Riverdale, New Zealand

Riverdale is a suburb of Gisborne, in the Gisborne District of New Zealand's North Island.

Demographics

Riverdale covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km².

Riverdale had a population of 2,781 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 135 people (5.1%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 603 people (27.7%) since the 2013 census. There were 1,230 males and 1,551 females in 1,107 dwellings. 1.7% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. There were 393 people (14.1%) aged under 15 years, 357 (12.8%) aged 15 to 29, 981 (35.3%) aged 30 to 64, and 1,053 (37.9%) aged 65 or older.

People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 72.1% European (Pākehā); 31.4% Māori; 2.8% Pasifika; 5.6% Asian; 0.5% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.3% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 96.3%, Māori by 9.1%, Samoan by 0.3%, and other languages by 6.3%. No language could be spoken by 1.8% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.2%. The percentage of people born overseas was 14.3, compared with 28.8% nationally.

Religious affiliations were 45.8% Christian, 1.4% Hindu, 0.3% Islam, 2.6% Māori religious beliefs, 0.2% Buddhist, 0.4% New Age, and 1.4% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 42.6%, and 5.5% of people did not answer the census question.

Of those at least 15 years old, 375 (15.7%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 1,350 (56.5%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 666 (27.9%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. 195 people (8.2%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 918 (38.4%) full-time, 237 (9.9%) part-time, and 51 (2.1%) unemployed.

Parks

Nelson Park is a sports ground, local park and dog walking area, located in Riverdale.

Education

Lytton High School is a Year 9–13 state secondary school with a roll of . It opened in 1961. The school includes Te Whare Whai Hua Teenage Parent Centre, a public school for teenage parents.

Riverdale School is a year 1–6 state primary school with a roll of . The school was established in 1958. The school has hosted a regional chess tournament since 2006.

Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Nga Uri A Maui is a Year 1–15 Māori immersion school with a roll of . It celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2023.

Sonrise Christian School is a Year 1–10 state integrated school with a roll of . It opened in 1993 in Mangapapa Church and became state integrated in 1999. It moved to separate premises in 2002.

All these schools are co-educational. Rolls are as of

The Eastern Institute of Technology has a rural campus in Riverdale. It is used for EIT courses and community-run horticulture and gardening classes.

References