People & Places
The case for South Australia
Often overlooked by Brits, South Australia is finally beginning to step out of the shadows and into the immigration limelight. Paul Beasley looks at what the state has to offer
Although not the first area of Australia to be settled, what in time became known as South Australia didn't let that stop it setting the agenda for the rest of the country. In 1894, for example, the government of South Australia became only the second in the world – and the first Down Under – to grant women the vote, a full 24 years before the UK did. In the 20th century, South Australia followed up its liberal stirrings by being the first state to decriminalise homosexuality and grant Aboriginal land rights. However, there seemed to be one way in which South Australia would never lead the way: popularity with British migrants. Indeed, the state seemed destined to languish a long way down the field, ahead of only the fringe contenders of Northern Territory and Tasmania. Indeed, even in 2005, South Australia welcomed less than half the number of new arrivals from the UK than Western Australia, the current favourite destination with Brits, did.
Yet the 1,547 who did make the move to South Australia marked a major step forward for the state. In fact, this number was 135 per cent more than the number in 2004, meaning that South Oz's intake of British immigrants had increased approximately 100 per cent more than any other state or territory between 2004 and 2005.
So, what had changed to make South Australia head sharply north on the leaderboard of state popularity? In short, of all the benefits delivered to heretofore overlooked areas of Australia by the Department of Multiculturalism and Immigration's launch of the Skilled Independent Regional (SIR) visa in 2004, it has been South Oz that has benefited the most, due in large part to the fact that Adelaide is the only state capital of any size to be included on the SIR.
Designed to bring essential skills into the economies of regional areas most in need of them, the SIR – and indeed the State-Territory Nominated Independent (STNI) – visa would appear to be functioning exactly as planned. Mark Powell, who currently works for Avon and Somerset Police, is just one of the many Brits for whom the STNI visa opened a door to immigration – but as a carpenter. Looking to gain immediate permanent residency through his skills, this gave Mark three options: South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania – and from these Mark and had no problem plumping for the first one, as he explains as follows: "I was attracted to SA because I felt that it was the least tourist-based state and appeared to have the most space and slowest pace in an appealing climate. It appeared to be least populated with more chance of gaining employment."
Beyond this, Mark can see real lifestyle benefits for him, wife Kylee and children Jayden, 3, and Sharaya, 6. "I believe that moving to SA will improve my life in lots of ways," he explains. "We are an outdoor family so the climate will help. I currently do shift work so going to a 9–5 job will help me feel better in life. Due to problems with parents and relatives in this country over the past few years I feel that getting away from this will also relieve the stress that has been caused." And, on top of this, Mark has done his sums and feels that SA boasts one of the cheapest costs of living in Oz. "According to our research, house prices in SA were cheaper than most other states, and the cost of living is cheaper, although the wages are also lower."
Mark's research has certainly not led him astray, as the average house price in SA is AUS$270,000, just over half the cost of the average house in New South Wales and the second-cheapest nationally. Yes, Mark is also right about the wage – SA has the second-lowest average wage in Australia at approximately AUS$950 a week. However, this means that house prices in the state are just 5.5 times higher than the average annual wage, a ratio that compares favourably with Western Australia, ACT, Northern Territory and Tasmania (5.6), Queensland (6.2), Victoria (6.8) and New South Wales (9.1). Moreover, South Australia also scores points for having a government that proves its commitment to sponsoring the immigrants with the skills it needs by approving applications at lightning speed. Like almost everyone we've featured, Mark has only praise for the SA government's immigration department. "The SA immigration department were very helpful in the STNI process I went through," Mark recalls. "They only took two days to sponsor me. They also offered lots of services when I arrive in SA, like meet and greet and accommodation." Mark, who hopes to emigrate this year, will – like many recent SA-bound Brits – initially head for the state capital. "We will be looking at Adelaide in the first instance. This is simply to obtain employment rapidly and to get settled into the Australian way of life more quickly."
So what can Mark expect from Adelaide?
Capital gains
Australia's fifth-largest city, Adelaide has a metropolitan population of 1.1 million. However, when one considers that the population growth rate (0.6 per cent) is only half that of the national average, that the number of tradespeople in the city dropped by 10 per cent between 1991 and 2001 and 24.1 per cent of its population is over 55 – 4.2 per cent higher than the national average – it becomes immediately obvious why the city has been at the forefront of the regional visa push to attract skilled workers from overseas. This strategy will inevitably push up the percentage of overseas-born residents in Adelaide, which is currently 25 per cent – the large majority of which identify themselves as being of English origin. So, Mark and all the other Adelaide-bound Brits may well find the city easy to settle into in this respect.
