A first-of-its-kind socio-economic profile of the Killaloe Municipal District has been unveiled.
Ennis-based consultancy People and Place Limited has created the profile which provides detailed analysis of the demographic, economic and social characteristics of Clare’s eastern region.
Drawing extensively on the Central Statistics Office’s analysis of Census 2022 data as well as a range of other datasets, the Socio-Economic Profile is said to “provide a solid evidence base to support future decision-making within the Killaloe MD”.
While the figures show Killaloe MD is the smallest municipal district in the county with a population of 21,871, it’s the second-fastest growing after Ennis, with its number of residents having risen by almost 8.8% between 2016 and 2022.
People between the ages of 16 and 64 account for the majority of the region’s population at nearly 63.9% while 32.6% of its inhabitants are under the age of 24 and 15.9% are 65 or above.
Just 7.5% of Killaloe MD dwellers are non-Irish which is below the national average of 12.4%, with Mountshannon having the highest percentage of residents who don’t hold Irish citizenship at 10.7%.
While almost 41% of people in the area are third-level-educated, there appears to be a divide within the region, with over 50% of Crusheen, Mountshannon and Quin residents having high-level qualifications compared to under 30% of people in Scariff-Tuamgraney, Feakle and Whitegate.
When it comes to employment, over 93% of Killaloe MD residents are at work, with 25.6% of these in professional services, 18.3% in commerce and trade and 16.5% in manufacturing industries.
The data also shows that a whole 33.3% of workers in the region work from home which is higher than both the national and countywide average.
Turning to housing, Killaloe MD has the second-lowest rate of broadband connectivity in Clare with just 71.5% of homes having broadband.
A whole 9% of homes in the municipal district are empty with 838 dwellings unoccupied.
In terms of household tenure, 44.4% of homes are owner-occupied owned outright, 31% are owner-occupied with a mortgage, 10% are private rented and 3.3% are social homes.
A breakdown of the most popular modes of transport to work show that more than 73% of Killaloe MD residents commute by private car or motorcycle while over 3% walk or cycle and less than 1% use public transport.