chch.live a suburb, in depth

New Brighton, Christchurch

16,203 council reports since May 2015, the 5th busiest suburb in the city. 13,499 photographs on record. 6,510 people at the 2023 Census, 1,602 to the square kilometre across 4.1 km².

Reports, all time
16,203
In the year to 12 Oct 2026
1,551
Busiest in Christchurch
5th
Photographs
13,499

The record also holds about $520 a week to rent 2023 Census snapshot 13,499 photographs 138 old photographs 2 schools 8 parks 1 civic facility 6 places of worship 14 tracks 7 names on the map 32.6% of the outline mapped liquefied 9.4% of the outline in the red zone graded mostly TC2 in 2011 the record drew water over 10% of the outline the mapped tsunami reach covers 65% of the outline the Ngāi Tahu schedule covers 11% of the outline ecological sites over 10% of the outline landscape schedules over 16% of the outline high flood hazard over 14% of the outline setback strips over 5% of the outline 4,196 SCIRT photographs filed on this ground 14.6 km of cycleway crosses the outline 28 remembered names on this ground 33 drawn rules bind this ground 18 parcels on the dangerous-work register 154 parcels of made ground 7 parcels with a cleanup on file the 2019 model grades this ground mostly possible 114 council structures on the register 63 recreation register records 2,022 trees on the register the plan’s word on this ground 1% of the outline reserved the plan’s exceptions touch 5% of the outline 3 places on the heritage schedule 10 epicentres inside the outline 194 injury crashes 2,500 recorded victimisations 55 bus stops 144 businesses the council’s fix times alcohol bans over 16% of the outline 3 heritage places 40 documents 5 mentions on the wire

See it on the map Its decade, charted

Living here rent · the ground · the day-to-day

$520/week middle half $478–$580

New bonds here ran at about $520 a week in the April–June 2026 quarter, the middle half of them between $478 and $580, across 45 bonds lodged, down 7% on a year ago. That’s about $30 a week below the city’s own quarter median of $550. Tenancy Services counts these under the “New Brighton” statistical area, close to this suburb’s outline, not exactly it.

By dwelling type and bedrooms, April–June 2026 quarter
  • 1-bedroom house, $520 a week · 24 new bonds
  • 2-bedroom house, $485 a week · 9 new bonds
  • 3-bedroom house, $635 a week · 6 new bonds

Median and quartiles of weekly rents on new private bonds, by quarter. New bonds are fresh lodgements, not the whole rental stock; under five bonds the rent is withheld, and counts are randomly rounded. Source: Tenancy Services rental bond data: provisional while the bond system migrates.

The ground: 9% of the outline went into the residential red zone; the February 2011 survey drew liquefaction over 33% of it, the rest of the watch is drawn further down.

Day to day it holds 2 schools, 8 parks, 1 civic facility, 6 places of worship, 14 tracks and 55 bus stops, each is counted further down.

Lately the record’s mostly graffiti & vandalism, 1,551 reports in the year to 12 October 2026, the newest 11 October 2026.

One for the quiz, Its busiest day on record was 29 October 2023, 80 reports in a single day.

2023 Census snapshot SA1 areas grouped here

People
3,159
Under 15
16%
65 and over
17%
Occupied households
1,425

About 3,159 people and 1,425 occupied private households in the “New Brighton” statistical area, grouped from 21 SA1 areas. This exact statistical-area match is close to this suburb’s outline, not exactly it.

More of the 2023 Census
  • Born overseas22% of stated birthplace
  • European ethnicity89% of ethnicity responses
  • Māori ethnicity15% of ethnicity responses
  • Pacific Peoples ethnicity4% of ethnicity responses
  • Asian ethnicity5% of ethnicity responses
  • Households with internet79% of stated households
  • Households with two or more vehicles41% of stated households

Ethnicity is a multiple-response measure, so those percentages are not meant to add to 100%.

Stats NZ’s 2023 Census uses fixed random rounding to base 3. Unavailable or confidential cells are left out, not treated as zero. individuals · households · geography · CC BY 4.0.

