Overview
Welcome to this Directory of Data Sources, which is a practical resource to help health and community organisations understand more about the data available at a municipal level for health and wellbeing planning.
The Directory links you to reliable data sources of statistical information in six key categories of health and wellbeing and explains how the data can be used. The categories are:
- Population and People
- Household and Families
- Socio-economic Status
- Health Status and Health Behaviours
- Community Health and Wellbeing
- Crime and Safety
This Directory is the result of work undertaken by six councils in Melbourne’s west – Brimbank City Council, Hobsons Bay City Council, Maribyrnong City Council, Melton Shire Council, Moonee Valley City Council and Wyndham City Council.
The development of the Directory formed part of the Western Region Health and Wellbeing Planning Project funded through the Department of Planning and Community Development’s Local Area Planning Support Program in 2007-2008.
As the Primary Care Partnership covering five of the six local government areas in Melbourne’s west, HealthWest Partnership has been an active supporter and partner in the project since its inception. We now proudly host the Directory.
Purpose of this Directory
The primary purpose of the Directory of Data Sources is to improve understanding of, and access to, reliable data sources of statistical information relevant to health and wellbeing planning. Key objectives of the project partners were to promote data literacy, build organisations’ capacity to undertake effective health and wellbeing planning and avoid duplicating the work of those already producing data sets.
This Directory links you to data sources; it is not a directory of data. All data sources referred to are ‘originating’ data sources developed and maintained by expert and reputable bodies. Selected additional data sources are also referenced.
Since the focus of the Directory is population health and wellbeing planning, links to statistical information about service use and demand (useful for services planning) are not included.