Roller shutters Mount Lawley

WA Police counted 42 burglaries in Mount Lawley in 2025. Based on the 11,328 residents at the 2021 Census, the rate was 3.7 per 1,000, just under the metro figure of 4.0. The suburb count takes in businesses as well as homes.

Over five years the count has come down. In 2021 there were 74 burglaries, so 2025 was 43.2% lower, and measured against the 163 recorded in 2017 the drop is 74.2%. Motor vehicle thefts moved the same way, from 21 in 2021 to 11 in 2025.

A shutter is no guarantee, but it adds a physical barrier on windows and doors and makes forced entry slower and noisier. In Mount Lawley the harder question is usually which openings can take one, and the council section below deals with that.

Landgate records that at the start of the twentieth century the whole Mount Lawley area was undeveloped bushland, when Samuel W Copley and R T Robinson bought the Mount Lawley estate. The suburb takes its name from Sir Arthur Lawley, Governor of WA from 1901 to 1902.

The homes are a real mix. In the 2021 Census 52.6% of occupied dwellings were separate houses, well below the Greater Perth figure of 77.8%, with 27.6% flats or apartments and 19.7% semi-detached, terrace or townhouses. Where a home is in a strata scheme, WA's default by-laws need the strata company's written consent for anything visible from outside the lot that does not match the rest of the building, and that consent sits on top of any council approval.

For houses, residential roller shutters on rear bedrooms and back doors, out of street view, are the likelier option, as the council section explains. Outdoor living areas behind the house suit outdoor blinds: Ziptrak, Slidetrack, cafe and motorised blinds can all close in a rear alfresco against sun and wind.

Most of Mount Lawley is in the City of Stirling, with smaller parts in the City of Vincent and the City of Bayswater. The points below are Stirling's, so if your home is on the Vincent or Bayswater side, check with that council.

Under the state rules, works to a single house skip development approval only when the R-Codes apply, the works are deemed-to-comply and the place is not heritage protected. Stirling's Heritage Protection Area covers Mount Lawley, Menora and Inglewood, and the City says that within it all development will require development approval. Its Local Planning Scheme No. 3 requires development there to conform with the area's objectives, and the City's exemptions policy does not extend to properties in the area.

At the council meeting of 19 May 2026, City officers wrote that under the existing framework, roller shutters visible from the street are generally not supported. Shutters that cannot be seen from the street may still be considered through a development application, and shutters lawfully installed with planning approval keep that approval. These are officer comments, not policy text.

The same meeting resolved to proceed with a Character Retention policy for the Mount Lawley and Menora heritage areas, which says roller shutters are not permitted where visible from the street. It is adopted but not yet in effect: it starts only when Local Planning Scheme No. 4 is gazetted, and the operative scheme is still No. 3. In practice, rear and side windows out of street view, and outdoor blinds for a back alfresco, are the likeliest options. Talk to the City before you order and we will plan the measure around its answer.