About the suburb

New Brighton is a coastal suburb of Christchurch, New Zealand, 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) east of the city centre. It is one of eastern Christchurch's main entertainment and tourist centres. The 2011 Christchurch earthquakes caused significant damage in the area.

the encyclopaedia’s version · Wikipedia · population: Stats NZ 2023 Census SA2 counts; the area is measured from the suburb outline

As reported 13,499 on record

148 Lonsdale Street, New Brighton564 New Brighton Road, New Brighton564 New Brighton Road, New Brighton564 New Brighton Road, New Brighton16 Union St276 Marine Pde 13,499 photographs
on the wall →

The suburb, back then 138 in the archive

St Faith's Church, New Brighton, 1910New clock tower at New Brighton, Christchurch, 1935St Faith's Anglican Church parish picnic, 1935St Faith's Anglican Church picnic, 1935St Faith's Church with parishioners, 1950New Brighton Pier entrance, 1890Exhibition tram horses in Christchurch - New Brighton Tram Co.'s pair, 1895Mr Henry Mace, of New Brighton, Christchurch, 1899Cultural group on the New Brighton Pier, Christchurch, 1900New Brighton bridge, 1900 138 photographs
from back when →

Placed by the record’s locality join or the name in its own title, a lead, not a claim each frame stood here.

The record on New Brighton

Lately the newest reports

Abandoned Vehicle, a report photo
Abandoned VehicleWithells Island Reserve - section held by Christchurch City Council 80 Owles Terrace

this unregistered vehicl has been here at least 4 months. the owner is living in it with his aggressive dog. I have witnessed him going to the toilet in the…

Reports per year down 23% 2024→2025

What gets reported

Graffiti & vandalism 8,198
Rubbish & dumping 2,402
Trees & parks 2,186
Roads & footpaths 1,687
Water & drains 792
Everything else 496
Vehicles & parking 332
Animals & pests 83 Noise 27

Streets that keep coming up each a street page

Every street the archive knows in New Brighton →

Exactly what people say

How fast the council fixes things here 18,520 finished jobs on record

The median council work order pinned in New Brighton took 2 days to resolve, the city-wide median is 3 days, so this ground runs faster than the city as a whole. The slowest tenth waited 2 months or longer. 531 tickets are open here now, the oldest was filed 8 October 2018.

Work orders, not the resident reports above, the council’s MyCouncilTicket stream, and one job can appear in both. A median counts only finished jobs; open ones are named as open, never averaged in. The ticket roll · the whole city’s fix times.

Alcohol rules on this ground 2 ban zones reach in

New Brighton Mall, Marine Parade, and Environs. A public drinking ban, at all times, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, covers about 16% of New Brighton.

Rawhiti Domain and Thomson Park. A public drinking ban, applies for a 24-hour period on the day of the Large-Scale Event, commencing at 12am and concluding at 11:59pm, covers about 16% of New Brighton.

2 sensitive sites stand here, New Brighton Catholic School, Nova Montessori School, and the Local Alcohol Policy restricts new off-licences within 200 m of them.

The council’s bylaw zones and the Local Alcohol Policy’s buffer list, read from the Regulatory open-data service. A ban rules drinking in public places; it says nothing about whether a premises may sell, that is the licence register’s job.

The suburb today

Schools here 2

Zoned for Avonside Girls' High School · Christchurch Adventist School · Haeata Community Campus · Hillview Christian School · Marian College · Middleton Grange School · and 8 more zones, the drawn zone is indicative; the Ministry’s written scheme is the legal boundary.

Decile and EQI describe the community a school draws from, not how well it teaches.

The green here 8

Parks and reserves in the council’s open data, a park lands in the suburb its centre falls inside. The whole roll is at /parks.

The civic shelf 1

Libraries, halls, cemeteries and the rest in the council’s open data, a facility lands in the suburb its point or centre falls inside. The whole shelf is at /facilities.

Where the suburb worships 6

Places of worship in the open map’s record, one lands in the suburb its building stands in. The whole roll is at /worship.

The tracks through here 14

The first eight of 14, Tracks in the council’s open data, a line belongs to every suburb it passes through. The whole network is at /tracks.

The names on this ground 7

The February 2011 survey drew mapped ground failure over 32.6% of this outline, about 133 hectares. A patch is a footprint, not a finding about an address; the count for the whole city is at /liquefaction.

The Crown’s 2011 classification drew 9.4% of this outline, about 38 hectares inside the residential red zone. A mapped area files under the suburb its middle sits in, and a classification is the record of a decision, not a finding about an address; the whole line is drawn at /redzone.

The 2011 grading filed 44.2% of this outline, about 180 hectares, mostly TC2, with TC3 14 ha · TC2 166 ha. A graded area files under the suburb its middle sits in, and a category is a verdict for a patch of ground, not a finding about an address; the grades are drawn at /technical-categories.

