Setting

Objectives

Our objectives are as follows:

to maintain a setting for Fremantle Prison that allows its heritage values to be read and understood (especially, but not exclusively, its OUV)
to maintain Fremantle Prison’s landmark status and to enhance its monumental presence in the landscape
to enhance the integrity of the setting of Fremantle Prison, especially having regard to its setting at the close of the convict era
to manage the setting of the structures and spaces of Fremantle Prison that are located within its walls
to conserve the heritage values of Fremantle Prison insofar as they are expressed through its setting without unnecessarily preventing sympathetic development in its vicinity
to manage Fremantle Prison, The Knowle, the Warders’ Cottages and the Fairbairn Street Ramp as elements within a cultural landscape, by enhancing their inter-relationships through interpretation
to enhance the physical, social, historical and visual linkages between Fremantle Prison and the City of Fremantle’s West End Conservation Area
to enhance the physical, social and historical linkages between Fremantle Prison and the original Convict Grant

Risks to Avoid

We have identified the following risks to be avoided:

any modification of Fremantle Prison’s setting that diminishes its landmark status and monumental presence in the landscape
the introduction of new built form or plantings that interrupt significant views to Fremantle Prison
the introduction of new development outside the Prison that is visible from significant vantage points within the Parade Ground such that the sense of confinement within the Prison grounds is adversely impacted
built form or plantings within the walls of Fremantle Prison, especially the Parade Ground, that impact views to and along the Main Cell Block’s western façade and the South Knoll
the introduction of new built form or plantings immediately outside the boundaries of Fremantle Prison that are unsympathetic to the heritage values of the place in terms of (for example) height, bulk, scale, colour, materials or use
works to, including development of, The Knowle, Fairbairn Street Ramp or the Warders’ Cottages in isolation from Fremantle Prison, and in a manner which diminishes their heritage character or relationship to the Prison and the original convict grant. These highly significant related places should be managed as components of a complex inter-linked cultural landscape
conservation and management of the West End Conservation Area in isolation from Fremantle Prison, or in a manner which does not have regard to the historical relationship with the Prison. These two highly significant areas should be managed as components of a complex inter-linked cultural landscape which includes a significant portion relating to the Convict Grant

Statutory Framework

The EPBC Act governs ‘actions’ that have, or are likely to have, a significant impact on a matter of ‘national environmental significance’. Places on the WHL and NHL (such as Fremantle Prison) are matters of national environmental significance. An ‘action’ may include a project, a development, an undertaking, an activity or a series of activities. It includes actions that may impact the setting of Fremantle Prison insofar as it embodies its OUV and National Heritage value. Before taking an action that could have a significant impact on the heritage values of Fremantle Prison, the action must be ‘referred’ to the Australian Minister for the Environment and Energy. The Minister will determine whether or not further and more formal assessment and approval is required, i.e. a ‘controlled action’. The Minister will have particular regard to (a) works within the listed area and (b) works within the World Heritage buffer zone.

The World Heritage listed area of Fremantle Prison (that area assessed to embody the place’s OUV) does not include the Warders’ Cottages, The Knowle or the Fairbairn Street Ramp. However, these locations are included in a ‘buffer zone’ for the listed area. Their conservation should be treated as an important part of the management of Fremantle Prison itself, including its setting.

The management of activities within the buffer zone established by the World Heritage listing is critical to the conservation of Fremantle Prison’s OUV. This is especially the case in relation to activities in the buffer zone that may impact ‘setting’.

The EPBC Act affords protections to places included on the NHL. The Fremantle Prison NHL boundaries capture the Fairbairn Street Ramp and the Warders’ Cottages but do not include The Knowle. It is possible that this is an error that may be corrected through further assessment. In any event, the conservation of the setting of Fremantle Prison requires that The Knowle is also appropriately managed as part of the wider cultural landscape, along with the Ramp and Warders’ Cottages. This is consistent with the ‘precautionary principle’.

