Parkes flood map & planning overlays

A planning-constraint profile of Parkes (Parkes, NSW) - 974.73 km², mapped from live council and state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 26 September 2026.

Suburb-wide figures; the free map shows which overlays touch your lot.

Planning schematicParkes

Constraint readout

974.73 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.

Flood overlay 0%

· #1 of 6 mapped council suburbs

Bushfire-prone 33%

2.4× council avg (14%) · #2 of 13 mapped council suburbs

Environmental12%

6.3× council avg (2%) · #1 of 13 in council

Heritage sites 12 Mostly Primary Production Bushfire 2nd most affected of 13 →

Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Parkes's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top.

Nearby suburbs, nearest first

Aircraft noise and flight paths over Parkes

Two different things, kept apart on purpose. The ANEF contour is the planning instrument - a forecast published per airport that planning schemes use to control noise-sensitive development. Observed overflight is what a sampled aircraft-tracking feed actually recorded over the suburb - where aircraft flew, how low and how often.

Observed overflight - sampled to

No aircraft observed

of the suburb, in the sampled period - a floor, not a census

Night movements: not established - night is sampled as often as day, but too few night flights have been seen here to conclude either way.

Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously, so every figure is a floor: aircraft not captured between samples are not represented. Rates are per 500 m square - the busiest square in the suburb, not a count of flights over the suburb - and a square is only rated where enough traffic was seen to measure it. Altitudes are above mean sea level. Flight paths change with runway use, weather, season and airspace design. This is a record of observed traffic; it is not a noise contour and not a planning control.

Parkes at a glance

Parcels 7,788 Median lot 1,012 m² Mapped easements 23 Train Parkes Station Bus stops 1141

How Parkes is zoned

Primary Production 78%

National Parks and Nature Reserves 12%

Regional Enterprise 5%

Large Lot Residential 3%

Infrastructure 1%

General Residential 1%

Buying in Parkes? The zoning, flood and bushfire lines on the section 10.7 certificate attached to the contract are mapped controls - see our s10.7 certificate guide.

Across its 974.73 km², Parkes is highly constrained by planning overlays. Flood mapping covers the suburb and none of it falls within a mapped flood overlay, and 33% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 12 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Primary Production. The median lot measures about 1,012 m² across 7,788 parcels.

Who lives in Parkes

Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Parkes suburb boundary itself, not a wider region.

Population

11,324

usual residents, 2021

Median age

years

Median household income

$1,401

per week, Parkes suburb typical $1,374

Median rent

$260

per week, Parkes suburb typical $180

Median mortgage

$1,300

per month

Household size

2.4

people, average

Socio-economic standing

ABS SEIFA 2021 ranks every Australian suburb. Decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth of the country, decile 10 the least.

Advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD) Decile 2

most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Score 921, and decile 2 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.

Relative disadvantage (IRSD) Decile 2

most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Age profile

Share of Parkes's 11,324 residents in each ABS age band.

0-4 6.5%

5-14 14.2%

15-19 6.2%

20-24 6.0%

25-34 11.8%

35-44 11.2%

45-54 11.6%

55-64 12.5%

65-74 10.1%

75-84 6.9%

85+ 3.0%

Population trend, 2001 to 2025

Estimated resident population of Parkes Surrounds, the wider ABS statistical area containing Parkes. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Parkes itself.

3,789 in 2001 to 3,079 in 2025, down 19%.

Source: ABS Census 2021 and SEIFA 2021 (Suburbs and Localities), Regional Population (SA2), CC BY 4.0. Small counts are randomly adjusted by the ABS.

Parkes data sources and coverage

“Not mapped” means we hold no source layer for this suburb - never an all-clear.

Dataset	Coverage	Publisher
Flood mapping	Mapped	NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies
Bushfire-prone mapping	Mapped	NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies
Zoning	Mapped	NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies
Heritage and environment	Mapped where published	NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies
Aircraft noise contours (ANEF)	Not held	NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies, Defence
Observed flight paths	Observed	adsb.lol, under the Open Database License
Demographics	Available	Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA)

Profile last materially updated 26 September 2026. See the methodology and full source list. Source data changes over time and critical decisions should be checked with the responsible authority.

Check a specific Parkes address

See exactly which overlays touch a single property - the interactive map is free. Need it on paper? A full planning PDF is just $9.

Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and an indicative AS 2870 site class for a Parkes lot.

See what's in the $9 report →

Parkes planning - frequently asked

Is Parkes flood-prone?

Flood mapping covers Parkes and none of the suburb falls within a mapped flood overlay.

Is Parkes bushfire-prone?

Around 33% of Parkes is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Parkes average of 14%.

Is Parkes under a flight path?

No aircraft were observed over Parkes in the period sampled (recent weeks to now). Sampling is intermittent, so that is a floor rather than proof that none fly over. Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously and flight paths change with runway use, weather and season; the ANEF contour is the planning instrument.

What is the zoning in Parkes?

The dominant planning zone in Parkes is Primary Production, though the suburb also includes National Parks and Nature Reserves and Regional Enterprise.

Does Parkes have heritage-listed places?

Parkes has 12 heritage-listed places on record.

What is the typical lot size in Parkes?

Across 7,788 surveyed parcels in Parkes, the median lot size is about 1,012 m². There are also 23 registered easements mapped in the suburb.

Does Parkes have a train station?

Yes - Parkes has 1 train station: Parkes Station. It is also served by 1141 bus stops.

What is the population of Parkes?

At the 2021 Census Parkes had 11,324 usual residents, with a median age of 39 and an average household size of 2.4 people. The wider Parkes Surrounds statistical area, which contains Parkes, went from 3,789 people in 2001 to 3,079 in 2025, down 19%.

Is Parkes an advantaged suburb?

On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Parkes scores 921 and sits in decile 2 of 10 nationally and decile 2 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).

What is the median household income in Parkes?

Median household income in Parkes was $1,401 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,374 for the typical suburb in Parkes. Median rent was $260 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,300 a month.

Compare nearby suburbs

Nearby suburb	Distance	Flood mapped	Bushfire-prone
Cookamidgera Forbes	14.9 km	0%	52%
Alectown	22.0 km	Not mapped	17%
Tichborne	22.1 km	0%	<1%
Mandagery Cabonne	23.6 km	0%	90%
Bumberry Cabonne	24.3 km	Not mapped	100%
Daroobalgie Forbes	24.5 km	0%	28%
Bocobra Cabonne	25.6 km	Not mapped	100%
Nelungaloo	25.6 km	0%	2%
Goonumbla	27.2 km	Not mapped	5%
Cooks Myalls	28.1 km	Not mapped	9%

See all Parkes suburb profiles →