Economically
Adelaide has four main strengths: manufacturing (especially medical equipment and cars – Adelaide produces half the cars made in Australia), defence technology (70 per cent of Australian defence companies are located in Adelaide), commodity export and service industries. Although Adelaide's unemployment rate hovers encouragingly just above 4 per cent, Dave Burke, a 33-year-old Aussie currently living in the UK but who was born and raised in WA and lived in SA before his temporary emigration Up Over, is a little cautious about the city's job market. "Employment prospects are good, but not brilliant. High-level professionals will probably find themselves better off in one of the bigger cities, like Melbourne or Sydney. South Australia has witnessed the pull-out of several major companies in recent years – Mitsubishi, for example – and will take time to find and develop suitable replacements." That said, the South Australian economy enjoys a trade surplus and has higher per capita growth than Australia as a whole. On top of this, those heading to Adelaide on a STNI visa should have no cause for concern in finding suitable work. Having lived in Perth but now planning to move back to SA, Dave is in a great position to weigh up the relative merits of Adelaide. "It's a family-friendly city with a slower pace of life, a better chance of affordable property in beautiful surroundings, safe suburbs, a wealth of history, and hospitable neighbours," Dave explains.
"Public transport is excellent. While the trains are not as good as Perth's, the buses are terrific, and the Obahn system provides swift, efficient transport to major suburbs."
It's no surprise, then, that Adelaide is known as 'the 20-minute city': traffic generally flows smoothly, allowing the city's residents to get to the great beaches that fringe the coastline, as well as Adelaide's 930 hectares of parkland and numerous hiking and biking trails, as quickly as possible. And that's not to mention its renowned reputation as a festival city, or its café culture and or its many arts venues.
The city's location also makes it a great base for holidays in other parts of Australia. "Its location makes it ideal for visiting the eastern states," says Dave. "This is universally considered an advantage when comparing SA to WA, since it means that South Australian residents can easily drive to the eastern states if they want to, while WA people usually take the plane or train. I myself have driven from Perth to Adelaide and back again, on two occasions – but it is a gruelling journey."
Dave also feels that Adelaide's reasonable property prices "offer a terrific lifestyle for people who value their privacy and an escape from the suburban rat race. It may be best suited to young families for exactly this reason." Certainly, the city is not short of desirable areas. Even downtown its boulevards and architectural heritage are a winning combination, while North Adelaide is a tree-lined suburb full of 19th-century stone properties.
Just outside the eastern city limits, the roads start to wind up the Adelaide Hills – a beautiful and carefully conserved area. Here, you'd be hard-pressed to describe the small places that dot the Hills, such as Stirling and Aldgate, without using the word 'leafy'.
Small and perfectly formed?
Although Adelaide and its surrounding suburbs are, of course, not the only possible destination in South Australia, they are undoubtedly the first choice as the state is more limited than others when it comes to alternative places to settle. Indeed, 70 per cent of the population of South Australia is resident within the metropolitan area, making SA one of the most centralised states in Australia. This leaves just 300,000 scattered over a huge expanse that is four times the size of the UK – albeit most of it too dry to be habitable. Mark, though, has already pinpointed another option. "If I can find employment I would prefer to live in Mount Gambier. The reason for this is that land is cheaper to buy and I have a long-term goal of building my own home and stable," says Mark.
Situated in the south-eastern corner of the state, Mount Gambier is one of only two SA cities outside of Adelaide with a population of over 20,000. Home to some 23,000 people, Mount Gambier is a five-hour drive from Adelaide and has an economy based on forestry, transportation and tourism due to the nearby volcanic landscape and the beauty of Blue Lake (just how do they come up with these names?!). Other popular leisure activities include hiking, watersports and quaffing the local wine.
The other city of note is Whyalla, a port situated on the east cost of Eyre Peninsula about 200 kilometres north of Adelaide as the crow flies. Home to 22,000 people, Whyalla has a considerable student population attending a regional campus of the University of South Australia; the most noteworthy economic feature is Australia's only operational steelworks.
Outside of Adelaide, Mount Gambier and Whyalla, South Australia's vastness is home to only a scattering of small towns. Broadly speaking, to the north there are mining settlements (Coober Pedy), to the east and south-east agricultural (Willunga, Berri, Renmark) and viticultural towns (especially around the Clare and Barossa Valleys), and along the coast holiday resorts and small fishing villages, although other small settlements follow the much-tapped Murray River inland from the capital to the border with Victoria.
So, although South Australia is far from being a one-trick pony, the state's plans to step further into the immigration limelight do rest squarely on the broad, arrow-straight avenues of downtown Adelaide.
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