As mentioned previously, the balustrade and safety barrier regulations exist for good reason, ultimately to prevent accidental loss of life. No equal counter argument, period. Are they overly restrictive? Not necessarily. Are they tighter than other countries? Definitely. Can we vary them? Sometimes, if you can prove compliance to the deemed to satisfy provisions. Can we achieve the same aesthetically clean "no barrier" designs in Australia as simply and to the same degree as in other countries? No. But these more restrictive conditions don't necessarily equate to more restrictive architecture. Arguably we have to work harder and be more creative within constraints to get what I'd describe as quality and clever architectural solutions, but you know what? Too bad. And this is what separates "the men from the boys" so to speak (no gender inequality meant at all) I thrive on the creative opportunity within the constraint and it challenges our professional to go deeper creatively using the breadth of of skills to achieve results in arguably more challenging conditions. Its an easy cop out just to whinge about safety barriers or whatever the particular restriction is based on predominantly aesthetic/visual/spatial goals. Design solutions will ultimately reflect/respond to the contextual conditions. Yes outside of Australia there is less regulation around matters of safety that can be exploited by design solutions to sometimes achieve visually and spatially breathtaking results, such as in the images shown on this post. Like in all situations it's about balance and priorities and when practicing design and architecture in this country issues around safety are managed more robustly by regulation, which in turn naturally requires design solutions to work within the limits, which in many cases, due to the particular project priority stack and/or capacity of the people involved, results in less "integrated" solutions. At the end of the day, quality architecture is important and there's not enough of it here IMO, but that aside, safety barriers won't and don't prevent great or interesting architecture, but they do reduce/minimise loss of life, particularly young life, and that there I think for any project regardless should be the absolute highest priority, above and beyond any potential aesthetic or spatial outcome.

first things first - 100% agree with Retro - don't focus so much on the nitty gritty on the cosmetics for now, rather focus on an overall masterplan for the property as you said the residence requires renovation. How you manage the stone walls to the pool is honestly the lesser of your issues here (you can deal with that one way or another depending upon certain preferences and budget............but clearly the bigger issues is the obvious awkwardness of the pool location and access in relation to the home - most likely an afterthought dropped/squeezed in the back...... what you have here though is great opportunity to improve the relationship of the interior and external spaces - this is way more important as a priority as it will make the most difference in terms of your overall living experience/enjoyment/functionality (and property value one way or the other) than the cosmetics. So if you can't see how you're are going to achieve that yourself, I'd be suggesting you best seek some Pro design consultation that deals with the renovation scope & covers consideration of landscaping /external elements/spaces that properly negotiate the site levels and better link/integrate everything in together....of course budget is always a critical factor/controller.... Hope this helps steer your focus in the right direction.... Best of luck PD :)

Made my jaw drop! Definitely well-deserving of the award. Congrats :)

I would recommend that you have a discussion with a professional with knowledge of natural swimming pools as there may be a chance that you can convert your existing pool. It seems that the shelf lends itself to planting ( with a bit of adjustment). You could potentially add some deeper level water plants in areas outside the perimeter of the pool if this is required to provide the full filtration environment for a natural pool. Access can be via a timber platform to traverse the shelf area. The waterfall area would be much less of an eye sore once integrated with plants and some clever placement of rocks. I think you have a very exciting opportunity here to create something special.