Inala, Queensland facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Inala Brisbane, Queensland
Suburb sign at Tamarind Street, Inala
Inala Location in Queensland
Established	1946
Postcode(s)	4077
Area	6.3 km2 (2.4 sq mi)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10:00)
Location	22.1 km (14 mi) SW of Brisbane CBD
LGA(s)	City of Brisbane (Forest Lake Ward)
State electorate(s)	Inala
Federal Division(s)	Oxley
Suburbs around Inala: Darra Oxley Durack Richlands Inala Durack Forest Lake Forest Lake Doolandella

Inala is a suburb located in the south-western part of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It's about 22.1 kilometres (13.7 miles) south-west of the centre of Brisbane. In 2021, Inala was home to 15,273 people.

Geography

Inala is connected by main roads that run east-west (like Inala Avenue/Poinsettia Street) and north-south (like Serviceston Avenue/Rosemary Street and Blunder Road). These roads help people get around the suburb easily.

History

How Inala Got Its Name

The name Inala was chosen by the Queensland Surveyor-General on January 10, 1952. It comes from the Bundjalung language, an Aboriginal language, and means resting time or night time. Before that, the area was known as Boylands Pocket.

Building Homes After World War II

After World War II, Australia faced a huge shortage of homes. Many families in Queensland were living in temporary shelters made of tin or canvas. To help, the Queensland and Australian Governments made building new homes a top priority.

Inala's story began in May 1946, when it was called Serviceton. A group of ex-servicemen, led by Harold (Hock) Davis, wanted to find affordable homes for their families. They formed the Serviceton Co-operative Society and bought a large piece of land that was safe from floods. This land was then divided among the members.

From Serviceton to Inala

Later, in 1949–1950, the Queensland Housing Commission bought the land from the Serviceton Housing Co-operative. They added more land and officially changed the name to Inala in 1953. This was done to avoid confusion with another place called Serviceton in Victoria.

Inala State School, 1956

Schools and Churches Opening

Over the years, many schools and churches opened in Inala:

• Inala State School opened on July 1, 1955. It later added a pre-school in 1974.
• Inala Methodist Church opened in 1957. It became Inala Uniting Church in 1977.
• Inala West State School opened on January 2, 1960, but closed on December 31, 2009.
• Serviceton South State School opened on September 2, 1963.
• Samoa Methodist Church Inala was established around 1965.
• Richlands East State School opened on January 23, 1967.
• Inala Special School opened on August 26, 1968. It was renamed Western Suburbs State Special School in 2007.
• Inala State High School opened in 1962. It closed in 1995 and joined with Richlands State High School to form Glenala State High School.

People and Culture (Demographics)

Inala is a very diverse suburb! In 2016, about 45.9% of people living in Inala were born in Australia. The next largest group, 19.4%, were born in Vietnam. Other common birthplaces included New Zealand, Samoa, and England.

Many different languages are spoken at home, but 39.8% of people spoke only English. Inala has the largest Buddhist community and the largest Vietnamese Australian community in all of Queensland. This mix of cultures makes Inala a unique and interesting place to live.

Education

Inala has several schools for different age groups:

TAFE college, Inala, 2008

• Inala State School is a government primary school for students from Preparatory to Year 6. It also has a special education program.
• Serviceton South State School is another government primary school for Preparatory to Year 6, also offering a special education program.
• Richlands East State School is a government primary school for Preparatory to Year 6, with a special education program.
• St Mark's School is a Catholic primary school for students from Preparatory to Year 6.
• Inala Flexible Learning Centre is a Catholic secondary school (Years 7–12). It helps students who might find it hard to learn in regular schools by offering special programs.
• Western Suburbs State Special School provides special education for students from Preparatory to Year 12.

There isn't a government secondary school right inside Inala. Students usually go to Glenala State High School in nearby Durack or Forest Lake State High School in Forest Lake.

Inala also has a campus of TAFE Queensland, which offers vocational training and courses for older students.

Things to Do and Places to Go (Amenities)

Market at Inala Civic

Biota Street Village shopping precinct, Inala

Shopping

Inala has many places to shop! The biggest is the Inala Plaza–Civic Centre complex. Here you can find supermarkets, Vietnamese markets, restaurants, and lots of other shops. There are also shops and restaurants on Biota Street, Skylark Street, and near Lavender and Lilac Streets.

Services

You'll find two post offices in Inala, along with many medical centres. Most government services, like the Brisbane City Council Library, Department of Communities, and Medicare and Centrelink offices, are located around the Inala Plaza area.

Culture and Community

Inala has two community halls and a community art gallery. The Inala Library has been open since 1963 and has been updated over the years.

Many community groups help people in Inala. For example, the Richlands, Inala and Suburbs History Group studies local history. Other groups like Inala Community Centre and Inala Youth Service offer support and programs for residents.

Kev Hooper park, Inala

Parks and Green Spaces

Inala has lots of green areas and parks, many named after people who helped the community. These parks and native trees help keep the air clean and the environment peaceful.

There are special walkways between houses, making it easy to walk to bus stops, schools, shops, and parks. Inala also has four dog parks where dogs can run off-leash safely.

Places of Worship

Inala is home to many different religious groups. In 2016, the largest groups were Catholic and Buddhist. Many churches and temples are located in the suburb, including:

• Inala Uniting Church
• Samoa Methodist Church Inala
• Inala Samoan Church
• Inala Tongan Church
• Forest Lake Samoan Church
• Anglican Church, St Hugh's Parish Inala
• Buddhist Temples (Chùa Pháp Quang, Chùa Phật Đà)
• Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
• Salvation Army
• Seventh-day Adventist Church
• St Mark's Catholic Parish
• Sikh Temple Guru Nanak Gurdwara
• Vietnamese Catholic Community Brisbane
• Vietnamese English Baptist Church

Sports

If you like sports, Inala has a Police Citizens Youth Club (PCYC) gym, many parks with sports fields, and the Inala Skate Park.

Some local sports clubs include:

• Blue Fin Fishing Club
• Brisbane Lions Soccer Club
• West Inala Panthers Rugby League Football Club
• West Inala Panthers Junior Rugby League Football Club

Getting Around (Transport)

Bus station at Inala Plaza

Buses are a main way to get around Inala. The Inala bus station is near the Inala Plaza shopping centre. Buses connect Inala to nearby train stations like Richlands, Darra, and Oxley. You can also catch buses to other shopping centres and hospitals.

Richlands railway station is the closest train link, about 3 kilometres (1.9 miles) from central Inala. There are plans for paths to make it easy to walk or bike to the station. Express bus route 100 also connects Inala directly to Brisbane City.

Inala also has good access to major highways like the Ipswich Motorway, Centenary Motorway, and Logan Motorway.

Architecture

Inala's houses were built in a style called Modernist Revival, with some Art Deco touches. This style focused on using space efficiently, with simple designs and new building methods. The goal was to build strong houses that would last a long time and not need much maintenance.

After World War II, building materials were hard to find. So, Inala houses were built using reinforced concrete, which was strong and flexible. The concrete was made locally from river sand and lime. Houses were built on raised concrete foundations, with strong timber frames and durable wooden floors. The outer walls were made of thick poured concrete. These strong building methods helped the houses last for many years.

Famous People From Inala

Joanna Lindgren used to live in Inala. She became an Australian Senator for Queensland in 2015 and 2016. She is the first Aboriginal female Senator for Queensland and the niece of Neville Bonner, who was also a well-known Aboriginal Senator.