Elsdon, New Zealand

Elsdon
Suburb
Elsdon and the surrounding area, seen in the back right, viewed from Aotea Lagoon.
Interactive map of Elsdon
Country	New Zealand
Region	Wellington
City	Porirua City
Local authority	Porirua City Council
Electoral ward	Onepoto General Ward Porirua Māori Ward
Area [1]
• Land	113 ha (280 acres)
Population  (2023 census) [2]
• Total	903
• Density	799/km2 (2,070/sq mi)

	Takapūwāhia
Colonial Knob	Elsdon	Porirua CBD
	Kenepuru

Elsdon is a suburb of the New Zealand city of Porirua located immediately to the west to of the city's CBD. The area was named after Elsdon Best, a historian who studied archaeological sites in the area. ^[3] Its industrial area, the largest in the city, ^[4] is known for housing the factory used by New Zealand chocolate company Whittaker's; constructed in 1969, it remains the company's sole production site to this day. ^[5]

Demographics

Elsdon covers 1.13 km² (0.44 sq mi). ^[1] Most of Elsdon is part of the Porirua Central area, but the majority of its population is in the Elsdon-Takapuwahia statistical area. ^[6]

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
2006	861	—
2013	849	−0.20%
2018	954	+2.36%
2023	903	−1.09%
Source: [2] [7]

Elsdon had a population of 903 in the 2023 New Zealand census, a decrease of 51 people (−5.3%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 54 people (6.4%) since the 2013 census. There were 438 males, 456 females, and 6 people of other genders in 276 dwellings. ^[8] 2.7% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. There were 183 people (20.3%) aged under 15 years, 222 (24.6%) aged 15 to 29, 390 (43.2%) aged 30 to 64, and 114 (12.6%) aged 65 or older. ^[2]

People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 48.5% European (Pākehā); 34.6% Māori; 26.2% Pasifika; 16.6% Asian; 3.7% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.7% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 94.0%, Māori by 10.0%, Samoan by 7.6%, and other languages by 14.0%. No language could be spoken by 2.3% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 1.0%. The percentage of people born overseas was 23.6, compared with 28.8% nationally. ^[2]

Religious affiliations were 33.9% Christian, 1.3% Hindu, 2.7% Islam, 3.3% Māori religious beliefs, 1.3% Buddhist, 0.3% New Age, and 1.0% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 45.2%, and 8.6% of people did not answer the census question. ^[2]

Of those at least 15 years old, 150 (20.8%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 360 (50.0%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 204 (28.3%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. 39 people (5.4%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 363 (50.4%) full-time, 96 (13.3%) part-time, and 36 (5.0%) unemployed. ^[2]

Education

Porirua School, a co-educational state primary school for Years 1 to 6, is located in Elsdon. ^[9] The roll was 149 as of October 2025. ^[10] It started in 1863 in Paremata and moved to its current site in 1958. ^[11]

High school students living in Elsdon are zoned for the state secondary school Mana College in Takapūwāhia. ^[12]

References

1. "Stats NZ Geographic Data Service". Statistical Area 1 2023 (generalised). Retrieved 20 January 2026.
2. "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer. 7019539, 7019540, 7019577, 7019578, 7018579, 7019580 and 7019582. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
3. "Elsdon". New Zealand Gazetteer. Land Information New Zealand. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
4. "Housing and Business Development Capacity Assessment" (PDF). Kapiti Coast District Council. p. 210. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 February 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
5. "Whittaker's factory expands". Scoop. 28 January 2020. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
6. "Geographic Boundary Viewer". Stats NZ. Statistical Area 1 – 2023 and Statistical Area 2 – 2023.
7. "Statistical area 1 dataset for 2018 Census". Statistics New Zealand. March 2020. 7019539, 7019540, 7019577, 7019578, 7018579, 7019580 and 7019582.
8. "Totals by topic for dwellings, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
9. "Porirua School". EducationCounts. New Zealand Ministry of Education. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
10. "New Zealand Schools Directory". New Zealand Ministry of Education. Retrieved 1 October 2025.
11. "About Us". Porirua School. Retrieved 20 January 2026.
12. "Mana College". EducationCounts. New Zealand Ministry of Education. Retrieved 24 April 2021.

41°08′S174°50′E / 41.133°S 174.833°E / -41.133; 174.833