West Croydon, South Australia


West Croydon is a suburb in the north-west of Adelaide, South Australia.
West Croydon has a population of 4,141 as of the ABS 2016 census, and is located 5 km west of the Central Business District of Adelaide. The population has changed greatly over the past 15 years as older residents move away, and younger residents move in. The main industry is Glass Manufacturing with ACI being one of the largest plants of its type in the Southern Hemisphere.
Croydon High School closed at the end of 2006 due to falling enrolments. The site is currently occupied by the School of Languages and the Adelaide Secondary School of English. The Islamic College of South Australia is also located in West Croydon.
The Suburb is within the Federal seat of Adelaide and the City of Charles Sturt. Until the early 1920s the suburb was a farming area with infill occurring until the 1970s.

Demography

The 2016 Census data by the Australian Bureau of Statistics counted 4,141 people within the suburb of West Croydon. Of these 4,141 people, the suburb counted an exactly 50/50 split between males and females, with there being 2,068 males and 2,068 females counted.
The majority of residents are of Australian birth, with other residents being born in Italy, Vietnam, Greece, England, and India. People of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander descent made up 1.3% of the suburb.
In terms of religion, 29.7% of the suburb identified as not religious, 24.9% identified as catholic, 12.9% identified as Eastern Orthodox and 5.3% identified as muslim.
92.6% of the residents were employed, while 7.4% were unemployed.

History

West Croydon transformed from mostly farmland into a suburb in 1925 when the Shillabeer family sold a large portion of East View Farm. In 1944 the Shillabeer farm homestead was purchased by the state government and became the Croydon Technical High School, which later changed name to Croydon High School. Adelaide Secondary School of English moved to the site in 1998.
The first Allenby Gardens Post Office was renamed West Croydon on 1 March 1945 and closed in 1971.

Geography and transport

West Croydon is serviced by Torrens Road and Port Road, with Rosetta streets connecting the roads and going through the middle of the suburb. The suburb is also serviced by the West Croydon Train Station as well as bus routes on both Torrens Road and Port Road by Adelaide Metro.

Politics

Local government

West Croydon is part of Hindmarsh Ward in the City of Charles Sturt local government area, being represented by Labor councillors Paul Alexandrides and Alice Campbell.

State and federal

West Croydon lies in the state electoral district of Croydon and the federal electoral division of Adelaide. The suburb is represented in the South Australian House of Assembly by leader of South Australian opposition, Labor party member Peter Malinauskas and federally by Steve Georganas.

Facilities and attractions

Shopping and dining

West Croydon contains the West Croydon & Kilkenny RSL/Community Club. The first Krispy Kreme production hub to exist within Adelaide is in West Croydon.

Parks

Within West Croydon are the parks of MJ McInerney Reserve, Carnarvon Reserve and Croydon Avenue Reserve.

Religion

Places of worship in West Croydon include West Croydon United Church on Rosetta Street and St. Elias Antiochian Orthodox Church on Herbert Road.