The flood record drew water over 10.4% of this outline, about 42 hectares, across 1 named event. A patch is one event’s observation, not a live hazard finding; the whole record is drawn at /floods.

The mapped tsunami extent covers 65% of this outline, about 265 hectares. The sea’s modelled reach, not a prediction, the plan’s inundation line, not the evacuation zones; the share is read from a sampled join. The whole extent is drawn at /tsunami.

18 parcels inside this outline sit on the hazardous-activities register, mostly chemical manufacture, application and bulk storage, vehicle refuelling, service and repair, cemeteries and waste recycling, treatment and disposal, 9 still doing the work. A listing records the work, not a soil test; the whole register is drawn at /hazards.

The files record 154 parcels of made or characterised ground inside this outline, about 30 hectares, mostly sand, topsoil, mixed fill with rubbish, 4 carry fill the file can’t vouch for. A record is the file’s word on what was laid, not a fresh survey; the whole layer is drawn at /fill.

7 parcels inside this outline carry a cleanup on the file. A cleanup on the file is the register’s word, not a clearance; the whole register is drawn at /remediated.

The 2019 liquefaction study put 43% of this outline in the possible class, and 6 assessed areas here carry the free-face flag for possible lateral spreading. A class is the model’s verdict on a patch of ground, not a finding about an address; the whole study is drawn at /vulnerability.

The council’s structure register stands 114 assets on this ground, 34 sets of steps, 30 boardwalks, 18 shelters, 17 ramps, sited at Rawhiti Domain, New Brighton Beach, New Brighton Beach Developed, South New Brighton Beach. The register’s site names are its own labels for the ground an asset stands in; the layer is drawn at the map.

The recreation register keeps 63 records inside this outline, bookable surfaces for 12 touch rugby, 10 rugby, 7 softball, 5 long jump, plus a marked dog exercise area and 3 pieces of dog-agility gear. Seasons and surfaces are the register’s record, not this week’s draw; the layer is drawn at the map.

The register counts 2,022 living trees inside this outline, 43 veterans among them, 26 carrying a protection, mostly Cabbage tree, Ngaio, Macrocarpa. The file remembers 1,210 trees felled here. A tree record is the register’s word on what stands or stood; the whole canopy is drawn at /trees.

The plan files 35% of this outline under Residential Suburban, 44% residential, the rest mostly Open Space Community Parks 17%, Specific Purpose (Otakaro Avon River Corridor) 14%. A zone is a permission, not a description, the mix is read from a sampled join of the plan’s polygons; the whole district is drawn at /zones.

The plan reserves about 3 hectares of this outline, 1%, under 1 designation, mostly learning. A designation is a claim on the ground, not a build date, the mix is read from a sampled join; the whole register is drawn at /designations.

The plan’s exceptions touch 5% of this outline, 7 qualifying matters, mostly section 6. A matter narrows how the density rule applies, it does not forbid; the mix is read from a sampled join, and the cultural-significance areas are the plan’s own unnamed ones. The whole register is drawn at /matters.

The plan’s heritage schedule protects 3 places by name in this suburb, 1 graded highly significant, St Faith's Church and Setting, New Brighton Clock Tower and Setting, New Brighton War Memorial & Amphitheatre. A setting is the ground the item stands in, each files under the suburb holding its centroid; the whole schedule is at /heritage.

The plan’s schedule of sites significant to Ngāi Tahu covers 11% of this outline, about 44 hectares, ngā tūranga tūpuna, ngā wai. Shares read from a sampled join; a recognition overlay, not a catalogue. The whole schedule is drawn at /cultural.

The plan’s ecological schedules cover 10% of this outline, about 41 hectares across 3 scheduled sites, all protected under Schedule A. Shares read from a sampled join; a recognition overlay, not a survey. The whole ledger is drawn at /ecology.

The plan’s landscape schedules cover 16% of this outline, about 66 hectares across 7 scheduled areas, 2% of it outstanding, the plan’s strongest landscape standing, and 40% of it sits inside the coastal environment. Shares read from a sampled join; a protection overlay, not a ranking of views. The kept view is drawn at /landscape.

The plan’s flood map draws 14% of this outline inside high flood hazard ground, about 57 hectares across 9 mapped areas. The broader flood-management watch covers 71% of it, Avon River, Southshore. Shares read from a sampled join; a model’s map, not a promise. The waiting water is drawn at /flood-hazard.

