NSW improves fire safety regulations for apartments

Mr Anderson said the reforms are the output of nine months of work by a technical working group of representatives from 16 organisations that include fire practitioners, certifiers, strata and building managers, engineers, educators, councils, and the regulator.

The working group examined the regulatory framework, industry practice, and the role of regulatory bodies such as councils, Fire and Rescue NSW, and NSW Fair Trading.

The evaluation resulted in a proposal of a number of substantial improvements that will be implemented in 2022, including:

• Creating a new template building manual that gives critical information to the owners corporation and fire practitioners on what is installed, how it should work, and essential maintenance requirements;
• Tightening fire safety regulations, beginning with the creation of a new category of certifier to verify the functioning of installed systems;
• Requiring higher quality and standards for fire safety documentation used in certification and inspection processes; and
• Improving the collaboration of the main regulatory authorities, with plans to create more consistent and effective approaches to compliance across NSW.

The NSW government’s continuous commitment to fire safety has been praised by Leigh Gesthuizen, acting chief executive of the Fire Protection Association Australia.

“This work is a significant step forward towards lifting industry standards and delivering a safer community, and the association acknowledges the valuable contribution made to these reforms by its outgoing president, Bill Lea,” Mr Gesthuizen said.

The fire safety report is part of the NSW government’s Construct NSW transformation agenda, which aims to make the residential building and construction industry more trustworthy by 2023.