Census & National Household Survey 2011: Strathroy-Caradoc
Introduction Most of these graphs and tables have been sitting on
my computer for a while and would have just stayed
there but for two things. First, I saw a report for a
local area that covered some of the same ground,
which told me I wasn’t the only person interested in
this stuff. There were also some inaccurate figures in
the report (one very significant) and I realized there
aren’t many of us going over these numbers who can
help spot each other’s mistakes … and mistakes will
happen. There may be some here.
Second, SWEA recently started distributing reports
about Southwestern Ontario that are also based on
Statistics Canada data, although ones updated much
more frequently. Information from the Census and
National Household Survey is a good complement to
those reports.
It’s mostly a personal interest or hobby, partly
fuelled by my experience in helping create the
startup community in Waterloo and—after moving
to Strathroy in 2010—analyzing differences between
communities as I looked at how to adapt the success
we had in Waterloo and the lessons learned there to
help boost entrepreneurship-based economic
development in other parts of Southwestern
Ontario. For the last year, I’ve been doing this as a
roving executive-in-residence at Communitech,
covering the region.
It’s written from a Strathroy-Caradoc perspective,
but includes a lot of data about all of Southwestern
Ontario.
Apologies for some of the text sizes. Reading glasses
… or a zoom … may be required!
Gary Will
www.garywill.com
January 2014
Contents Introduction .............................................................. 1
Population ................................................................. 2
Median age ............................................................... 5
Occupations .............................................................. 7
“Creative” occupations ........................................... 10
Population density .................................................. 11
University degree .................................................... 12
Any university or college degree, diploma,
certificate ................................................................ 13
Employment in manufacturing ............................... 15
Employment in agriculture ..................................... 16
Relative strengths in employment .......................... 17
Median family income ............................................ 18
Median dwelling value ............................................ 19
Immigrants .............................................................. 20
Visible minorities .................................................... 21
Family doctors......................................................... 22
Almost all of the data used in these pages came from
the 2011 Census and National Household Survey, the
final batch of which were released by Statistics
Canada in 2013. There’s also data from the 2006
Census used for period-over-period comparisons.
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Population In the five-year period from 2006 to 2011, the population
of Strathroy-Caradoc grew by 5.1%—the second-highest
among municipalities in both Middlesex County and the
London metropolitan area, trailing only Middlesex Centre.
It also had the 11th highest population growth rate in
Southwestern Ontario among 97 lowest-tier municipalities
and the 6th highest outside of Waterloo Region (which had,
by far, the highest population growth among Southwestern
Ontario regions).
That growth came mostly from older residents. In the 20 to
44 age range, the population of Strathroy-Caradoc shrank
6.1% from 2006 to 2011. Because of aging baby boomers,
this age range that showed declines across the province
(although the average was only -0.3% thanks to some gains
in the GTA and Ottawa). Across Southwestern Ontario, the
Strathroy-Caradoc decline in the 20 to 44 range was
middle-of-the-pack, with the steepest losses found in the
Windsor-Essex and Chatham-Kent regions.
Over the 10-year period from 2001 to 2011 (see next page),
Strathroy-Caradoc’s population growth of 9.5% was again
behind only Middlesex Centre among municipalities in
Middlesex County. It was well above the 10-year growth rate
for Middlesex County (6.2%) and also higher than the average
growth rate for the London metro area (9.0%).
Among the regions of Southwestern Ontario, the highest 10-
year population growth rate was in Waterloo Region (15.6%)
and the lowest was Chatham-Kent (-3.4%) followed by Huron
County (-1.0%), the only regions in Southwestern Ontario to
record population declines in the 10-year period.
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Median age At the time of the 2006 Census, the median age in Strathroy-Caradoc
was only slightly higher than the provincial average (39.2 years versus
39.0 years). With the growth in the older population, the gap has
widened and the median age in Strathroy-Caradoc is now two years
higher than the Ontario median (42.2 years versus 40.4 years).
Among Southwestern Ontario municipalities, Strathroy-Caradoc is
middle-of-the-pack for median age, which is also where it ranks
within Middlesex County (which ranges from Lucan Biddulph at 38.9
years to Southwest Middlesex at 45.3).
