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Women who walk alone in their local area after dark and feel safe
Measure: Proportion of women who walk alone in their local area after dark and feel safe in the last 12 months
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Baseline value
85%
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Latest value
85%in 2021-22
Last updated:
Interpretation
An increase in general feelings of safety across the community would indicate a greater perception that prevention initiatives are effective in keeping people and communities safe.
A person’s perception of their own safety in the community can be affected by many individual-level and community-level factors, and may vary across geographic areas.
Outcome: 3 Community attitudes and beliefs embrace gender equality and condemn all forms of gendered violence without exception
Sub-outcome: 3.4 Gender equality, positive relationships, and positive masculinities are promoted across the community including in faith-based, sporting, entertainment, educational institutions, digital spaces, the arts, and media organisations
Indicator: Increased general feelings of safety
Baseline: 2021–22
Latest year: 2021–22
Data source: ABS Personal Safety Survey
Source: DSS 2024.
For information about how this measure is derived, please refer to the Technical specifications for National Plan Outcomes.
Additional National Plan Outcomes data are available from the Data downloads page.
Time series
Women who walked alone in their local area after dark and felt safe in the last 12 months, 2005 to 2021–22
| Year | Per cent |
|---|---|
| 2005 | 75.4^% |
| 2012 | 79.5^% |
| 2016 | 80.3^% |
| 2021–22 | 84.8% |
For more information, see Data sources and technical notes.
^: statistically significant difference to the 2021–22 reporting rate.
State and territory
Women who walked alone in their local area after dark and felt safe in the last 12 months, by jurisdiction, 2016 and 2021–22
| Jurisdiction | 2016 | 2021–22 (baseline) |
|---|---|---|
| NSW | 83.7% | 88.9% |
| Vic | 76.1^% | 81.4% |
| Qld | 79.9% | 82.6% |
| WA | 80.8% | 84.2% |
| SA | 77.7^% | 84.5% |
| Tas | 86.8% | 87.5% |
| ACT | 83.3% | 85.5% |
| NT | 71.9% | 71.2% |
Note: Jurisdiction refers to the person's current state or territory of residence.
For more information, see Data sources and technical notes.
^: statistically significant difference to the 2021–22 prevalence rate.
Population characteristics
Age
Women who walked alone in their local area after dark and felt safe in the last 12 months, by age group, 2016 and 2021–22
| Age group | 2016 | 2021–22 |
|---|---|---|
| 18–24 | 69.5% | 77.0% |
| 25–34 | 80.2% | 81.5% |
| 35–44 | 81.8^% | 86.6% |
| 45–54 | 83.2^% | 90.7% |
| 55–64 | 82.2% | 86.9% |
| 65 and over | 85.9% | 86.2% |
For more information, see Data sources and technical notes.
^: statistically significant difference to the 2021–22 prevalence rate.
Country of birth
Women who walked alone in their local area after dark and felt safe in the last 12 months, by country of birth, 2016 and 2021–22
| Country of birth | 2016 | 2021–22 |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | 80.6^% | 83.7% |
| Other main English speaking countries | 82.5^% | 89.2% |
| Non-main English speaking countries | 78.7^% | 86.9% |
For more information, see Data sources and technical notes.
^: statistically significant difference to the 2021–22 prevalence rate.
Disability status
Women who walked alone in their local area after dark and felt safe in the last 12 months, by disability status, 2016 and 2021–22
| Disability status | 2016 | 2021–22 |
|---|---|---|
| Has disability | 73.0% | 76.9% |
| Does not have disability | 82.9^% | 87.7% |
Note: Disability includes any limitation, restriction or impairment which restricts everyday activities and has lasted, or is likely to last, for at least six months.
For more information, see Data sources and technical notes.
^: statistically significant difference to the 2021–22 prevalence rate.
Sexual orientation
Women who walked alone in their local area after dark and felt safe in the last 12 months, by sexual orientation, 2021–22
| Sexual orientation | 2021–22 |
|---|---|
| Heterosexual | 86.0% |
| Gay, lesbian, bisexual or different term | 71.6% |
Notes:
- While data for women who identified as gay or lesbian, bisexual, or who used a different term such as asexual, pansexual or queer have been combined into a single output category, feelings of safety may vary across each group.
- Data not available prior to 2021–22.
For more information, see Data sources and technical notes.
Remoteness
Women who walked alone in their local area after dark and felt safe in the last 12 months, by remoteness, 2016 and 2021–22
| Remoteness area | 2016 | 2021–22 |
|---|---|---|
| Major Cities | 79.9^% | 84.3% |
| Inner Regional | 80.7^% | 88.3% |
| Outer Regional/Remote | 83.0% | 85.1% |
For more information, see Data sources and technical notes.
^: statistically significant difference to the 2021–22 prevalence rate.
More information
DSS (2024) Performance measurement plan, DSS, accessed 8 May 2024.
Related measures
See the related National Plan Outcomes measures:
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