Hoon Hay is an outer suburb of Christchurch, New Zealand, located at the base of the Port Hills and about southwest of Cathedral Square. The area was named by Captain Wickham Talbot Harvey, a captain of the British Royal 10th Hussars, who moved to the area in 1852 and named it after the farm in Hoon, Derbyshire where he grew up. Harvey only stayed in the area for four years, before a fire destroyed his property and prompted him to return to the United Kingdom. Further fires in the following years destroyed the woodland which was on the property, including several large tōtara, causing it to be converted into farmland. Remnants of this forest remain visible in the area, including with tree stumps being discovered during flood mitigation work on the Ōpāwaho / Heathcote River.

Hoon Hay maintains aspects of both a rural and suburban surrounding. It is bordered by the suburbs of Hillmorton and Spreydon to the north, Somerfield and Cashmere to the east and Halswell to the southwest, along with new developments in the adjacent Port Hills. Despite this, the suburb is also bordered by farmland and the nearby Hoon Hay valley, maintaining the suburb as semi-rural. The Cashmere Stream, a tributary of the Ōpāwaho / Heathcote River, that flows down the valley and through the suburb.

Demographics

Hoon Hay covers . It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2.

Hoon Hay had a population of 9,027 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 273 people (3.1%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 522 people (6.1%) since the 2013 census. There were 4,488 males, 4,503 females, and 36 people of other genders in 3,213 dwellings. 3.6% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 35.3 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 1,869 people (20.7%) aged under 15 years, 1,767 (19.6%) aged 15 to 29, 4,143 (45.9%) aged 30 to 64, and 1,248 (13.8%) aged 65 or older.

People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 77.9% European (Pākehā); 13.3% Māori; 7.9% Pasifika; 11.4% Asian; 1.5% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.2% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 96.0%, Māori by 3.2%, Samoan by 3.1%, and other languages by 12.0%. No language could be spoken by 2.3% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.8%. The percentage of people born overseas was 23.1, compared with 28.8% nationally.

Religious affiliations were 32.7% Christian, 1.6% Hindu, 1.1% Islam, 0.6% Māori religious beliefs, 0.6% Buddhist, 0.4% New Age, and 1.8% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 54.6%, and 6.6% of people did not answer the census question.

Of those at least 15 years old, 1,899 (26.5%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 3,564 (49.8%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 1,695 (23.7%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $43,400, compared with $41,500 nationally. 657 people (9.2%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 3,786 (52.9%) full-time, 1,017 (14.2%) part-time, and 177 (2.5%) unemployed.

Education

Hoon Hay Te Kura Kōaka and Te Kōmanawa Rowley School are state contributing primary schools for years 1 to 6. They have rolls of and students, respectively. Hoon Hay opened in 1959 and Rowley opened in 1973.

Our Lady of the Assumption School is a state-integrated full primary school for years 1 to 8. It has a roll of students. It opened in 1957.

All these schools are coeducational. Rolls are as of

References