Regionally, London-Middlesex had the third-lowest median age in
Southwestern Ontario at 39.8, up from 38.5 in 2006. At 37.7,
Waterloo Region had the lowest median age among all regions in
Southwestern Ontario and the second-lowest in the province.
For percentage of residents in the 20 to 44 age range (see next page),
Strathroy-Caradoc ranked above the median In Southwestern
Ontario with 28.6% of the population in that range. That was also
above the Middlesex County average of 27.5%. The larger urban
areas dominate the top of the list. Outside of the cities, Lucan
Biddulph had the highest concentration of 20 to 44-year-olds in
Southwestern Ontario at 32.2%.
As the age distribution line on the next page illustrates, Strathroy-
Caradoc scores slightly higher than the provincial average for percent
of residents aged 0 to 19. Then, as with most communities without a
university or college campus, it drops well below the provincial
average at age 20 and remains there for ages 20 to 35, when it starts
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to get closer to the average. At around age 60, it climbs above the
provincial average and remains there for all ages 60 and older (the much
flatter line for London-Middlesex is also shown for comparison).
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Occupations
Retail positions account for four of the top 10: Overall, the most common occupation among residents of
Strathroy-Caradoc was retail salesperson, the occupation of 4.2% of the working population. Retail sales was the
second most common occupation of residents in both the 15 to 24 age range (behind food counter
attendants/kitchen helpers) and the 45 to 64 age range (behind truck drivers). It was not one of the top jobs in
the 25 to 44 age group, but retail management was. Overall, retail management was the fifth most common
occupation, with food counter attendant/kitchen help sixth and cashier seventh.
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Motor vehicle assembly/inspection/testing was the second most common occupation overall and the most
common job among residents aged 25 to 44.
Truck driving was the third most common job across all ages, in addition to being the most common occupation
of residents aged 45 to 64.
Construction/labourers was the second most common occupation in the 25 to 44 age range and eighth overall.
Registered nurse was the fourth most common occupation in the municipality and was third in both the 25 to 44
and the 45 to 64 age ranges.
Farming was the top occupation in the 65+ age category and ninth overall. Farm worker was the most common
non-retail job in the 15 to 24 age range.
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“Creative” occupations Using definitions from Toronto’s Martin
Prosperity Institute, Strathroy-Caradoc had a
low score for its concentration of “creative
class” workers—defined as “high autonomy
jobs where workers are paid to think.”
Among the working residents of Strathroy-
Caradoc, 19.4% worked in occupations
classified as creative. That fell below the
average for Southwestern Ontario (27.6%),
London-Middlesex (31.5%) and Middlesex
County (22.9%). Creative class occupations
are typically more concentrated in larger
urban areas. Within Middlesex County,
Strathroy-Caradoc ranked behind Middlesex
Centre and Thames Centre but ahead of the
other municipalities. The most common
occupation in Strathroy-Caradoc classified as
creative was registered nurse.
Across the regions of Southwestern Ontario,
Waterloo Region had the highest
concentration of “creative class” workers
(32.2%) with London-Middlesex second, slightly ahead of Guelph-Wellington. Huron County had the lowest
concentration (19.9%) followed by Haldimand County and Oxford County.
Strathroy-Caradoc led the county and was well-
above average for Southwestern Ontario in
“working class” occupations (30.7%)—
“occupations that depend on physical skills and
repetitive tasks.” It was about average for
“service class” occupations—ones that “perform
routine work directly for, or on behalf of, clients.”
This is the largest of the classes. In the final class,
farming, Strathroy-Caradoc (4.5%) had the
lowest concentration in Middlesex County but
was still above average for Southwestern Ontario
due to the small numbers from the larger urban
centres, which drag the average down.
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Population density Population density mostly separates rural and urban communities,
although there are some very small rural communities (such as
Newbury) that also have higher densities.
Southwestern Ontario has a mix of urban, small urban, and rural
communities, and that is reflected in the population density rankings.
