park is a suburb approximately 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) west of the central business district (CBD) of Perth, the capital and largest city of Western Australia. It is 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) east of the Indian Ocean, and is part of Perth's affluent western suburbs. Shenton Park is bounded to the south by Aberdare Road and the Irwin Barracks, to the west by Brockway Road, to the north by Underwood Avenue, Selby Street, Lonnie Street and Nicholson Road, and to the east by Thomas Street. To the south is Nedlands and Karrakatta, to the west is Mount Claremont, to the north is Floreat, Jolimont, Daglish and Subiaco, and to the east is Kings Park. Shenton Park is divided into two parts by the Fremantle railway line: the eastern part is part of the City of Subiaco and is mostly residential; the western part is mostly bushland, commercial buildings and Shenton College.[2]

Shenton Park lies on Spearwood Dunes, which formed around 40,000 years ago. The dunes consist of brown sand lying over yellow subsoil, with Tamala Limestone below. These dunes are part of the greater Swan Coastal Plain.[3][4]

Birds such as laughing kookaburra, red-tailed black-cockatoo, long-billed corella, lorikeets, Australian pelican, black swan among others can frequently be seen in the suburb especially at Jualbup Lake. The Lake is also home to long neck turtles and motorbike frogs. The bushland near Shenton College is home to indigenous bats with purpose built bat boxes in an effort to protect them from non-indigenous birds.

Shenton Park is named after George Shenton, who served three terms as Mayor of Perth in the 19th century and owned land in the area.[5]

Shenton Park's population at the 2016 Australian census was 4,525,[6] of which almost all are east of the railway line.[7] This population is an increase on the 4,350 recorded at the 2011 census,[8] the 4,195 recorded at the 2006 census,[9] and the 4,163 recorded at the 2001 census.[10] 47.9% of residents were male and 52.1% were female. The median age was 39, above the state average of 36 and the national average of 38.[6]

At the 2016 census, 67.4% of Daglish households were families, below the state average of 72.7%; 27.7% were single person households, above the state average of 23.6%; and 4.9% were group households, above the state average of 3.8%. Of those family households, 35.8% were couples without children, 49.3% were couples with children, 13.0% were a single parent with children, and 1.9% were some other type of family. These figures are all close to the state averages of 38.5%, 45.3%, 14.5% and 1.7% respectively. The average number of people per household was 2.5, slightly below the state average of 2.6.[6]

Out of the suburbs 1,886 dwellings, 1,676 were occupied and 210 were unoccupied at the 2016 census. Out of the occupied dwellings, 67.4% were detached, below the state average of 79.1%; 14.7% were semi detached, close to the state average of 14.1%; and 17.9% were flats or apartments, above the state average of 5.7%, The average number of bedrooms per dwelling was 2.8, below the state average of 3.3. 35.1% of dwellings were owned outright, compared to the state average of 28.5%; 27.8% were owned with a mortgage, compared to the state average of 39.7%; 34.3% were rented, compared to the state average of 28.3%, and 2.7% had some other tenure type or the tenure type was not stated, compared to the state average of 3.7%.[6]

At the 2016 census, the median weekly personal income was $998, compared to the state average of $724 and national average of $662; the median weekly family income was $2,936, compared to the state average of $1,910 and national average of $1,734; and the median weekly household income was $2,196, compared to the state average of $1,595 and the national average of $1,438. Professionals and managers were the most common professions for those employed living in Subiaco, at 47.8% and 14.7% of residents respectively. Clerical and administrative workers were 10.4% of those employed, community and personal service workers were 8.0%, and sales workers were 6.2%. Blue collar jobs were low, with technicians and trades workers at 5.7%, labourers at 4.6%, and machinery operators and drivers at 0.8%. The most common industries of employment were hospitals (except psychiatric hospitals) (9.5%), higher education (6.1%), legal services (3.4%), cafes and restaurants (2.6%), and state government administration (2.5%). 53.4% of residents aged 15 years or above had a bachelor's degree or above, significantly higher than the state average of 20.5%.[6]

The most common ancestries that people identified with at the 2016 census were English (29.7%), Australian (22.1%), Irish (9.2%), Scottish (8.4%), and Chinese (3.9%). 62.3% of residents were born in Australia, slightly higher than the state average of 60.3%. The next most common birthplaces were England (9.6%), Scotland (1.8%), New Zealand (1.5%), the United States (1.5%), and Malaysia (1.4%). 39.7% of residents had both parents born outside Australia, and 38.0% of residents had both parents born inside Australia. The most common religious affiliations were no religion (41.3%), Catholic (17.4%), Anglican (15.4%), and Uniting Church (3.2%). 9.0% of residents did not state their religion.[6]

On the western side is Shenton College, a purpose-built high school established in 2000, a teaching and rehabilitation hospital which includes a health science campus of Curtin University of Technology, two private hospitals, the University of Western Australia Shenton Field Station, offices of numerous health advocacy associations and depots and processing plants associated with the Water Corporation and various councils.

The suburb is the base of Post Newspapers, in Onslow Road, a weekly newspaper that is distributed in Perth's western suburbs.

Shenton Park has two animal welfare organisations opposite each other on Lemnos Street: the Dogs' Refuge Home and the Cat Haven.

During an outbreak of smallpox in 1893, the colonial government set up an isolation tent hospital in the bush at Shenton Park. The facility was home to the Rehabilitation Services and Spinal Unit of Royal Perth Hospital. The hospital has since closed.

Shenton College's learning hub, completed c. 2019

Shenton College's Borneo House, part of the heritage listed former Lemnos Hospital

Schools in Shenton Park are Shenton College and Rosalie Primary School. The now closed Hollywood Senior High School was located in Shenton Park.

At the 2016 census, 52.1% of Shenton Park residents travelled to work in a car, compared to the state average of 70.4%; 15.7% travelled to work on public transport, compared to the state average of 9.2%; 7.3% walked to work, compared to the state average of 2.8%; and 6.2% cycled to work, compared to the state average of 1.0%.[6]

Public transport

Shenton Park railway station in December 2021

Public transport in Perth is all under the Transperth brand. Train services are operated by Transperth Train Operations, a division of the Public Transport Authority. Bus services in Perth are contracted out to private companies. Subiaco is in the Claremont contract area, which is being operated by Swan Transit.[29]

Shenton Park is served by Shenton Park railway station along the Fremantle line, which links the port city of Fremantle with Perth. The bus routes which serve Shenton Park are route 24, 25, 26, 27, 96, 97, 103, 998 and 999.[30] Routes 998 and 999, also known as the CircleRoute, are a pair of bus routes which travel in a circle around Perth. Route 998 is clockwise, and route 999 is anticlockwise. Their route goes through Shenton Park along Aberdare Road, crossing the railway line at a bus only bridge south of Shenton Park station, before going along Stubbs Terrace and Selby Street.[31] The destinations that the other routes link to include Claremont station along the Fremantle line, UWA, Dalkeith and Nedlands to the south, the Perth CBD, East Perth and Leederville railway station along the Joondalup line.[30]