The NHL Statement of Significance for Fremantle Prison makes the observation that the place’s heritage values are expressed in (among other things): the Main Cell Block, the perimeter walls, the Gatehouse complex, the prison officers’ residences on the Terrace, the Fairbairn Street Ramp and the Henderson Street Warders’ Cottages. Maintaining and enhancing views of these places is directly relevant to the management of Fremantle Prison’s setting.

The NHL Statement of Significance does not assess Fremantle Prison as having met criterion (e) of the National Heritage values assessment criteria. Criterion (e) states that a place is significant where: ‘the place has outstanding heritage value to the nation because of the place’s importance in exhibiting particular aesthetic characteristics valued by a community or cultural group’. This may be an error in the Statement of Significance that requires correction. It is closely related to the management of the Prison’s setting.

The Heritage of Western Australia Act 1990 protects places included on the State Heritage Register. The boundaries of Fremantle Prison as they are on the WA State Heritage Register do not include the Fairbairn Street Ramp. This is an error that requires correction. The Warders’ Cottages and The Knowle are included on the WA Register of Heritage Places as separate items. The Statement of Significance for Fremantle Prison on the WA Register of Heritage Places makes the following observations that are relevant to the conservation of the place’s setting: it has an ‘austere and monumental quality’ and is ‘set in a precinct characterised by a homogeneity of form, materials, texture and colour’ and these ‘make it a landmark feature of Fremantle’.

Section 3 of the Heritage of Western Australia Act 1990 defines ‘conservation’ to include ‘the provision of an appropriate visual setting’.

The City of Fremantle Local Planning Scheme No. 4 zones Fremantle Prison as a Regional Reserve. By Section 2.2 of Local Planning Scheme No. 4 Council approval is not required for the commencement or carrying out of any use or development on a Regional Reserve. However, approval is required from the Western Australian Planning Commission (which will include input from the Heritage Council of Western Australia). That part of Fremantle Prison zoned as a Regional Reserve includes The Knowle but does not include the Fairbairn Street Ramp. It does not include the Warders’ Cottages on Henderson Street because they are in private ownership and hence subject to the City of Fremantle Local Planning Scheme 4.

A tree on the Fairbairn Street Ramp is listed as an item of local significance by the City of Fremantle (Place No. 20638). Modifications to the tree to improve the Prison’s setting will require City of Fremantle council approval.

Setting: About

Non-Statutory Framework

The Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention (Article 99) emphasises the importance of the ‘delineation of boundaries’ that will give ‘effective protection’ to places nominated to the WHL.

Article 103 of the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention states that ‘Wherever necessary for the proper conservation of [a World Heritage listed place] an adequate buffer zone should be provided’. The Fremantle Prison listing includes a sizable buffer zone that captures The Knowle, the Warders’ Cottages and Fairbairn Street Ramp.

Article 87 of the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention states that the ‘integrity’ of places nominated to the WHL must be of a high level. Integrity is a ‘measure of the wholeness and intactness’ of the place’s heritage values. It states that these can suffer as a result of the ‘adverse effects of development and/or neglect’.

The Burra Charter requires that heritage places be managed within an appropriate setting. Article 1.12 of the Burra Charter defines ‘setting’ to mean ‘the immediate and extended environment of a place that is part of or contributes to its cultural significance and distinctive character’. An Explanatory Note for Article 1.12 states: ‘Setting may include structures, spaces, land, water and sky; the visual setting including views to and from the place, and along a cultural route; and other sensory aspects of the setting such as smells and sounds. Setting may also include historical and contemporary relationships, such as use and activities, social and spiritual practices, and relationships with other places, both tangible and intangible’.

Setting: About

Constraints

The imperative to retain the landmark status of Fremantle Prison, and to enhance its monumental presence in the landscape, will place significant constraints on new built form and plantings that may be proposed within the WHL buffer zone.

The imperative to manage views of the Main Cell Block’s western façade, and of the South Knoll, from within the Parade Ground will place significant constraints on new built form and plantings that may be proposed for this area.