Most municipalities are small urban or rural, and outside of the cities
and larger towns, Strathroy-Caradoc had one of the higher population
densities across the region.
Because the City of London has a lot of land area, its population
density ranked below St. Thomas among the municipalities in the
London metro area and Strathroy-Caradoc ranks third.
Other than Newbury, Strathroy-Caradoc had the highest population
density in Middlesex County, well ahead of the next-highest in Thames
Centre (with Middlesex Centre close behind).
Across Southwestern Ontario, Waterloo Region, with its three cities,
had by far the highest population density among the regions. London-
Middlesex was third.
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University degree Only 12.5% of Strathroy-Caradoc residents aged 25 to 64 have a
university degree, which places it well below the average for
Southwestern Ontario (20.9%) which itself is well below the
provincial average (28.9%). Strathroy-Caradoc was also below the
average across the five-county SCOR region (13.7%).
Within Middlesex County, Middlesex Centre had the highest
percentage at 26.6%—only slightly behind London’s 27.9%.
Across Southwestern Ontario, the City of Waterloo’s score fell
just below Richmond Hill’s for the highest in all of Ontario.
Despite that, among the regions, Waterloo Region (26.1%) placed
just behind Guelph-Wellington (27.4%) for top spot
Southwestern Ontario for concentration of university graduates
among its residents. London-Middlesex was third (26.1%)
St. Thomas-Elgin had the lowest score among the Southwestern
Ontario regions at 11.9%, followed closely by Chatham-Kent
(12.0%).
All regions of Southwestern Ontario fell below the provincial
average (28.9%) as only five regions in province had above
average scores—Ottawa and four in the GTA.
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Any university or college degree, diploma, certificate Broadening the filter from university degrees to any degree,
diploma or certificate from a university or college, Strathroy-
Caradoc remained in about the same spot relative to other
Southwestern Ontario municipalities and still below the median.
In this case, though, London-Middlesex had the highest score
among all Southwestern Ontario regions, driven by strong
numbers for Middlesex Centre, London, Lucan Biddulph and
Thames Centre, all of which had more than half their population
aged 25 to 64 with some form of university or college
certification. The average across London-Middlesex was 56.7%.
Strathroy-Caradoc was at 42.3%.
London-Middlesex fell just below the provincial average of 57.0%
and, as with university degrees, it was Ottawa and the GTA that
pushed the average up across the province. Outside of the GTA,
only Ottawa and Kingston-Frontenac placed higher than London-
Middlesex.
Among the Southwestern Ontario regions, Guelph-Wellington
was second behind London-Middlesex and Waterloo Region was
third. Stratford-St. Marys-Perth County had the lowest score at
41.6%, followed by Huron County.
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When you break down the degrees, diplomas and certificates by major field of study (and this table also includes
trades certificates and diplomas), it’s not surprising, given the previous numbers, that Strathroy-Caradoc places in
the bottom half among the 97 lowest-tier municipalities in Southwestern Ontario for nearly all fields.
The one exception is health and related fields, where Strathroy-Caradoc places in the top quartile among
Southwestern Ontario municipalities and just out of the top quartile provincially.
Postsecondary Studies Ontario Rank (of 340) SWO Rank (of 97)
Health and related fields 89 21
Agriculture, natural resources and conservation 119 55
Mathematics, computer and information sciences 176 54
Humanities 177 59
Visual and performing arts, and communications tech 178 53
Physical and life sciences and technologies 184 58
Personal, protective and transportation services 206 57
Social and behavioural sciences and law 232 65
Business, management and public administration 233 66
Architecture, engineering, and related technologies 251 65
And, while Strathroy-Caradoc doesn’t rank as highly in the other fields, it’s only slightly below the median for
mathematics and computer science and fore visual and performing arts, so there is at least a base of residents
with degrees and diplomas in those fields. Strathroy-Caradoc does not score well for graduates in business or
architecture and engineering.
