COVID induced shift to regional living an opportunity to rebalance Australia’s settlement strategy

With the COVID-19 pandemic heightening interest in growing Australia’s regions to drive new economic activity and potentially reduce the urban congestion and housing affordability pressures in Australia’s capital cities, new AHURI research has investigated international strategies and Australian case studies to find what best might support future development.  

‘Our research revealed that successful regional areas across Australia shared a number of similarities,’ says lead author of the research, Professor Nicole Gurran from the University of Sydney.

The research, ‘Population growth, regional connectivity, and city planning— international lessons for Australian practice’ was undertaken for AHURI by researchers from The University of Sydney and Harvard University. Overall, the study found there is no single ‘best’ model for regional planning, development or governance. Rather, there has been a general trend towards place-based regional interventions, which focus on unique regional attributes and opportunities.  

‘Our research revealed that successful regional areas across Australia shared a number of similarities,’ says lead author of the research, Professor Nicole Gurran from the University of Sydney.

‘They all benefited from being close to a larger state capital city, or, in the case of Albury-Wodonga, from being an important transport and logistics interchange on the NSW and Victoria border. In addition, they all have important regional service roles as administrative headquarters for local and sometimes state, services, and health, education, commercial, and retail services.’  

In virtually all of the Australian regional cities examined, the largest industry sectors in terms of employment were heath care and social assistance followed by either retail or education.  

‘A clear message to emerge is that population and economic growth are not on their own sufficient to drive sustainable and balanced employment outcomes, and that ‘success’ should be measured more broadly, by also looking into liveability, environmental impacts and the social impacts of growth,’ says Professor Gurran.  

The research highlights the importance of infrastructure, transport, and telecommunications infrastructure in attracting and sustaining employment and population in regional areas. It shows that higher levels of government support through funding grants, decentralisation of government agencies and investment in universities, hospitals and other major facilities have helped diversify local economies and have led to the creation of high quality, local jobs.  

‘A clear message to emerge is that population and economic growth are not on their own sufficient to drive sustainable and balanced employment outcomes, and that ‘success’ should be measured more broadly, by also looking into liveability, environmental impacts and the social impacts of growth,’ says Professor Gurran.    

Although none of the international cases examined were unambiguously successful they offer several insights, including the importance of long-term regional planning and coordination, with success building over time and the importance of setting concrete, regional level targets for balanced housing and job development.

The case studies also reveal that when selecting new opportunities for economic specialisation and growth it is important to identify industries that have long-term, high value potential. In the current period this would include those not susceptible to automation. It also means identifying opportunities that can be outsourced from major cities to regional Australia, and where regions have advantages over international outsourcing.

‘The shift to the regions could be the precursor to a rebalancing of Australia’s settlement and population growth; but it needs to be planned for; with the current housing crises in the regions something that needs to be worked through to ensure that the long-term benefits of a more balanced urban and regional settlement pattern can be sustained,’ says Professor Gurran.