Local government areas of South Australia facts for kids

Local government in South Australia is all about how towns and districts manage their own areas. Think of it like your local council! They help look after things like parks, roads, and rubbish collection. This is allowed by a special rule in the Constitution Act 1934 (SA).

Local Councils Across South Australia

These local councils are often called Local Government Areas (LGAs). They are set up and run according to the Local Government Act 1999 in South Australia. These areas are grouped into different regions by the Local Government Association of South Australia.

Metropolitan Adelaide

This region covers the main city of Adelaide and its surrounding suburbs. Here are some of the councils in this busy area:

Local Council	Main Office	Year Started	Land Area			Population (2015)	Map
			km²	sq mi	Density
Adelaide, City ofCity of Adelaide	Adelaide	1840	16	6	1,448	23,169
Adelaide Hills Council, Adelaide Hills Council	Woodside	1997	795	307	50	40,031
Burnside, City ofCity of Burnside	Tusmore	1856	27	10	1,668	45,034
Campbelltown, City ofCity of Campbelltown	Rostrevor	1867	24	9	2,162	51,889
Charles Sturt, City ofCity of Charles Sturt	Woodville	1997	52	20	2,196	114,209
Gawler, Town ofTown of Gawler	Gawler	1857	41	16	552	22,618
Holdfast Bay, City ofCity of Holdfast Bay	Brighton	1997	13	5	2,866	37,263
Marion, City ofCity of Marion	Sturt	1886	56	22	1,589	88,983
Mitcham, City ofCity of Mitcham	Torrens Park	1853	76	29	873	66,347
Norwood Payneham & St Peters, City ofCity of Norwood Payneham & St Peters	Norwood	1997	15	6	2,490	37,350
Onkaparinga, City ofCity of Onkaparinga	Noarlunga Centre	1997	518	200	326	168,798
Playford, City ofCity of Playford	Elizabeth	1997	345	133	256	88,222
Port Adelaide Enfield, City ofCity of Port Adelaide Enfield	Port Adelaide	1997	97	37	1,276	123,754
Prospect, City ofCity of Prospect	Prospect	1872	8	3	2,677	21,416
Salisbury, City ofCity of Salisbury	Salisbury	1933	158	61	877	138,535
Tea Tree Gully, City ofCity of Tea Tree Gully	Modbury	1935	95	37	1,041	98,861
Unley, City ofCity of Unley	Unley	1906	14	5	2,809	39,324
Walkerville, Town ofTown of Walkerville	Gilberton	1855	4	2	1,918	7,673
West Torrens, City ofCity of West Torrens	Hilton	1856	37	14	1,594	58,964

Regional South Australia

Outside of Adelaide, there are many other local government areas that help manage towns and rural communities.

Eyre Peninsula

This region is on a large peninsula in South Australia.

Local Council	Main Office	Year Started	Land Area		Population (2015)	Map
			km²	sq mi
Ceduna, District Council ofDistrict Council of Ceduna	Ceduna	1896	5,427	2,095	3,716
Cleve, District Council ofDistrict Council of Cleve	Cleve	1911	4,507	1,740	1,795
Elliston, District Council ofDistrict Council of Elliston	Elliston	1887	6,500	2,510	1,066
Franklin Harbour, District Council ofDistrict Council of Franklin Harbour	Cowell	1888	3,583	1,383	1,234
Kimba, District Council ofDistrict Council of Kimba	Kimba	1924	3,986	1,539	1,097
Lower Eyre Peninsula, District Council ofDistrict Council of Lower Eyre Peninsula	Cummins	1921	4,771	1,842	5,087
Port Augusta, City ofCity of Port Augusta	Port Augusta	1964	1,153	445	14,522
Port Lincoln, City ofCity of Port Lincoln	Port Lincoln	1921	30	12	14,984
Streaky Bay, District Council ofDistrict Council of Streaky Bay	Streaky Bay	1887	6,232	2,406	2,249
Tumby Bay, District Council ofDistrict Council of Tumby Bay	Tumby Bay	1906	2,616	1,010	2,668
Wudinna District Council, Wudinna District Council	Wudinna	1925	5,394	2,083	1,282
Whyalla, City ofCity of Whyalla	Whyalla	1970	1,033	399	22,759

Central Region

This region includes areas north of Adelaide, often known for farming and wine.