The plan’s water-margin layers cross this outline, 11 classified reaches, the plan calling Rawhiti Domain Drain and Tovey Street Drain by name, 5% of it inside the setback strips, the widest holding 30 m off the bank, and an esplanade line holds a public edge here. The margin is the plan’s drawing, not a survey of the bank; the reaches, strips and held edges are mapped at /water-margin.

The rebuild’s cameras filed 4,196 photographs on this ground, 2011–2016, stormwater work mostly. Each frame is a receipt the dig left behind, a work log, not a survey of what stands now; the whole record is drawn at /rebuild.

The pedal network threads this ground, 14.6 km of cycleway crosses the outline, 0.3 km of it separated from the traffic, Te Ara Ōtākaro Avon River Trail. A segment counts under every suburb its path enters; the whole network is drawn at /cycleways.

The remembered names stand on this ground, 28 inscribed plaques, New Brighton Beach Developed, Lonsdale St And Shackleton St, Rawhiti Domain among the grounds. The plaque is the register’s pin, not a surveyed spot; the whole roll is kept at /plaques.

The rulebook binds this ground, 33 drawn instruments, 21 of them dog rules, 2 alcohol bans, 3 camping zones, a certified self-contained van can stay the night at City Coastal Restricted Zone; the other 2 zones ban it outright, 7 bottle-store buffers; the outline sits inside the takiwā of Te Ngai Tuahuriri Runanga. The bylaw is the instrument, this the map of it, the whole rulebook is drawn at /rules.

GeoNet’s catalogue puts 10 magnitude-3+ epicentres inside this outline since the sequence opened, the biggest a M3.9 in 2011. An epicentre is where the instruments placed the break, not a measure of the shaking here; the whole catalogue is counted at /sequence, the live record is /quakes, and the story in plain language is the earthquakes explainer.

The named waterways, bays, headlands, monuments, summits and old sites OpenStreetMap puts inside this outline, a pin is the mapper’s own; a waterway belongs to every suburb it crosses. Every roll, counted: /geography.

The crash record 194 injury crashes

194 crashes that hurt somebody on record inside New Brighton's outline, 5 people killed, 35 seriously hurt.

The corner that keeps appearing: Marine Parade at Hawke Street, 9 injury crashes, 1 fatal.

the suburb’s crashes on the map →

The crime record 2,500 recorded victimisations

2,500 victimisations on the Police record inside New Brighton’s outline, September 2022–August 2026, mostly theft, about 198 a year per 1,000 residents. Up 31% on the year before. Reported is not all, how much never reaches the record depends on the offence.

the suburb on the crime map →

The buses through it 55 stops

55 Metro stops inside New Brighton's outline, in ECan’s stop record, served by route 60, route 135, route 110, route 5, route 80.

Every route in the record →

Businesses here 144 in the directory

144 premises in New Brighton across 50 kinds, from OpenStreetMap, the council’s licensed-premises register and its 2024 Find Christchurch directory. Each kind below opens at this suburb’s shelf.

Among them, the ones the record says most about:

The whole directory →

Before any of that

On the register here

  1. New Brighton War Memorial & Amphitheatre
  2. New Brighton Clock Tower and Setting
  3. St Faith's Church and Setting50 Hawke Street

Documents 40

What the archive’s sources say about New Brighton, titled for it, turned up by a search for one of its places, or carrying its name in the text. These are leads and citations: the originals live at the provider, linked from each row.

