Areas / Bass Coast / Sunderland Bay

Sunderland Bay flood map & planning overlays

Sunderland Bay's 586 m² blocks rank 5th-smallest across Bass Coast.

A planning-constraint profile of Sunderland Bay (Bass Coast, VIC) - 1.25 km², mapped from live council and state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 24 October 2026.

Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Sunderland Bay's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top. Magenta is where aircraft were observed in the sampled period, brightest below 3,000 ft.

Nearby suburbs, nearest first

Aircraft noise and flight paths over Sunderland Bay

The ANEF contour is a published planning forecast and observed overflight is what a sampled tracking feed recorded - neither describes any individual property.

Observed overflight - sampled 4 Sep to 24 Oct 2026

Under observed aircraft
50%
of the suburb, at or below 10,000 ft
Below 3,000 ft
34%
of the suburb's area
Lowest measured
500 ft
averaging 2,500 ft
Busiest square
~1 a day
1 a day below 3,000 ft · ±24% · area average
typical observed square 0 a day

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

How this is measured

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.

Sunderland Bay at a glance

Parcels 357 Median lot 586 m² Mapped easements 48 Bus stops 2

How Sunderland Bay is zoned

Farming Zone (FZ) 64%
General Residential Zone (GRZ1) 21%
Public Conservation and Resource Zone (PCRZ) 6%
Low Density Residential Zone (LDRZ) 5%
Transport Zone (TRZ2) 3%

Selling in Sunderland Bay? The zoning and planning overlays on this page are the controls a Section 32 vendor statement discloses.

Across its 1.25 km², Sunderland Bay is highly constrained by planning overlays. Flood mapping covers the suburb and none of it falls within a mapped flood overlay, and 87% is flagged bushfire-prone. There is 1 heritage-listed site on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Farming Zone (FZ). The median lot measures about 586 m² across 357 parcels.

Who lives in Sunderland Bay

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

Population
306
usual residents, 2021
Median age
41
years
Median household income
$1,264
per week, Bass Coast suburb typical $1,286
Median rent
$316
per week, Bass Coast suburb typical $300
Median mortgage
$1,300
per month
Household size
2.3
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 4
most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Score 954, and decile 3 within Victoria. The national average is 1000.

Relative disadvantage (IRSD) Decile 4
most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Age profile

Share of Sunderland Bay's 306 residents in each ABS age band.

0-4 5.2%
5-14 15.9%
15-19 6.5%
20-24 4.5%
25-34 11.0%
35-44 11.3%
45-54 14.6%
55-64 14.6%
65-74 10.0%
75-84 6.5%
85+ 0.0%

Population trend, 2001 to 2025

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

7,361 in 2001 to 14,795 in 2025, up 101%.

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.

Sunderland Bay data sources and coverage

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

DatasetCoveragePublisher
Flood mappingMappedVicmap Planning and Victorian Government spatial services
Bushfire-prone mappingMappedVicmap Planning and Victorian Government spatial services
ZoningMappedVicmap Planning and Victorian Government spatial services
Heritage and environmentMapped where publishedVicmap Planning and Victorian Government spatial services
Aircraft noise contours (ANEF)Not heldVicmap Planning and Victorian Government spatial services, Defence
Observed flight pathsObservedadsb.lol, under the Open Database License
DemographicsAvailableAustralian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA)

Profile last materially updated 24 October 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 Sunderland Bay 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.

See what's in the $9 report →

Aircraft have been seen below 3,000 ft over about 34% of Sunderland Bay. The report's Aircraft Overflight page narrows that to the address itself: how many aircraft a day, how low, and at what heights.

Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and the indicative soil reactivity range to expect for a Sunderland Bay lot.

Sunderland Bay planning - frequently asked

Is Sunderland Bay flood-prone?

Flood mapping covers Sunderland Bay and less than 1% of the suburb falls within a mapped flood overlay (the council-wide suburb average is 15%).

Is Sunderland Bay bushfire-prone?

Around 87% of Sunderland Bay is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Bass Coast average of 93%.

Is Sunderland Bay under a flight path?

Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 34% of Sunderland Bay, and over about 50% at any altitude up to 10,000 ft, in the period sampled (4 Sep 2026 to 24 Oct 2026). The lowest measured aircraft was at 500 ft, with an average of 2,500 ft. At the busiest point in the suburb about 1 aircraft a day were recorded passing over one 500 m square. 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 Sunderland Bay?

The dominant planning zone in Sunderland Bay is Farming Zone (FZ), though the suburb also includes General Residential Zone (GRZ1) and Public Conservation and Resource Zone (PCRZ).

Does Sunderland Bay have heritage-listed places?

Sunderland Bay has 1 heritage-listed place on record.

What is the typical lot size in Sunderland Bay?

Across 357 surveyed parcels in Sunderland Bay, the median lot size is about 586 m². There are also 48 registered easements mapped in the suburb.

Does Sunderland Bay have a train station?

There is no train station inside Sunderland Bay itself. The suburb is served by 2 bus stops.

What is the population of Sunderland Bay?

At the 2021 Census Sunderland Bay had 306 usual residents, with a median age of 41 and an average household size of 2.3 people. The wider Phillip Island statistical area, which contains Sunderland Bay, went from 7,361 people in 2001 to 14,795 in 2025, up 101%.

Is Sunderland Bay an advantaged suburb?

On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Sunderland Bay scores 954 and sits in decile 4 of 10 nationally and decile 3 within Victoria (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).

What is the median household income in Sunderland Bay?

Median household income in Sunderland Bay was $1,264 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,286 for the typical suburb in Bass Coast. Median rent was $316 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,300 a month.

Compare nearby suburbs

Nearby suburbDistanceFlood mappedBushfire-prone
Sunset Strip 1.1 km Not mapped 47%
Smiths Beach 1.5 km 2% 71%
Surf Beach 1.6 km 11% 81%
Rhyll 2.6 km 14% 94%
Wimbledon Heights 4.2 km Not mapped 39%
Cowes 4.9 km 1% 68%
Newhaven 5.4 km 14% 94%
Silverleaves 5.5 km 94% 82%
Churchill Island 5.7 km 21% 90%
Cape Woolamai 7.6 km 4% 88%

See all Bass Coast suburb profiles →