Opportunities

The visual, historical and physical linkages between Fremantle Prison and The Knowle and the Henderson Street Warders’ Cottages that historically formed part of the original Convict Grant are presently difficult to ‘read’. There is an opportunity to more fully document these linkages and strengthen them through interpretation. The removal of intrusively placed non-significant elements (plants and structures) should be encouraged. Design guidelines, or guidance on designing with care in this sensitive area, should also be prepared to help direct future development.

There is an opportunity to regularise the surface of the Parade Ground to enhance the setting of the Main Cell Block (which embodies OUV). Any proposal needs to consider the historical development of this area, and should not be at the expense of this.

The area of the South Knoll and the spaces to its east presently read as a confused collection of structures and features that make it difficult to understand the place’s OUV. There is an opportunity to rationalise this space to enhance its appearance.

The Statements of Significance for Fremantle Prison for the NHL and State Heritage Register are inconsistent and arguably fail to include significant elements, or to assess the site against all of the relevant criteria. These possible oversights have a bearing on the conservation of the Prison’s setting. There is an opportunity to re-visit the previous assessments and have the Statements of Significance modified.

The provisions of the City of Fremantle Local Planning Scheme No. 4 have been overtaken by subsequent heritage listings and conservation planning documents. There is an opportunity for the City of Fremantle to update those provisions, in consultation with Fremantle Prison, to reflect current heritage listings and conservation planning documentation.

Fremantle Prison is in the vicinity of, or part of, a number of conservation areas established by the City of Fremantle. There is an opportunity to further refine the management of the precincts, and their relevant policy frameworks, to ensure that Fremantle Prison is a focal point within the broader and integrated heritage conservation regime.

The carparks located below The Terrace (north and south of the Fairbairn Street Ramp, and known to Council as Carparks 29 and 1 respectively), and south of Fothergill Street, present opportunities for sympathetic new development, including public open space or improved and sympathetically designed carparking facilities. Their appearance presently detracts from the landmark status of Fremantle Prison.

Overarching Policy Framework

POLICY 69
Fremantle Prison will be managed to ensure that its landmark status is retained and its monumental presence in the landscape is enhanced. This will include encouraging the removal of intrusive built form and plantings that obstruct significant views and vistas or that otherwise prevent an understanding of the place’s history as a Prison (especially its OUV).

POLICY 70
The setting of Fremantle Prison will be managed having regard to the contributory views and vistas presented in Appendix B, augmented by additional research as appropriate.

POLICY 71
New development in the World Heritage buffer zone should not be permitted where this would impact the setting of Fremantle Prison. This will require rigorous assessment of new development proposals, especially in relation to the height, bulk, scale, siting, colour and materials of proposed new development. This will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

POLICY 72
The exterior of Fremantle Prison will be managed to retain its austere institutional appearance.

POLICY 73
The Parade Ground is to be managed having regard to the sense of confinement created by its high Prison walls, especially when viewed from significant vantage points (in particular, within approximately a 20 m radius of the front gate into the Parade Ground). There should be no new development, plantings or other structures outside the Prison walls that are visible from within the Parade Ground when viewed from those significant vantage points.

POLICY 74
The ground surface of the Parade Ground will be managed to enhance the landmark status and monumental appearance of the Main Cell Block’s western façade. This may include the regularising of the present ground surface.

POLICY 75
The Parade Ground will be managed to retain, and where possible enhance, views to the South Knoll, especially those parts that recall the form of the original hill (Church Hill).

POLICY 76
Visual connections between Fremantle Prison and The Knowle should be enhanced. Where feasible, this may include the removal of intrusive plantings and built form that presently impede views. Other connections with The Knowle should be reinforced through interpretation measures.

POLICY 77
The Fairbairn Street Ramp will be retained as the principal entry into Fremantle Prison from the public domain, and its historic function and physical relationship with the Prison, including the Terrace and Gatehouse, should be enhanced by improving the existing visual linkages.

POLICY 78
The adverse heritage impacts on the Fairbairn Street Ramp (and therefore the setting of Fremantle Prison) caused by the construction of Parry Street should be mitigated through interpretation measures that assist visitors to read and understand the Ramp’s function and appearance during the convict-era.

