Mangawhai Heads is a township in Northland, New Zealand. Waipu is 21 kilometres northwest, and Mangawhai is 5 kilometres southwest. Mangawhai Heads is on the north shore of the Mangawhai Harbour.

Geography

The Mangawhai Cliffs Walkway, north of the township, is 4.5 kilometres long walk to Paepae-o-Tū / Bream Tail, and has a lookout point. Mangawhai Heads Beach is an intermediate-level surf beach.

History

The Mangawhai Harbour is a part of the rohe of Te Uri-o-Hau, a tribal group either seen as an independent iwi, or as a hapū of Ngāti Whātua. The name refers to Te Whai, a historic rangatira of Ngāti Whātua, who shares his name with the short-tail stingray, whai, found in the harbour. Te Whai had a fortified pā at Mangawhai Point, a central headland in the harbour. Mangawhai Museum, opened in 2014, features displays on the area's local history. A new subdivision called The Rise or Mangawhai North is planned northwest of the existing settlement.

Demographics

Mangawhai Heads covers 6.99 km2 and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2. Mangawhai Heads had a population of 2,685 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 690 people (34.6%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 1,446 people (116.7%) since the 2013 census. There were 1,314 males, 1,359 females and 12 people of other genders in 1,101 dwellings. 2.1% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 51.0 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 429 people (16.0%) aged under 15 years, 303 (11.3%) aged 15 to 29, 1,077 (40.1%) aged 30 to 64, and 876 (32.6%) aged 65 or older. People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 92.1% European (Pākehā); 13.1% Māori; 2.8% Pasifika; 3.8% Asian; 0.9% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.5% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 98.3%, Māori language by 2.0%, Samoan by 0.2%, and other languages by 7.8%. No language could be spoken by 1.3% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.3%. The percentage of people born overseas was 21.9, compared with 28.8% nationally. Religious affiliations were 28.6% Christian, 0.7% Hindu, 0.2% Islam, 0.1% Māori religious beliefs, 0.6% Buddhist, 0.4% New Age, 0.2% Jewish, and 0.7% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 62.3%, and 6.3% of people did not answer the census question. Of those at least 15 years old, 402 (17.8%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 1,263 (56.0%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 489 (21.7%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $34,400, compared with $41,500 nationally. 261 people (11.6%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 855 (37.9%) people were employed full-time, 351 (15.6%) were part-time, and 51 (2.3%) were unemployed.