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Hatfields Beach
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Key Information
| Puhoi | Waiwera | |
  Hatfields Beach  |
(Hauraki Gulf) | |
| Wainui | Orewa |
Hatfields Beach is a northern coastal suburb of Auckland, in New Zealand. It is on the Hibiscus Coast Highway about 40 kilometres (by road) north of the city centre. In 2011, the beach was officially gazetted as Ōtānerua / Hatfields Beach.[3]
History
[edit]The traditional Tāmaki Māori name for the area is Ōtānerua, a name used for the beach and the stream that flows into the beach.[4][5][6] European settlers in the 1850s continued to use a version of the name, Otenerua.[7] By 1870, the area was known at Hatfield Bay by 1870,[8] after John Robey Hatfield, his wife Emma, and son Alexander John Hatfield, who settled at the beach.[4][9] The Hatfield family lived for three generations at the beach.[4]
By the early 20th century, the Sykes family had bought land on southern slopes.[4] In the latter 20th century, prime minister Robert Muldoon lived at his family's bach in Hatfields Beach, which had been built by his father in law in 1959.[10][4]
The Auckland Unitary Plan proposes that the block to the north of Hatfields, between State Highway 1 and the Hibiscus Coast Highway, and south of the Waiwera River, which at the time the plan was produced was a mixture of native bush and marginal farmland, be redeveloped to include clusters of rural lifestyle blocks with protected areas and a walking trail to Waiwera.[11]
Demographics
[edit]Hatfields Beach covers 0.92 km2 (0.36 sq mi)[1] and had an estimated population of 1,540 as of June 2025,[2] with a population density of 1,674 people per km2.
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 1,194 | — |
| 2013 | 1,380 | +2.09% |
| 2018 | 1,554 | +2.40% |
| 2023 | 1,512 | −0.55% |
| Source: [12][13] | ||
Hatfields Beach had a population of 1,512 in the 2023 New Zealand census, a decrease of 42 people (−2.7%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 132 people (9.6%) since the 2013 census. There were 747 males, 756 females and 12 people of other genders in 564 dwellings.[14] 3.2% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 43.7 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 255 people (16.9%) aged under 15 years, 246 (16.3%) aged 15 to 29, 735 (48.6%) aged 30 to 64, and 279 (18.5%) aged 65 or older.[13]
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 89.7% European (Pākehā); 11.7% Māori; 3.2% Pasifika; 6.2% Asian; 0.6% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 4.0% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 97.6%, Māori language by 1.6%, Samoan by 0.2%, and other languages by 12.1%. No language could be spoken by 1.8% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.2%. The percentage of people born overseas was 30.0, compared with 28.8% nationally.
Religious affiliations were 28.8% Christian, 0.8% Hindu, 0.2% Islam, 0.6% Māori religious beliefs, 0.2% Buddhist, 0.6% New Age, and 0.8% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 60.1%, and 8.3% of people did not answer the census question.
Of those at least 15 years old, 231 (18.4%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 672 (53.5%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 282 (22.4%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $48,900, compared with $41,500 nationally. 228 people (18.1%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 678 (53.9%) people were employed full-time, 186 (14.8%) were part-time, and 30 (2.4%) were unemployed.[13]
Notes
[edit]- ^ a b "Stats NZ Geographic Data Service". Statistical Area 2 2023 (generalised). Retrieved 17 December 2024.
- ^ a b "Subnational population estimates - Aotearoa Data Explorer". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
- ^ "Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara and the Crown - Deed of Settlement of Historical Claims" (PDF). New Zealand Government. 9 September 2011. p. 56.
- ^ a b c d e Grover, Robin (2008). Why the Hibiscus? Place Names of the Hibiscus Coast. Silverdale Printing. pp. 43–44. ISBN 978-0-473-13484-6.
- ^ "Place name detail: Otanerua Stream". New Zealand Gazetteer. Land Information New Zealand. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
- ^ "Place name detail: Ōtānerua / Hatfields Beach". New Zealand Gazetteer. Land Information New Zealand. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
- ^ "Shipping Intelligence. Port of Auckland". Daily Southern Cross. 22 November 1859. p. 2.
- ^ "Hatfield Bay". New Zealand Herald. 31 December 1870. p. 3.
- ^ "Supreme Court. —Criminal Sittings". New Zealand Herald. 9 April 1874. p. 3.
- ^ Gustafson, Barry (2001). His Way: a Biography of Robert Muldoon. Auckland University Press. pp. 52, 101. ISBN 186940243X.
- ^ "I511 Hatfields Precinct" (PDF). Auckland Council. 8 May 2020.
- ^ "Statistical area 1 dataset for 2018 Census". Statistics New Zealand. March 2020. Hatfields Beach (112800). 2018 Census place summary: Hatfields Beach
- ^ a b c "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer. Hatfields Beach (112800). Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Totals by topic for dwellings, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer. Retrieved 3 October 2024.