Ward boundary changes

In November 2021 the Minister for Local Government released for public consultation details of proposed significant reforms to the Local Government Act 1995 (the LG Act) that would introduce changes to the structure and processes of local governments in WA. One of the proposed changes included reductions to the number of elected members on some councils based on population thresholds.

At the Ordinary Council Meeting on 26 October 2022, Council resolved to adopt a voluntary pathway option for implementing the required changes to the number of elected members on council and the related ward and representation changes. Part of this decision also included undertaking community consultation on the proposed ward structure, and a ward and representation review. You can view the full report and decision in the Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of Council here.

The City of Fremantle’s community consultation was undertaken via My Say from 28 October 2022 to 16 December 2022. The consultation included discussion on 7 options (and sub-options) for community input. The documents provided to the community can be found here.

Following the community consultation and ward and representation review, at the Ordinary Council Meeting on 18 January 2023, Council resolved to abolish the existing ward boundaries for the City of Fremantle and divide the district into four new wards (Central, Coastal, East and North), and change the number of offices of councillors on council from 12 to 8, to be implemented over two election cycles. You can view the full report and decision in the Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of Council here.

The changes were endorsed by the Minister for Local Government and approved by the Governor of Western Australia. The Governor’s Order to finalise this process was gazetted in June 2023 (published in the Government Gazette No. 88 on 30 June 2023). The approved changes came into effect from the October 2023 Local Government Elections.