Roller shutters in Kelmscott

There were 74 burglaries in Kelmscott in 2025, WA Police figures show. In 2021 there were 126, so the count fell 41.3% over five years, and it is far lower than the 289 recorded in 2018. The last year brought a drop, from 83 to 74.

As a rate, 74 burglaries is 7.0 per 1,000 residents, above the metropolitan Perth rate of 4.0. Like every suburb figure, it combines homes and businesses.

So the direction is good, while the rate still deserves attention. A roller shutter puts a physical barrier on windows and doors and makes forced entry slower and noisier. It sits best alongside the basics on the WA Police burglary flyer: deadlocks on external doors, sensor lighting and an alarm.

The 2021 Census counted 81.5% separate houses in Kelmscott, against 77.8% for Greater Perth, plus 15.6% semi-detached, terrace or townhouse dwellings and 2.1% flats. Home ownership was 70.6%, level with Greater Perth at 70.4%.

Houses take residential roller shutters on bedrooms, living room windows and glass sliders. With townhouses a real part of the mix, strata matters here. Under the default by-law, a strata owner needs the strata company's written consent before keeping anything visible from outside the lot that is out of keeping with the rest of the building. If the work alters the structure of the lot, the by-laws also ask for 14 days' written notice.

Commercial or industrial land makes up 5.3% of the suburb. For shopfronts we make commercial roller shutters, and the City of Armadale's design checklist asks that shop front shutters allow observation of the street. Outdoor blinds cover alfrescos and verandahs: Ziptrak, Slidetrack, cafe and motorised.

Heritage is the first thing to check in Kelmscott. The River Road Heritage Area, adopted by the City of Armadale under the state deemed provisions, is in the suburb. For places in its Appendix 1 or a Class A zone, the policy says the exterior of buildings as seen from the street should be altered as little as possible. It does not mention shutters by name, so street facing work on those places is worth raising with the City first.

Kelmscott is also named on the City's Heritage List, adopted in 2023, and planning approval is needed before any alterations, additions or other development to a listed place. Places on a heritage list or inside a heritage area count as heritage protected, so the state exemption for single houses does not cover them.

Elsewhere in Kelmscott, a single house needs no development approval for shutters where the R-Codes apply and the work meets the deemed-to-comply provisions. For new builds, the City's Designing Out Crime policy suggests designing security screens and bars in from the start rather than adding them afterwards.

On cost, the City's Security Incentive Scheme for 2026 to 2027 lists roller shutters at $200, or $250 for Pensioner Concession, Health Care and WA Seniors Card holders. The state WA Seniors Card Safety and Security Rebate covers window shutters up to $400. With 18.8% of residents 65 or over, both are worth a look.