Roller shutters Spearwood

Burglaries in Spearwood have come down. WA Police counted 84 in 2021 and 55 in 2025, a fall of 34.5%, with 65 in 2024 along the way. The longer view is steeper again: 175 were recorded in 2017.

Set against the 10,944 residents at the 2021 Census, the 2025 count equals 5.0 burglaries for every 1,000 people. Metropolitan Perth sat at 4.0, so Spearwood remains a little above the city figure even after the drop. The number takes in shops and offices as well as homes, since WA Police define burglary as unlawful entry to any structure. The first half of 2026 recorded 21.

So what can a shutter contribute? It lays a physical barrier on windows and doors, and it makes forced entry slower and noisier. That is its job, alongside good locks, an alarm and sensor lighting.

The 2021 Census counted 73.5% of Spearwood's occupied dwellings as separate houses, 20.9% as semi-detached, terrace or townhouses and 5.4% as flats. For the houses, residential roller shutters suit bedrooms, living rooms and sliding doors.

Townhouses and villas may sit inside strata schemes. Under the default conduct by-laws, an owner needs the strata company's written consent to keep anything visible from outside the lot that does not match the rest of the building, so raise shutters with the strata company before we measure. Where shutters are also meant to screen a neighbour's view, the R-Codes visual privacy standard asks for screening at least 1.6 m high, at least 75 per cent obscure and permanently fixed.

Then there is the back yard. 2.2 km away in Hamilton Hill we installed a manual Ziptrak blind with a white frame and 99% Ebony mesh to close in an outdoor area, and our outdoor blinds range also covers Slidetrack, cafe and motorised styles.

A Spearwood house may not need planning approval for shutters. The state's deemed provisions exempt alterations to a single house provided the R-Codes apply, the work meets the deemed-to-comply standards and the place is not heritage protected.

The City of Cockburn takes a firm line on listed places: its heritage guidelines say any development affecting a place on the Heritage List needs approval, even minor works such as replacement gutters or downpipes. If your home might be listed, ask the City before you order.

With 21.2% of residents aged 65 or over, the WA Seniors Card Safety and Security Rebate is worth knowing about. It covers security window screens or window shutters up to a $400 maximum, and each household can claim it once. Cockburn's own seniors rebate, which lists roller shutters at $350, is not taking applications for 2026 to 2027.