Town by town snapshot: Birregurra

The size of Birregurra for ABS data collection purposes is approximately 126.4 square kilometres.

The population of Birregurra in 2011 was 741 people and by the 2016 Census the population was 810 showing a population growth of 9.3 per cent in the area during that time.

Birregurra is the ideal rural township located an easy commute to Geelong, Colac and the iconic beaches along the Great Ocean Road.

Now famous for the popular Birregurra Festival, the town borders the western bank of the Barwon River with rail skirting the northeast edge of the town with the Otway Ranges immediately to south.

The Birregurra on Barwon township was surveyed in 1862 and it is thought that the name was derived from an Aboriginal word describing ‘kangaroo camp’ or (less likely) referring to a bend in the river.

A chapel and school were opened around 1863 with a Presbyterian church opened in 1865 and the town’s prominent Christ church was built in 1872.

The railway was extended from Geelong to Birregurra in 1876-77, prompting a steady growth in population to nearly 400 people by 1900.

CoreLogic data indicates that the predominant age group in Birregurra is 60-69 years with households in Birregurra being primarily childless couples and are likely to be repaying $1,400 – $1,799 per month on mortgage repayments and in general, people in Birregurra work in a managers occupation.

In 2011, 82.7 per cent of the homes in Birregurra were owner-occupied compared with 78.6 per cent in 2016.