Page 6 Advertisements Column 2 (Lyttelton Times, 16 April 1862)…sections 699 and 781 thomas b bain free thomas colombo street north freehold section 2394 new brighton river avon h b grisbrook free william colombo street north freehold section 2394 new brighton riv…Lyttelton Times · Papers Past · National Library of New Zealand · · text held
LIST OF CLAMANTS TO BE PLACED ON THE ELECTORAL ROLL FOR THE DISTRICT OF CHEVIOT. (Lyttelton Times, 19 April 1862)…sections 699 and 781 thomas b bain free thomas colombo street north freehold section 2394 new brighton river avon h b grisbrook free william colombo street north freehold section 2394 new brighton riv…Lyttelton Times · Papers Past · National Library of New Zealand · · text held
Local and General. (Star, 05 January 1869)…th the canterbury club in answer to a letter from its president suggesting a course from vnew brighton up stream it was resolved that the rrc would row on the usu il no 3 course from about mr de troy…Star · Papers Past · National Library of New Zealand · · text held
CHRISTCHURCH. (Star, 02 November 1871)…tier one horse oh the riccarton roadj fined 58 thomas free three cows on a public road at new brighton fined 5s fred roberts one cow on a public roadrhv the avon district fined 55 thomas ausop two cow…Star · Papers Past · National Library of New Zealand · · text held
CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE CANTERBURY MUSEUM. (Star, 22 April 1872)…island mr alexander mckay christchurch maori stone adzefrym the moeraki downs mr e barker new brighton one elestris species freshwater fish mr g scarbrough akaroa five spears three clubs from tho paci…Star · Papers Past · National Library of New Zealand · · text held
CHRISTCHURCH. (Star, 08 May 1872)…ired in the township the application was adjourned fourteen days for enquiry john paynton new brighton weu conducted granted george ticknor lincoln road well conducted this is the house referred to in…Star · Papers Past · National Library of New Zealand · · text held
CHRISTCHURCH. (Star, 27 June 1872)…e unstamped but correct fined eos and the measure to be confiscated thomas palmer milkman new brighton one 1-pint and one j pint measures unstamped bnt correct fiued 20s aud the measures to be forfeit…Star · Papers Past · National Library of New Zealand · · text held
Untitled (Grey River Argus, 29 November 1872)…old had been taken up for lonafide occupation and settlement last week a fire occurred at new brighton canterbury by which messrs langdown and hunsley flax-mills were burned down the scutchers were bu…Grey River Argus · Papers Past · National Library of New Zealand · · text held
Page 4 Advertisements Column 4 (Timaru Herald, 10 January 1873)Timaru Herald · Papers Past · National Library of New Zealand · · text held
Page 4 Advertisements Column 5 (Timaru Herald, 22 January 1873)Timaru Herald · Papers Past · National Library of New Zealand · · text held

The rest are a search away, the whole shelf, for the name →

The wire on New Brighton 5 lately

Something seen — New Brighton, Christchurch, New ZealandiNaturalist · seamusmoran ·
Cypress-leaved Plait-moss seen — Beach Rd near Bower Ave, North New Brighton, Christchurch 8083, New ZealandiNaturalist · aldwinromeo ·
Ivy-leaved toadflax seen — Beach Rd near Bower Ave, North New Brighton, Christchurch 8083, New ZealandiNaturalist · aldwinromeo ·
common groundsel seen — Beach Rd near Bower Ave, North New Brighton, Christchurch 8083, New ZealandiNaturalist · aldwinromeo ·
Glebionis seen — Beach Rd near Bower Ave, North New Brighton, Christchurch 8083, New ZealandiNaturalist · aldwinromeo ·

The whole wire →

62 more documents came up in searches for New Brighton's places and have not been read yet, a lead is a search result, not a fact, until somebody reads it.

Next door

BexleyAranuiNorth New BrightonAvondaleWaimairi BeachSouth New Brighton

Compare New Brighton with Bexley · Aranui · North New Brighton · Avondale · Waimairi Beach · South New Brighton, same record, side by side.

Questions, answered briefly

What is New Brighton?

New Brighton is a coastal suburb of Christchurch, New Zealand, 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) east of the city centre. The public record holds 16,203 council reports for it, the first filed in May 2015.

How many people live in New Brighton?

6,510 people at the 2023 Census, 1,602 per square kilometre across 4.1 km².

How many people does the 2023 Census count for New Brighton?

About 3,159 people and 1,425 occupied private households: grouped from Stats NZ SA1 areas through this site’s suburb join. Indicative, not a LIM.

What gets reported in New Brighton?

16,203 reports on record, most often graffiti & vandalism (8,198), rubbish & dumping (2,402), trees & parks (2,186). 1,551 of them in the year to 12 October 2026.

How many crashes has New Brighton had?

194 injury crashes on the police record inside the suburb’s outline, 5 people killed, 35 seriously hurt. The suburb’s crashes, mapped →

Did earthquakes strike under New Brighton?

GeoNet’s catalogue puts 10 magnitude-3+ epicentres inside the suburb’s mapped outline since the September 2010 mainshock, the biggest a M3.9 in 2011. An epicentre is where the instruments placed the break, not a measure of the shaking felt here. The whole sequence, counted → · The story, in plain language →

Every suburb in Christchurch → · Its decade, charted → · the whole A–Z →