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Employment in manufacturing Although Southwestern Ontario is known as the manufacturing
heartland of the province, the concentration of manufacturing
jobs in the London metro area has long been the lowest among the
region’s CMAs. Across Southwestern Ontario, Strathroy-Caradoc
ranked middle-of-the-pack for the percentage of working
residents employed in manufacturing, at 15.3% (down from 20.3%
at the time of the 2006 Census). Other than Newbury, that was still
the highest percentage in Middlesex County, where the average
was 12.5%.
While high for Middlesex County, the level of manufacturing
employment in Strathroy-Caradoc fell below the average for
Southwestern Ontario (15.4%) and for the five-county SCOR region
(16.8%) but well ahead of the provincial average (10.2%).
London-Middlesex had the second-lowest concentration of
manufacturing employment among all Southwestern Ontario
regions at 10.5%, ahead of only Bruce County (7.3%). The highest
was Oxford County at 20.7%, followed by essentially a three-way
tie between Guelph-Wellington, Waterloo Region and Windsor-
Essex.
The top nine manufacturing regions in the province by percentage
of total employment were all in Southwestern Ontario. London-
Middlesex ranked 22nd.
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Employment in agriculture Statistics Canada includes farming in the “agriculture, forestry, fishing
and hunting” category, which—for Southwestern Ontario—will
largely be farming.
Like manufacturing, this is another sector that Southwestern Ontario
is particularly known for, and at 4.6% Strathroy-Caradoc fell below the
median for Southwestern Ontario municipalities in its percent of
working residents employed in farming, although it was ahead of the
3.9% average for Southwestern Ontario (the average is lowered by the
cities which have high populations and low employment in farming).
Strathroy-Caradoc was also well below the 8.1% average for the SCOR
region, which was also the average for Middlesex County—which is
pushed up by Adelaide-Metcalfe, which had one of the highest
concentrations of agriculture employment in Ontario.
Outside of the cities, the entire region placed above the provincial
average of 1.5% (which is for the entire agriculture-forestry-fishing-
hunting category).
The London-Middlesex region had the second-lowest concentration
of agriculture employment in Southwestern Ontario at 1.7%, ahead of
only Waterloo Region. The highest was Huron County at 13.4%.
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Relative strengths in employment Compared to all of Ontario, Strathroy-Caradoc has well-above-average concentration of residents working in
manufacturing, finance and insurance, and health care and social assistance. But the first two are strengths of
Southwestern Ontario in general, and within the region, Strathroy-Caradoc doesn’t stand out for manufacturing
and is only a little above the median for finance and insurance.
Relative to other Southwestern Ontario municipalities, Strathroy-Caradoc has a notably high concentration of
residents working in health care/social assistance as well as in retail.
Industry Provincial rank (of 340) SWO Rank (of 97)
Manufacturing 66 44
Finance and insurance 79 35
Health care, social assistance 81 12
Wholesale trade 102 36
Retail trade 115 10
Transportation, warehousing 118 34
Construction 131 34
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting 137 64
Accommodation and food services 165 46
Professional, scientific, technical 181 46
Admin/support, waste management/remediation 189 55
Real estate 203 64
Arts, entertainment, recreation 216 70
Information and cultural industries 219 67
Educational services 245 65
Public administration 264 60
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Median family income Strathroy-Caradoc fell in the bottom half of Southwestern Ontario
municipalities for median family income (and for median individual
income as well). It was also in the bottom half among municipalities
in Middlesex County.
Middlesex Centre had the highest median household income in
Middlesex County and the fifth highest in Southwestern Ontario (and
three above it are municipalities in Wellington County the border on
the GTA). Thames Centre also placed highly on the list.
Strathroy-Caradoc’s median household income of $72,743 was up
5.4% from $68,991 at the 2006 Census.
Across the regions of Southwestern Ontario, Guelph-Wellington and
Waterloo Region were the only two to place above the provincial
average of $80,987. The Ontario average is pushed up by high
medians in large urban areas in Ottawa and parts of the GTA
(although not the City of Toronto itself). Chatham-Kent had the lowest
median family income in Southwestern Ontario.
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Median dwelling value The median value of a house (or other residential dwelling) is
lower in Strathroy-Caradoc than in most of Southwestern Ontario.