Local Council	Main Office	Year Started	Land Area		Population (2006 census)	Map
			km²	sq mi
Adelaide Plains Council, Adelaide Plains Council	Mallala		932	360	8,385
Barossa Council, Barossa Council	Angaston	1996	912	352	22,514
Barunga West, District Council ofDistrict Council of Barunga West	Port Broughton			2,631
Clare and Gilbert Valleys, District Council ofDistrict Council of Clare and Gilbert Valleys	Clare	1997		8,743
Copper Coast, District Council of theDistrict Council of the Copper Coast	Kadina	1997	773	298	12,901
Flinders Ranges Council, Flinders Ranges Council	Quorn		4,198	1,621	1,784
Goyder, Regional Council ofRegional Council of Goyder	Burra	1997	6,719	2,594	4,285
Light Regional Council, Light Regional Council	Kapunda		1,278	493	13,658
Mount Remarkable, District Council ofDistrict Council of Mount Remarkable	Melrose	1980	3,425	1,322	2,951
Northern Areas Council, Northern Areas Council		1997		4,866
Orroroo Carrieton, District Council ofDistrict Council of Orroroo Carrieton				938
Peterborough, District Council ofDistrict Council of Peterborough	Peterborough
Port Pirie Regional Council, Port Pirie Regional Council	Port Pirie	1997	1,761	680	18,076
Wakefield Regional Council, Wakefield Regional Council	Balaklava	1997	3,469	1,339	6,756
Yorke Peninsula Council, Yorke Peninsula Council	Maitland	1997	5,834	2,253	11,736

Southern and Hills Region

This region covers the areas south of Adelaide, including the beautiful Adelaide Hills and coastal towns.

Local Council	Main Office	Year Started	Land Area		Population (2006 census)	Map
			km²	sq mi
Alexandrina Council, Alexandrina Council	Goolwa	1997	1,827	705	23,160
Kangaroo Island Council, Kangaroo Island Council	Kingscote	1996	4,400	1,699	4,612
Mount Barker, District Council ofDistrict Council of Mount Barker	Mount Barker			29,864
Victor Harbor, City ofCity of Victor Harbor	Victor Harbor	1975	387	149	13,608
Yankalilla, District Council ofDistrict Council of Yankalilla	Yankalilla	1854	751	290	4,577

Murray Mallee Region

This region follows the Murray River and extends into the Mallee lands.

Local Council	Main Office	Year Started	Land Area		Population (2006 census)	Map
			km²	sq mi
Berri Barmera Council, Berri Barmera Council		Murray Mallee	1996	508	196	11,240
Coorong District Council, TheThe Coorong District Council	Meningie	1995	8,831	3,410	5,825
Gerard Community Council, Gerard Community Council	Winkie	1974	86	33	96
Karoonda East Murray, District Council ofDistrict Council of Karoonda East Murray	Karoonda	1979	4,415	1,705	1,193
Loxton Waikerie, District Council ofDistrict Council of Loxton Waikerie		1997	7,957	3,072	4,612
Mid Murray Council, Mid Murray Council		1997	7,957	3,072	8,511
Murray Bridge, Rural City ofRural City of Murray Bridge	Murray Bridge	1977	7,957	3,072	19,402
Renmark Paringa Council, Renmark Paringa Council	Renmark	1996	916	354	9,882
Southern Mallee District Council, Southern Mallee District Council	Pinnaroo		6,000	2,317	2,189

Southeast Region

This region is in the southeast corner of South Australia, known for its forests and volcanic landscapes.

Local Council	Main Office	Year Started	Land Area		Population (2006 census)	Map
			km²	sq mi
Grant, District Council ofDistrict Council of Grant	Mount Gambier	1996	1,904	735	8,652
Kingston District Council, Kingston District Council	Kingston SE	1873	3,338	1,289	2,469
Mount Gambier, City ofCity of Mount Gambier	Mount Gambier		308	119	21,256
Naracoorte Lucindale Council, Naracoorte Lucindale Council	Naracoorte	1993	4,517	1,744	8,489
Robe, District Council ofDistrict Council of Robe	Robe	1869	1,091	421	1,480
Tatiara District Council, Tatiara District Council	Bordertown	1876	6,476	2,500	6,660
Wattle Range Council, Wattle Range Council	Millicent	1997	3,924	1,515	12,554

Outback

This vast region covers the remote, dry areas of South Australia. It includes some special councils for Aboriginal communities.

Local Council	Main Office	Year Started	Land Area		Population (2006 census)	Map
			km²	sq mi
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara, Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara	Umuwa	1981	102,650	39,633	2,230
Coober Pedy, District Council ofDistrict Council of Coober Pedy	Coober Pedy	1987	78	30	1,913
Maralinga Tjarutja, Maralinga Tjarutja	Ceduna	2006	102,863	39,716	105
Nepabunna Community Council, Nepabunna Community Council	Nepabunna	1998	76	29	53
Outback Communities Authority, Outback Communities Authority	Port Augusta	1978	624,339	241,059	3,959
Roxby Downs, Municipal Council ofMunicipal Council of Roxby Downs	Roxby Downs	1982	110	42	4,484
Yalata Community, Yalata Community		1994	4,563	1,762	100

Images for kids

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  Partial map of LGAs

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  LGA regions

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  Types of LGAs