Roller shutters in East Fremantle

The count is lower than it was. East Fremantle had 53 burglaries in 2021 and 32 in 2025, a fall of 40% across five years. 2024 also came in at 32, and in 2017 the figure was 91.

Measured against the 7,819 residents counted in 2021, the 2025 count gives a rate of 4.1 per 1,000, close to the metropolitan rate of 4.0. Burglary at suburb level is one figure covering homes and businesses together.

Shutters work at the scale of a single house. Closed, a roller shutter is a physical barrier on windows and doors, and it makes forced entry slower and noisier. It adds a layer to locks and an alarm rather than replacing them.

Two thirds of East Fremantle dwellings are separate houses (66.1%). Semi-detached homes, terraces and townhouses make up 18.8%, and flats 14.6%. For houses, residential roller shutters are measured to each opening and built in Wangara. For units and flats in a strata scheme, the default by-laws require the strata company's written consent for anything visible from outside the lot that is not in keeping with the rest of the building.

Street-facing windows deserve some thought. The Town's Residential Design Guidelines (LPP 3.1.1) ask that new or altered openings facing the street have a vertical profile, and say development in the policy area needs the Town's prior planning approval. The guidelines do not mention shutters, but a shutter's pelmet and guides sit on the facade, so treat front windows as something to raise with the Town.

Outdoor blinds suit courtyards and rear living areas. About 5 km away in Hamilton Hill we fitted a manual Ziptrak blind with a white frame and 99% Ebony mesh; the project page has the details.

State planning rules exempt work on a single house from development approval only when the R-Codes apply, the work meets their deemed-to-comply provisions and the home is not heritage protected. The Town of East Fremantle's own planning page is plain about its approach: in most cases, it says, planning approval is required for all development. It lists any development within the street setback area and any alteration to a commercial site among the works that need approval, and additions and alterations to properties on the Heritage List need it too.

George Street is a designated heritage area under LPP 3.1.6. There, verandahs and awnings should not be added to the street facade of contributory buildings that did not originally have them, unless the policy's listed exceptions apply, and existing original shopfront details are to be conserved.

None of these documents names roller shutters. The safe course is to ring the Town before ordering, with photos of the windows involved, and we can supply measurements and product details for that conversation.

Seniors Card holders can claim the WA Safety and Security Rebate, up to $400 per household, on security window screens or window shutters.