It is worth taking the time to understand the community in which you operate because it means your services will be shaped to meet real needs. Relevant factors could include issues such as housing types, population growth, minority groups, languages spoken, literacy levels, employment and unemployment, skills shortages, childcare needs, health issues, transport issues, education levels, teenage pregnancy figures and special needs.
There are lots of ways to get to know your community. Before you go searching, pause and think about what you actually want to know and what information will change your decisions.
You might be curious about:
Who your members are – families and ages: babies, toddlers, school-aged children?
Accessibility needs – sensory needs, physical access, neurodivergent families
Cultural and language needs – languages spoken, culturally welcoming supports
Transport realities – how far families travel, fuel costs, access to public transport
Community rhythm – shift work, seasonal work, school calendars
Nearby services – what’s already available, and where families may be missing support or connection
There is so much data available. It can be incredibly helpful but also overwhelming. A good rule of thumb is to keep refocusing on what you need from the data, rather than trying to absorb every detail.
National Data Sources
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)Helpful for a reliable snapshot of who lives in your area: family numbers, child ages, cultural diversity, housing, and socio-economic trends. Great for service planning and strengthening grant applications with evidence.
AEDC (Australian Early Development Census) Helpful for understanding how children in your community are tracking across key development areas (social, emotional, physical, language). Great for identifying early childhood priorities and shaping play-based support.
Profile ID - Easy-to-read community dashboards using Census data. Shows population change, family types, early years trends and local insights. Great for council conversations and making data accessible for committees.
Australian Child and Youth Wellbeing Atlas - An interactive, map-based indicator of child health and wellbeing. Useful for a place-based understanding of children’s needs and strengthening the “why here?” in funding requests.
SGS Cities and Regions Wellbeing Index - High-level comparisons of community wellbeing across LGAs (connection, opportunity, liveability, health). Helpful for understanding the broader context toy libraries operate in and aligning with council and funder wellbeing priorities. Wellbeing data matters for toy libraries because it shows how families are doing—not just what services exist.
State Wide Data Sources
Western Australia
New South Wales
Queensland
Victoria
Local Government Area (LGA) Information
Your local government (shire, city, or town) website is a great place to learn about priorities, future growth, and planned investments.
Look for:
Strategic / Corporate Plan
Community Plan
Economic Development Strategy
Youth / Early Years / Family Strategy
Local Planning Strategy
Town Planning Scheme / Local Planning Scheme
Structure Plans (new estates)
Shortcut tip – try Google searches like:
Shire of ___ local planning strategy PDF
City of ___ community strategic plan
Shire of ___ Early Years Strategy
Shire of ___ economic development strategy
This information is useful in many ways:
If grants are available, you can show how your plans align with council priorities.
When advocating for your toy library, it helps you speak their language.
If there are plans for new early years precincts or facilities, you can flag your interest in joining the conversation.
Direct
Community surveys
Statistics are valuable, but surveys give you direct insight into needs, barriers, and priorities.
Useful for:
Understanding what families value
Identifying barriers to access
Preferred session times or formats
Options include:
Short member surveys (free online tools like JotForm, Google Forms or Microsoft Forms)
Paper forms, feedback cards, or suggestion boxes
Quick polls in local Facebook groups. Keep it simple: 5–8 questions max.
You can also survey beyond your members by linking a survey to a QR code and sharing it via social media, email lists, posters, and neighbouring services.
Your SETLS / MiBase data
Is it highlighting any trends or changes over time?
Informal conversations
Chats at borrowing sessions, events, or playgroups often reveal things surveys miss.
Connect with neighbouring services
Talk with playgroups, community services, libraries, allied health providers, child health nurses, and others to hear what they’re seeing and where gaps might be emerging.
One way to make this easier for you and your team is to develop a short community snapshot document that highlights the most relevant insights about your area. This can be easily attached to grant applications as a supporting document and is also a very helpful way to introduce and highlight your community for new committee members. Remember to review and update it as new data is released, so it stays current and continues to accurately reflect your community.