POLICY 79
The setting of Fremantle Prison should be enhanced, where possible, by the removal of intrusive built form, and the removal or pruning of intrusive plantings, on and beside the Fairbairn Street Ramp and Hampton Road Reserve.

POLICY 80
The wider historical setting of Fremantle Prison should be enhanced through interpretation measures designed to illustrate the historical connections between the Prison, the Henderson Street Warders’ Cottages and the original Convict Grant. Where possible, visual connections between the Warders’ Cottages and Fremantle Prison should be enhanced by removing intrusive built form and plantings.

POLICY 81
The setting of Fremantle Prison should be enhanced by making the appearance of the carparks presently located below The Terrace (north and south of the Fairbairn Street Ramp), and south of Fothergill Street, subservient and sympathetic to Fremantle Prison.

POLICY 82
Fremantle Prison will seek to accommodate the City of Fremantle’s policies in relation to the introduction of trees in parts of the city insofar as this can be achieved without compromising the visibility of the Prison, and the enhanced setting as encouraged in this policy.

Proposed Action

ACTION 39
Engage an appropriately qualified heritage practitioner to assess Fremantle Prison against criterion (e) of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Regulations 2000 (10.01A): ‘the place has outstanding heritage value to the nation because of the place’s importance in exhibiting particular aesthetic characteristics valued by a community or cultural group’. This assessment should consider the austere, monumental and deliberately ‘institutional’ aesthetic achieved by the Prison’s designers who clearly selected a prominent highpoint for the complex and a particular form to express function and socio-political messages. Depending on the outcome of this reassessment, make a submission to the Department of Environment and Energy to modify the NHL Statement of Significance. This will provide additional guidance with respect to the conservation of Fremantle Prison’s setting.

ACTION 40
Engage an appropriately qualified heritage practitioner to assess the contribution that The Knowle makes to the National Heritage values of Fremantle Prison. Depending on the outcome, make a submission to the Australian Department of Environment and Energy to modify the NHL Statement of Significance (and listed boundaries) to include The Knowle.

ACTION 41
Engage an appropriately qualified heritage practitioner to assess the significance of the Fairbairn Street Ramp. Depending on the outcome, make representations to the Heritage Council of Western Australia to modify the existing SRHP listing (and boundaries) to include the Ramp.

ACTION 42
Liaise with the City of Fremantle regarding updating Planning Policy D.G.F 14 (‘West End Conservation Area Policy’).

ACTION 43
Liaise with the relevant government authorities to modify the present zoning of Fremantle Prison as a ‘Regional Reserve’ to include the Fairbairn Street Ramp.

ACTION 44
Review and (where appropriate) make submissions in relation to all new development proposals within and near the World Heritage buffer zone to ensure that the setting of Fremantle Prison is not compromised.

ACTION 45
Continue to research, design and implement interpretation measures to illustrate the historical connections between Fremantle Prison and The Knowle. This will include a consideration of ways to improve inter-visibility between the sites (for example, by pruning or removing intrusive trees and buildings).

ACTION 46
Liaise with the City of Fremantle and consult an arborist in relation to the Moreton Bay fig trees located on the south side of the Fairbairn Street Ramp. If the trees’ health would not be impacted, prune the trees to open up views to Fremantle Prison along the Ramp.

ACTION 47
Undertake further research to clarify the date of the wall on the south side of the Fairbairn Street Ramp. If demonstrated to be post–World War II consider making representations to the City of Fremantle to have the wall removed in order to reinstate the original form of the Ramp.

ACTION 48
Liaise with the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage and the City of Fremantle in relation to the carparks below The Terrace (north and south of the Fairbairn Street Ramp), and south of Fothergill Street, to ensure that planning controls for these locations will facilitate the best outcome for Fremantle Prison’s heritage values into the future. Similarly, liaise with their owners/lessees to encourage a redesign or re-working so that their appearance is more sympathetic to the setting of Fremantle Prison.

ACTION 49
Continue to research, design and implement interpretation measures to illustrate the form of the Fairbairn Street Ramp at the end of the convict era where it has been impacted by the construction of Parry Street.