There are two distinct sets of local census data dashboards - for SA1 and SA2 geographical areas.

SA1 (Statistical Area Units 1): Areas created by Statistics NZ (previously titled Meshblocks).  SA1s are the more detailed (smaller) statistical areas, ideally made up of 100-200 residents, but they can be up to 500 residents.  SA1 dashboards can be useful for dashboard users who want to select population boundaries to match their own communities of interest.  These areas might be the agreed streets a community centre sees as its community, or a Marae community - each of which might not match formal geographical boundaries. SA1 units allow the user to select the streets within suburbs they wish to include in or out of their area - and see the relevant data for only that area. 

SA2 (Statistical Area Units 2):  Combine data for geographical areas of similar sized populations (in cities SA2s are usually made up of 2,000 - 4,000 residents, while in rural areas they are generally 1,000 - 2,000 residents). SA2s ‘reflect communities that interact socially and economically’*. 

Each SA2 is made up of a group of SA1s.