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Setting Out

Search every lesson, checklist and resource. Try a plant, a material, or a problem you have.

Rules, permits and approvals

What Western Australia will and will not let you build

WA has the strictest retaining wall threshold in the country, a permanent sprinkler roster, a winter sprinkler ban, and a council that will make you take it out if you get it wrong. Find out what applies to your block before you design around something you cannot have.

You end up with

A written list of every approval your project needs, with the relevant thresholds and who to ask.

7 lessons≈5 hours1 documents2 written

What you produce in this phase

Lessons

  1. 01

    R-Codes and your local council: setbacks, site cover and landscaping requirements

    The Residential Design Codes set the planning rules for residential WA, and your local council adds its own local planning scheme on top. What they control in a garden, and how to find out what applies to your lot.

    ⏱ 45 minIntermediate
  2. 02

    Retaining walls: the 500 mm rule, AS 4678 and when an engineer is mandatory

    WA applies the tightest retaining wall threshold in Australia. Below a certain retained height you are generally exempt; above it you need a building permit; above that you need certified structural engineering. Get this wrong and the council can order it removed.

    ⏱ 45 minIntermediate
  3. 03

    Patios, pergolas, decks and sheds: when a building permit is triggered

    Not written yet

    Floor height, roof, area, proximity to boundaries and whether it is attached to the house all change the answer. Work out what your project needs before you buy materials for something you cannot legally build.

    ⏱ 45 minIntermediate
  4. 04

    Pools, spas and the barrier rules

    Not written yet

    Pool barriers are life safety law, inspected by your council, and they shape your entire garden layout — gates, levels, climbable objects, planting near the fence. Design the barrier first, then the garden around it.

    ⏱ 45 minIntermediate⚠️ Licensed trade
  5. 05

    Dividing fences and the neighbour conversation

    Not written yet

    The Dividing Fences Act governs who pays for what on a shared boundary, and a landscaping project usually forces the issue. How to have the conversation before you start, and what happens if it goes badly.

    ⏱ 30 minFoundation
  6. 06

    Bores, the sprinkler roster and the winter ban

    Not written yet

    Perth has a permanent two-day sprinkler roster set by house number, a total sprinkler ban from 1 June to 31 August, and rules that apply whether you are on scheme water or your own bore. This is a design constraint, not a maintenance detail.

    ⏱ 45 minIntermediate📐 Makes: Your water rules
  7. 07

    Bushfire (BAL) and dieback obligations

    Not written yet

    On bushfire-prone land your plant choices, mulch and structures are constrained by law. And across the south-west, Phytophthora dieback is spread on boots, tools and imported soil — including into your own garden.

    ⏱ 40 minIntermediate