Ōpaheke is a suburb of Auckland, in northern New Zealand. It is located to the south of Papakura, and 32 kilometres south of the Auckland CBD. The suburb is the southernmost part of the Auckland metropolitan area.
The name was altered to include a macron in 2019.[3]
History
Ethnographer George Graham recorded that the name meant "Of Paheke", which suggests that it was named after a person called Paheke.[4]
Opaheke was originally governed by the Opaheke Road District Board before amalgamating with Franklin County in 1916.[5]
Demographics
Ōpaheke covers 1.15 km2 (0.44 sq mi)[1] and had an estimated population of 3,360 as of June 2024,[2] with a population density of 2,922 people per km2.
Before the 2023 census, Ōpaheke had a smaller boundary, covering 1.11 km2 (0.43 sq mi).[1] Using that boundary, Ōpaheke had a population of 2,868 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 276 people (10.6%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 315 people (12.3%) since the 2006 census. There were 903 households, comprising 1,398 males and 1,473 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.95 males per female. The median age was 33.7 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 627 people (21.9%) aged under 15 years, 624 (21.8%) aged 15 to 29, 1,332 (46.4%) aged 30 to 64, and 285 (9.9%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 71.0% European/Pākehā, 24.5% Māori, 9.6% Pacific peoples, 11.3% Asian, and 2.8% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.
The percentage of people born overseas was 22.8, compared with 27.1% nationally.
Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 49.5% had no religion, 35.8% were Christian, 1.6% had Māori religious beliefs, 2.1% were Hindu, 0.7% were Muslim, 0.7% were Buddhist and 3.6% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 429 (19.1%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 405 (18.1%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $39,700, compared with $31,800 nationally. 465 people (20.7%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 1,338 (59.7%) people were employed full-time, 252 (11.2%) were part-time, and 84 (3.7%) were unemployed.[6]
Education
Opaheke School is a coeducational full primary school (years 1–8) with a roll of 629 as of August 2024.[7][8] The school was founded in 1968.[9]
