Area profile
A quick snapshot of Liverpool Plains Shire, drawn from official ABS estimates and the NSW Government's council data. This is the shire in the New England North West of NSW — seat Quirindi, second centre Werris Creek — not Liverpool City Council in south-west Sydney. The shire sits at the junction of the New England and Kamilaroi Highways in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range, about 60 km south of Tamworth and 350 km north of Sydney, on the traditional lands of the Kamilaroi people. Its black-soil plains are some of the most fertile cropping country in Australia, and the local economy runs on food and fibre: wheat, sorghum and sunflowers, plus beef cattle, sheep and poultry.
New to these terms? Read them in plain English
- Local Government Area (LGA)
- The official area a council governs.
- Estimated Resident Population (ERP)
- The official population count for an area.
- Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)
- The national statistics agency behind population figures.
The area at a glance
- Population (ERP, 2023–24)
- 7,670ABS Estimated Resident Population, per OLG time-series data. The council's own Delivery Program profile (census-based) quotes 7,667 people, 1,937 families, a median age of 48 and 14.8% of residents identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander — well above the NSW figure of 3.4%.
- Area
- 5,082.2 km²OLG figure; the council's Delivery Program describes the shire as 5,086 km² (508,224 hectares, of which 11,369 hectares are protected land).
- Population density
- ~2 people per km²
- Region
- New England North West, NSW — the Liverpool Plains, in the North West Slopes
- Council classification
- Large Rural (OLG group 10)
- Main centres
- Quirindi (council seat) and Werris Creek, plus the villages of Willow Tree, Wallabadah, Currabubula, Spring Ridge, Premer, Blackville, Caroona and Pine RidgeWerris Creek grew up as a railway junction town and is home to the Australian Railway Monument and Rail Journeys Museum. Council's published employment profile puts agriculture, forestry and fishing at 22.7% of local jobs, ahead of health care and social assistance (11.7%), transport, postal and warehousing (7.8%), education and training (7.8%) and retail trade (7.2%), across about 1,014 local businesses and 5,985 local jobs. A selection of localities is listed below.
Suburbs & postcodes
- Quirindi2343
- Werris Creek2341
- Willow Tree2339
- Wallabadah2343
- Currabubula2342
- Spring Ridge2343
- Premer2381
- Blackville2343
- Caroona2343
- Pine Ridge2343
On the map
The shaded area is the official Local Government Area boundary.
The suburb list and postcodes are a selection of the localities in the Liverpool Plains Shire LGA; several smaller places (Bundella, Colly Blue, Quipolly, Warrah Ridge, Yannergee and others) also share the 2343 postcode. The shaded area on the map is the official Local Government Area boundary (OpenStreetMap administrative boundary for Liverpool Plains Shire Council). The shire was formed in 2004 from Quirindi Shire together with parts of the Parry, Murrurundi and Gunnedah shires, and is bordered by Gunnedah Shire to the north, Tamworth Regional to the east, Upper Hunter Shire to the south and Warrumbungle Shire to the west.
Sources — check it yourself
- Office of Local Government — Time-Series Data 2023–24 (population, area, classification) · ABS ERP 2023–24
- Liverpool Plains Shire Council — Delivery Program 2025/26–2028/29 (Our Shire / Our profile) (PDF) · 2025–2029
- REMPLAN — Liverpool Plains community profile (linked by the council)
- Liverpool Plains Shire (Wikipedia)
- Werris Creek (Wikipedia)
Figures are current as at the dates shown and may change — always confirm with the linked source. See the notice at the bottom of the page for full details and how to report a correction.