VIC · East Gippsland Council

Bruthen, 3885

Current weather

13.3°CModerate drizzle

63% humidity · 11.8 km/h wind · 17.3° / 9.7° today · 4.2 mm rain

Desirability score

27.3/100

5615th in Australia

89% data confidence

How this score is calculated

Last updated 2 July 2026 at 6:15 pm AEST

Suburb snapshot

Bruthen is a small locality in the East Gippsland area, home to around 820 residents (2021 Census). Available data shows 33 offences in 2026 with rising year-on-year trends (+18%), roughly 40.2 offences per 1,000 residents, 1 school and preschool site in the area, limited but present public transport access, and notable planning and development activity on record. Snapshot data also shows parks or public open space within the suburb and hospitals or GP clinics within the suburb.

Population

Population: 820
Median age: 43
Median household income / week: $1,198
Dwelling vacancy: 17.8%
Unoccupied private dwellings: 71 of 398
Median monthly mortgage: $1,083
Employment rate: 57%
Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats): 29 / 9 / 3

Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)

Employment, household income and age diversity (2021 Census)

Data sources & freshness

2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:05 pm AEST · 2021 Census release
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.

Crime & safety

Total offences (2026): 33
Against the person: 13
Against property: 14
Rate per 1,000 residents: 40.2
Person-crime prevalence: About 1 in 63 residents
State safety percentile: 36.6th (lower crime is better)
Increase (daily rate): +17.9%

Reported offences increased compared with the previous period.

Reported offences by period

Most common offence types

A231 Fv Common Assault3
B21 Criminal Damage3
B49 Other Theft3
E13 Resist Or Hinder Officer4
Other Crimes Against The Person4

Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)

Crime rate and year-on-year trend

Data sources & freshness

Recorded offences by suburb/town — Crime Statistics Agency (Victoria) · Period: 2025 · Updated on site 2 July 2026 at 12:14 pm AEST · Year ending March release

Schools & preschools

Schools & preschools: 1
Median school ICSEA: 994

Bruthen Primary SchoolPrimary

Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)

School and preschool counts, median school ICSEA

Data sources & freshness

ACARA school locations — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:19 pm AEST · Annual ACARA release
School ICSEA scores — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:19 pm AEST · Annual ACARA release

Public transport

2 public transport stops in this suburb

General Store/Main St
Station Rd/Great Alpine Rd

Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)

Public transport stop coverage

Data sources & freshness

GTFS public transport stops — State transport authority open-data feeds · Period: current · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:20 pm AEST · GTFS static feed

Planning & development

Development applications from PPARS statewide register (lodged 2020–2022). Free public PPARS MapServer — applications through ~2022 (service last updated Feb 2024).

16 planning-related records

2021· 7 proposals

August 2021
Removal of two native trees (to facilitate buildings and works for an outbuilding)06 Aug 2021
74 STATION ROAD BRUTHEN 3885Permit issued by a delegate of the RA
July 2021
Buildings and works for an outbuilding (carport) with reduced setbacks within the Rural Living Zone26 Jul 2021
68 GREAT ALPINE ROAD BRUTHEN 3885Permit issued by a delegate of the RA
Two lot subdivision (boundary realignment)07 Jul 2021
144 GREAT ALPINE ROAD BRUTHEN 3885Permit issued by a delegate of the RA
May 2021
Earthworks associated with construction of a Dam21 May 2021
1203 TAMBO UPPER ROAD BRUTHEN 3885Permit issued by a delegate of the RA
Use and development of a retail premise, business identification signage, associated facilities and car parking dispensation01 May 2021
64 MAIN STREET BRUTHEN 3885Permit issued by a delegate of the RA
April 2021
Buildings and works of an outbuilding (covered porch)20 Apr 2021
7 Church StreetPermit issued by a delegate of the RA
March 2021
Two lot subdivision25 Mar 2021
6 MILL STREET BRUTHEN 3885Permit issued by a delegate of the RA

