THE latest progress report from Building and Energy has revealed that the Shire of Mundaring has the third highest percentage of overdue pool inspections at 2.2 per cent (86) in the metropolitan area.

To help prevent drowning tragedies, it is compulsory for WA private swimming pools, spas and portable pools with water more than 30cm deep to have safety barriers that comply with the law and restrict young children’s access.

Shire of Mundaring director place and community Megan Griffiths said the shire acknowledged the figures reported by Building and Energy and recognised the importance of ensuring all private swimming pools and spas are inspected within the required four-year cycle.

“The safety of children and the broader community remains our priority,” she said.

“At June 30, the shire had 86 swimming pools and spas that were overdue for inspection, representing approximately 2.2 per cent of the shire’s 3899 registered pools and spas. During the 2025-26 financial year, the shire completed 1088 pool and spa inspections, an increase of more than 40 per cent compared with the 747 inspections completed in 2024-25.”

Mrs Griffins said a range of factors contributed to the backlog.

“The shire currently has one full-time officer dedicated to pool barrier inspections and a significant proportion of inspections require multiple visits where barriers are found to be non-compliant and follow-up inspections are necessary,” she said.

“Delays can also occur where inspectors are unable to gain access to properties or where inspections cannot proceed because animals are not adequately secured.

“Growth in the district has also contributed to increased inspection demand. The number of private swimming pools and spas subject to inspection has increased from 3725 in 2023-24 to 3830 in 2024-25 and 3899 in 2025-26.

“As the pool stock grows, so too does the inspection workload required to maintain compliance with the statutory inspection cycle.”

Mrs Griffins said the shire had recently undertaken a review of its pool inspection program to identify opportunities to improve efficiency and service delivery.

A key improvement has been the introduction of tablet-based technology for pool inspections.

The new system integrates inspection checklists, photographs, reporting and communications into a single platform, reducing duplication and allowing our inspector to spend more time undertaking inspections in the field.

“The shire has also introduced a pool barrier checklist as part of the building approval process for new pools and spas. This initiative is helping to improve awareness of barrier requirements among property owners and builders before inspections occur, which is expected to support improved compliance outcomes over time.

“The shire remains committed to improving inspection performance, reducing the number of overdue inspections and maintaining a strong focus on pool safety and compliance across the district.”

According to Building and Energy’s latest progress report, local governments inspected a record number of pools – almost 58,000 – during the 2025-26 financial year.

There were 1621 pools – or 0.9 per cent of all WA private pools – overdue for inspection at June 30, 2026.

Building Commissioner Phil Payne acknowledged the efforts by most local governments to achieve timely pool barrier inspections and encouraged improvement by underperforming jurisdictions.

“Tragically, drowning remains a leading cause of accidental death or life-changing injuries for young children,” Mr Payne said.

“Active adult supervision is the number one protection for young children around swimming pools, supported by other measures including safety barriers, which must be compliant and used and maintained correctly. I urge local governments to prioritise inspections of these barriers as part of the community effort involved in keeping kids safe from drowning.

“Likewise, homeowners need to make their pools available when required for inspection and carry out their own year-round checks to ensure safety barriers are fit for purpose.”

Building and Energy’s annual progress reports were prompted by the Ombudsman WA identifying that more than 8600 private swimming pools, or around 6 per cent, were overdue for local government inspections in mid-2015.

A checklist for homeowners is available online.