Australian Bureau of Statistics data from May 2021 revealed that Adelaide's western suburbs had the lowest unemployment rate in South Australia.

In the 1930s the Torrens Channel, also named Breakout Creek, was cut through the coastal dunes to Gulf St Vincent, to drain the wetlands and eliminate the flooding.

The name comes from a property (section 145) owned by Charles Brown Fisher,[4] then Edward Meade Bagot and Gabriel Bennett, who built a course there for amateur horse racing.

The property was rented by trainers J. Eden Savill and C. Leslie Macdonald for their Lockleys Stables where many good racehorses were prepared.

However, the Hank family lived on Torrens Avenue, Lockleys[6] and had established 11 acres[7] of market garden there after world war I.

[9] The former John Martin's department store had a bulk warehouse on Pierson Street, which was also a storage location for the floats used in the company's annual Christmas Pageant.[10][when?]

[12] The Windsor Theatre, located at 362 Henley Beach Road, was originally built as a RSL hall in March 1925,[13] with the construction cost of £3,800 covered by community fund-raising,[14] with much of it donated by John Mellor.

In 2018, the theatre was purchased by the City of West Torrens.,[14] who demolished it in early 2021[15] despite public debate and much resistance from organisations which saw its heritage and cultural value to the area.

[14] Lockleys now features many large modern homes including one shown on the Grand Designs Television show.

[29] Students come from a wide variety of socio-economic and cultural backgrounds due to the demographics of West Torrens area.