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Home > Our Services > Coordination > 2011 Census of Population and Housing

How to Participate

National Census: Tuesday 9 August

It is important for every Queenslander to be counted on Census night.

The Queensland Government campaign ‘Census is for all of us’ complements the national ‘Census for a brighter future - shed some light on Census night’ campaign encouraging Queenslanders to be ‘visible’ and for every person in the State to be counted.

Without the Census the Australian Government can’t see where funding needs to go and important projects may never see the light of day.

For further information please see:

For further, more detailed information, please see the ABS web site.

Look for the yellow bag

Photo of a Census collector (with yellow bag) knocking on the front door of a house

Census Collectors from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) will be out and about delivering forms from late July through to Census night on 9 August. They will be wearing ID tags and carrying a large yellow bag big enough to hold Census forms.

Census Collectors will return to collect the completed forms in the weeks following Census night OR your household can choose to go online and use the ABS eCensus.

I want to complete the Census online

When the ABS Census Collector drops off your Census materials, you will receive an eCensus envelope containing your unique access code.

More Queenslanders are expected to use the eCensus in 2011. If you choose to complete the Census online, the Collector won’t need to disturb you again to collect your form. The ABS eCensus is fast and easy to use and is available online.

How private and secure is my information?

ABS Census Collectors take privacy and confidentiality very seriously. All personal information collected in the 2011 Census will be kept confidential. The Census and Statistics Act 1905 guarantees this protection and legally binds all ABS staff (including temporary employees working during the Census) never to release personal information to any individual or organisation outside the ABS.

You can also request a personal Census form or ask the Collector for a privacy envelope.

eCensus is a highly secure system that protects the privacy of all personal information collected. The connection between your computer and the eCensus is protected using 128-bit SSL encryption, the same technology used for internet banking. It represents best practice, complies with the Australian Government Information Security Manual developed by the Defence Signals Directorate, and has been independently reviewed and thoroughly tested to ensure that your private information is secure.

More information about Census privacy and confidentiality can be found on the ABS website.

Regional or more remote parts of the State?

Regional and remote areas of Queensland present particular challenges to the Census Collectors; during the last Census in 2006 it was more difficult to find and count people who lived in these areas. Queensland is a big place with vast distances between western and northern towns.

You might be a long way from a town, living on a property, working on a mine site, or just travelling through on holiday.

Even if you are in these regional or remote areas at Census time, the Census Collector will aim to contact your household before 9 August. Travellers staying at hotels, motels or caravan parks on Census night should be given a Census form by the proprietor.

Independent travellers camping at small roadside stops or within remote National Parks and reserves may need to collect a Travellers' Census Pack. These will be available from designated Visitor Information Centres between Friday 5 August and Tuesday 23 August.

For more information go to the ABS web site or phone the Census Inquiry Service on 1300 338 776.

Under 30?

If you have moved out of your childhood home and are now living in your own place you may be completing a Census form for the first time.

Completing a Census form is important because it provides valuable data that government uses to negotiate funding and plan infrastructure and services for the whole State—infrastructure and services that you use every day.

Release MP3 MP3 Size RTF RTF Size TXT TXT Size
Census 2011 - Radio announcement mp3 (720 kB) rtf (10 kB) txt (5 kB)

Living in a high-rise or gated community?

Census 2011 postcard

Census 2011 postcard contents: Help Queensland stand up and be counted. The National Census: Tuesday 9 August. Census is for all of us. Make sure your community is fairly represented when governments plan funding for roads, schools, hospitals and infrastructure. It's vital you complete your Census form.

More and more people in Queensland are living in high-rise apartment buildings or gated communities as this lifestyle can be more convenient and offer privacy and security.

If you live in a secure apartment, Census Collectors have made special arrangements to make sure you don’t miss out on the Census. In some cases the ABS Census Collectors will talk to your building manager about the best ways of getting Census information to your door.

You may have recently received a letter about the Census from the Queensland Government Statistician. This is to encourage you to participate in the Census. If you have any questions about the letter, contact the Office of the Government Statistician on 1800 068 587.

The ABS Census Collector will be wearing an ID tag and will be carrying a yellow satchel.

You can complete a paper form and mail it back, but if you use eCensus, the collector won’t need to bother you again. Remember—eCensus is fast, easy and very secure.

If you have not received a form by 7 August please call the ABS Census Inquiry Service on 1300 338 776.

Do you identify as an Indigenous Queenslander—an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person?

At the 2006 Census, there were around 127,600 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples counted as living in Queensland. However, more than one in ten Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Queenslanders weren’t counted. It’s important that all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Queenslanders are counted in 2011.

2011 is an important Census year for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Queenslanders as it marks the 40th anniversary of the 1971 Census, the first time Indigenous Australians were formally counted after the historic 1967 referendum.

All Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Queensland are encouraged to complete a form and to identify. With the question, “Is the person of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander origin?” if you are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander you just need to mark (–) in the box for “Yes, Aboriginal” or “Yes, Torres Strait Islander”. For persons of both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin, just mark both “Yes” boxes.

ABS Census Collectors will call at all households in the cities and the country in the lead-up to Tuesday 9 August. Special Indigenous Assistants will be available to help out if needed.

Indigenous local government areas

The ABS is committed to providing a better Census count for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and is working directly with residents of Indigenous local government areas to build involvement and to improve the quality of data.

Census Interviewers will visit every household in each area over a four-week period starting in late July. The Census Interviewers will ensure that everyone gets counted, including babies, older children and visitors.

To be counted in the Census will help to tell your story as a person, family or community. Census data can help your area by providing a stronger basis for negotiating resources and funding.

Release MP3 MP3 Size RTF RTF Size TXT TXT Size
Census 2011 - Radio announcement (Sam Thaiday) mp3 (1,415 kB) rtf (10 kB) txt (5 kB)

Are you part of the Australian South Sea Islander community in Queensland?

The Australian South Sea Islander community is recognised as a distinct cultural group in Queensland. However it is estimated that there are more people in this group than have been officially counted through recent Censuses.

The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission’s 1992 Census of Australian South Sea Islanders revealed the community probably numbered between 10,000 and 12,000 people—with the majority (80%) still living in Queensland at that time.

In the 2006 Census only 4,099 people indicated their South Sea Islander ancestry, with 3,048 (74%) of these stating their usual residence as Queensland. The larger communities are around Mackay and Brisbane.

All Australian South Sea Islanders living in Queensland are encouraged to identify their ancestry on the Census form. The question asks “What is the person’s ancestry?” If you are an Australian South Sea Islander in the box under “Other – please specify” just write in “Australian South Sea Islander”.

The ABS has been raising awareness of the importance of identifying as an Australian South Sea Islander in the ancestry questions. They have also recruited an Australian South Sea Islander in Mackay as a Special Collector to support the Census.

Are you new to Australia and new to speaking in English?

If you have arrived in Australia recently and have not completed a Census form before, help is available.

The ABS has employed Collectors from different cultural backgrounds to help support our diverse community. The Census Collector will try to identify if you need help filling out the form.

If you have a friend or relative who can speak and read English, you could ask them to help you fill in the Census form.

You can also phone the ABS Census Language Help Line on 1300 340 120 or see the ABS Help In Your Language page.

In some areas, local community groups may be holding a fill-in-the-form session to help people fill in their Census form.

Last reviewed 29 July 2011