2020· 9 proposals

October 2020
Development of a dwelling and associated carport within a Bushfire Management Overlay01 Oct 2020
190 ENGINEERS ROAD BRUTHEN 3885Permit issued by a delegate of the RA
September 2020
Buildings and works for an outbuilding10 Sep 2020
431 Great Alpine RoadPermit issued by a delegate of the RA
Buildings and works for a dwelling including earthworks04 Sep 2020
24 Gardam CourtPermit issued by a delegate of the RA
July 2020
Development of an outbuilding within 100m of a waterway30 Jul 2020
2165 Great Alpine RoadPermit issued by a delegate of the RA
Development of a second dwelling and associated earthworks22 Jul 2020
114 Great Alpine RoadPermit issued by a delegate of the RA
Development of a dwelling13 Jul 2020
46 Engineers RoadPermit issued by a delegate of the RA
June 2020
Two lot subdivision (dwelling excision)23 Jun 2020
1304 Tambo Upper RoadPermit issued by a delegate of the RA
March 2020
Development of a shed12 Mar 2020
12 Lambournes RoadNo permit required
February 2020
Alteration to red line plan05 Feb 2020
10 Bruthen-Nowa Nowa RoadPermit issued by a delegate of the RA

Contributes to desirability score · Future Growth (7%)

Development and planning activity

Data sources & freshness

PPARS planning permit activity (statewide) — Department of Transport and Planning (Victoria) · Period: 2020–2022 · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:31 pm AEST · Public MapServer last updated Feb 2024 — applications through FY 2022–23 only; newer PPARS data requires council/API access

Amenities

No OpenStreetMap amenities mapped for this suburb yet.

Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)

Food, shopping, recreation and sport (OpenStreetMap)

Data sources & freshness

OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:15 pm AEST · Weekly refresh

Parks & reserves

6 parks and public open space in this suburb

Bruthen Community Recreation ReserveNature reserve
Bruthen Recreation ReservePark
Main Street ParkPark
The Glen Flora ReserveNature reserve

Data sources & freshness

Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · Period: current · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:32 pm AEST

Health access

Hospitals & GP clinics: 1
Emergency department: Not in suburb

Gippsland Lakes Complete Healthyes

Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)

Hospitals and GP clinics

Data sources & freshness

Hospitals & clinics — OpenStreetMap + state health datasets · Period: current · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:32 pm AEST

Socio-economic (SEIFA)

IRSAD decile (2021): 2/10
IRSD decile (2021): 3/10

SEIFA indexes from ABS 2021. Decile 10 = most advantaged / least disadvantaged in Australia.

Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)

Socio-economic advantage (IRSAD decile)

Data sources & freshness

SEIFA 2021 (IRSAD / IRSD) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:05 pm AEST · 2021 SEIFA release

Childcare

1 childcare service from OpenStreetMap

Bruthen Uniting Early Learningchildcare

Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)

Childcare centre count

Data sources & freshness

Childcare services — OpenStreetMap · Period: current · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 6:14 pm AEST

Hazards

Bushfire planning zone: Overlay applies

Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via Victorian Bushfire Management Overlay mapping.

Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)

Bushfire hazard overlays

Data sources & freshness

Hazard planning overlays — State government hazard layers · Period: current · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 6:14 pm AEST

Green cover

Parks & woodland (OSM): 7
Parks (OSM): 4

OpenStreetMap parks and natural woodland features mapped within the suburb boundary.

Contributes to desirability score · Environment (10%)

Parks and green cover (OpenStreetMap)

Data sources & freshness

OpenStreetMap green cover features — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:16 pm AEST · Weekly refresh

Desirability index

Desirability score: 27.3/100
National rank: 5615th in Australia
State rank: 1089th in VIC
Peer rank: #269 among Country & regional · Established suburbs
Cohort rank: #591 among Country & regional suburbs
Data confidence: 89%

Data sources & freshness

Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site 2 July 2026 at 6:10 pm AEST · Derived from source metrics

Recent changes

A231 Fv Common Assaultcrime3
B21 Criminal Damagecrime3
B49 Other Theftcrime3
E13 Resist Or Hinder Officercrime4
Other Crimes Against The Personcrime4
Bruthen Uniting Early Learningchildcarechildcare
Gippsland Lakes Complete Healthhealthyes
Bruthen Community Recreation Reservegovernmentnature_reserve
Bruthen Recreation Reservegovernmentpark
Main Street Parkgovernmentpark

Data sources & freshness

Childcare services — OpenStreetMap · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 6:14 pm AEST
Recorded offences by suburb/town — Crime Statistics Agency (Victoria) · Updated on site 2 July 2026 at 12:13 pm AEST · Year ending March release
Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:32 pm AEST
Hospitals & clinics — OpenStreetMap + state health datasets · Updated on site 1 July 2026 at 5:32 pm AEST

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