Among Middlesex County municipalities, the ranking for dwelling
value roughly follows the same order as income, with Middlesex
Centre at the top, followed closely by Thames Centre. Adelaide-
Metcalfe, North Middlesex and Lucan Biddulph placed third,
fourth and fifth (for household income they were fourth, fifth, and
third, respectively), followed by Strathroy-Caradoc, Southwest
Middlesex and Newbury.
The median dwelling value in Strathroy-Caradoc was $210,760,
which was about $20,000 below the median for London-
Middlesex ($230,121). At the time of the 2006 Census, the median
for Strathroy-Caradoc was $202,435
Three of the four municipalities with the highest median dwelling
value were in Wellington County, and the Guelph-Wellington
region had the highest median dwelling value among the regions
of Southwestern Ontario at $300,421, followed closely by
Waterloo Region. Chatham-Kent had the lowest regional median
dwelling value at $149,775, followed by Windsor-Essex and
Lambton County.
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Immigrants Strathroy-Caradoc scored in the top quartile of Southwestern
Ontario municipalities for percentage of residents who are
immigrants, although it did fall below the regional average (the
average is pushed up by urban areas that have large populations
and higher concentrations of immigrants).
At 12.2%, Strathroy-Caradoc ranked 21st among the 97 lowest-tier
municipalities in Southwestern Ontario. The average across
Southwestern Ontario was 16.3%, led by Windsor at 27.1%.
Strathroy-Caradoc placed well above the 10.8% average in the
SCOR region as well as the 10.1% average in Middlesex County.
No municipality in Southwestern Ontario was above the provincial
average of 28.5%, but every municipality in Ontario outside of the
GTA was below that average (some GTA municipalities were
above 50%). The average among Ontario municipalities outside of
the GTA was 15.1%, with Hamilton placing highest in that group.
Across the regions of Southwestern Ontario, Waterloo Region had
the highest concentration of immigrants at 22.3%, followed by
Windsor-Essex and London-Middlesex, while Huron County had
the lowest at 7.3%.
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Visible minorities In Southwestern Ontario, visible minorities are primarily
concentrated in the larger urban areas with only a couple of
exceptions. Only 1.8% of Strathroy-Caradoc residents were visible
minorities, but that was still good enough for a middle-of-the-pack
ranking in Southwestern Ontario. It was an increase from 1.3% in
2006.
The average across Southwestern Ontario was 9.9%, pushed up by
the urban areas. Strathroy-Caradoc also fell below the 2.0%
average for the SCOR region.
Every municipality in Southwestern Ontario fell below the
provincial average of 25.9% (as with immigrants, only GTA
municipalities had scores above the Ontario average). The average
outside of the GTA was 9.6% with Ottawa receiving the highest
numbers.
The counts for some municipalities were likely less than the
sampling errors, since the numbers get very small.
Among Southwestern Ontario regions, Waterloo Region had the
highest score for visible minorities at 15.4%, followed very closely
by Windsor-Essex. London-Middlesex was third. Huron County
had the lowest concentration at 0.8%.
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Family doctors Strathroy-Caradoc scored well above average in Southwestern
Ontario for family doctors per capita (this does not include
specialists, where the municipality also receives a high score thanks
to the hospital).
Among the regions of Southwestern Ontario, London-Middlesex had
more family doctors than any other area, narrowly ahead of Guelph-
Wellington. And, aside from Newbury, Strathroy-Caradoc had the
most family doctors per capita of any municipality in London-
Middlesex.
Family doctors typically serve a roster of patients that includes many
from outside of their own municipality, so a community could be
well-served even if it doesn’t have a large number of physicians
within its own border, as long as there are doctors nearby. So it is not
necessarily the case that the further down the list a municipality falls,
the less access its residents have to a family doctor.
If specialists are added to the count, London-Middlesex had by far
the most physicians per capita of any Southwestern Ontario region,
with 3.00 per 1,000 residents. Well back in second place was
Stratford-St. Marys-Perth with 1.74.
Data on the number of family doctors is from the Ontario Physician
Human Resources Data Centre (OPHRDC); population data is from
the 2011 Census.