Western Australia is a state with great cultural and linguistic variety. Almost 28 percent of our population was born overseas. To facilitate effective planning and ensure appropriate service provision for this diverse group of people, government agencies and other service providers need comprehensive and relevant information on their client base and workforce.

A pilot study conducted in several service settings including hospitals and local government authorities confirmed the need for a new set of variables to measure cultural and linguistic diversity.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics subsequently agreed to include a core and a standard set of Cultural and Language Indicators in their statistical collections. In November 1999, it released a publication Standards for Statistics on Cultural and Language Diversity that documents national standards for measuring diversity in the Australian population.¹

The information gained using the core and standard sets of Cultural and Language Indicators will present service providers with a body of data which will assist them in planning and delivering optimal service to their clients.

Data on cultural and linguistic diversity is useful for a number of reasons. It assists agencies to:

• appreciate the diversity of their clientele and workforce


• plan and deliver services that are effective and culturally appropriate


• respond appropriately to community needs


• meet their access and equity outcomes

NESB is no longer considered to be an appropriate measure of cultural diversity for a number of reasons:

• It is an oversimplified indicator of disadvantage – e.g. it groups business migrants with refugees.


• It masks the linguistic and cultural diversity within and between ethnic groups.


• It defines people in the negative and often implies a lack of English proficiency.


• It is unhelpful and potentially misleading in assessing the need for and effectiveness of policies, programs and service provision.

Acronyms such as CALD (Cultural and Linguistic Diversity) are also discouraged as they have the same limitations. To describe a person or a group as being CALD is a misuse of the term. Cultural and linguistic diversity is a characteristic of the community we live in. Cultural and linguistic diversity data give us specific information about the composition of the community.

A minimum core set and a standard set of Cultural and Language Indicators have been developed in accordance with Australian Bureau of Statistics requirements.

The minimum core set is as follows:

• Country of birth


• Main language other than English spoken at home


• Proficiency in spoken English


• Indigenous status (for use when focus is not specifically on migrants)

The full standard set is: Ancestry, Country of birth of father, Country of birth of mother, First language spoken, Languages spoken at home, Main language spoken at home, Religious affiliation, Year of arrival in Australia.

These can be added either individually or in combination to the core set.

The new Cultural and Language Indicators will provide significant benefits including:

• Provision of a consistent measure of cultural and language diversity in statistical and administrative collections requiring information on cultural and language diversity.


• The capacity to make comparisons between regions and states and against census data.


• Greater ability to assess clients’ cultural and language requirements– e.g. the need for interpreters, bilingual staff

For further information regarding the implementation of the standards please view
The Guide: Implementing the Standards for Statistics on Cultural and Language Diversity
or contact the Office of Multicultural Interests on 9222 8800 or the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity on 9214 6600.

January 2001

¹ Australian Bureau of Statistics, Standards for Statistics on Cultural and Language Diversity, ABS 1289.0, 1999