Australian Catholic Mapping Online (ACMO) is the mapping platform of the National Centre for Pastoral Research (NCPR).
AUSTRALIAN CATHOLIC MAPPING ONLINE PORTAL
Quick access to selected demographic information about the Australian Catholic population is now available in the Australian Catholic Mapping Online Portal. Using Census data from the 2021 Social Profiles, the maps provide thematic information about dioceses (on the National map) and parishes (on their relevant diocesan maps). The first two layers contain information about the Catholic Population and Catholic Families. Additional layers, including one about Birthplace & Language, will be available in early 2025. Keep an eye out for updates!
How to use the Portal? Click here to view the ACMO User Guide
A note about the boundaries used for the Catholic Census maps: In 2021, the ABS divided Australian Census data into 61,845 Census statistical areas (SA1s) which cover all of Australia. In the mapping platform, the Census SA1s are allocated across approximately 1,230 Catholic parishes in Australia. SA1s don’t always fit neatly into parish and diocesan canonical boundaries, so the Centre consults with dioceses to ensure that the Census boundaries are “best fit.” The confirmed boundaries are used to produce National, Diocesan and Parish Social Profiles. These boundaries appear on the Catholic Census maps, but of course, they do not override canonical boundaries, which are ecclesiastically administered areas.
Send us your feedback: Please review the maps and let NCPR know what you think: ncpr@catholic.org.au
MAPS FOR DOWNLOAD
In addition to the information provided in the portal, two maps providing visual representations of the numerical data are available to download and print.
2021 Percentage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholics by Diocese
The 2021 Percentage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholics by Diocese Map has five colours, from light yellow to dark green, to show the proportion of people in each diocese. Dioceses shaded the darkest green (Broome and Darwin) have the highest proportions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholics, while the dioceses with lighter colours have lesser proportions. In 2021, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholics accounted for 2.7 per cent of the Australian Catholic population. The map is available in A3 and A4 formats using the following links:
2021 Percentage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholics by Diocese A4 Map
2021 Percentage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholics by Diocese A3 Map
2021 Percentage of Catholics Map
The 2021 Percentage of Catholics Map also has five colours to show the proportion of people in each diocese who identified as Catholic in the 2021 Census. In 2021, Catholics accounted for 20 per cent of the Australian population. The dioceses coloured gold or cream on the map have fewer Catholics than this, while those shaded in orange or red have a Catholic population that matches or exceeds the national average.
The map is available in A3 and A4 formats using the following links:
2021 Percentage of Catholics A4 Map
2021 Percentage of Catholics A3 Map