Swimming Pools Act 1992 SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - Made under the Swimming Pools Act 1992 - As at 1 May 2011 - Reg 399 of 2008 TABLE OF PROVISIONS TABLE OF PROVISIONS PART 1 - PRELIMINARY 1. Name of Regulation 2. Commencement 3. Definitions 4. References to compliance with AS 1926.1—2007 or Building Code of Australia PART 2 - RESTRICTION OF ACCESS TO SWIMMING POOLS ____ Division 1 - Restriction of access to outdoor swimming pools 5. General requirements for outdoor swimming pools 6. Standards required for certain swimming pools to be exempt from requirement to separate swimming pool from residential building 7. Standards required for swimming pools on large or waterfront properties to be exempt from requirement to surround swimming pool Division 2 - Restriction of access to indoor swimming pools 8. General requirements for indoor swimming pools Division 3 - Restriction of access to spa pools 9. Standards required to be exempt from requirement to surround spa pool PART 3 - WARNING NOTICES 10. Contents of warning notices 11. Legibility of warning notices PART 4 - EXEMPTIONS FROM BARRIER REQUIREMENTS GRANTED BY LOCAL AUTHORITIES 12. Application for exemption 13. Fee for application for exemption 14. Circumstances that justify an exemption 15. Notice concerning certain decisions on exemptions PART 5 - CERTIFICATES OF COMPLIANCE GRANTED BY LOCAL AUTHORITIES 16. Application for certificate of compliance 17. Fee for application for certificate of compliance 18. Notice concerning refusal to grant certificate of compliance PART 6 - MISCELLANEOUS 19. Directions by local authorities 20. Certificates of identification 21. Public access to AS 1926.1—2007, Building Code of Australia and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Guideline 22. Penalty notices 22A. Effect of changes to prescribed standards for existing complying swimming pool barriers and means of access 23. Existing complying swimming pools may continue to comply with earlier standards 24. Savings SCHEDULE 1 SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 1 Name of Regulation 1 Name of Regulation This Regulation is the Swimming Pools Regulation 2008. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 2 Commencement 2 Commencement This Regulation commences on 1 September 2008. Note: This Regulation replaces the Swimming Pools Regulation 1998 which is repealed on 1 September 2008 by section 10 (2) of the Subordinate Legislation Act 1989. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 3 Definitions 3 Definitions (1) In this Regulation: "AS 1926.1—2007" means the provisions of AS 1926.1—2007Swimming Pool Safety, Part 1: Safety barriers for swimming pools as published by Standards Australia on 12 July 2007, other than clause 2.10. "Building Code of Australia" means the document published by or on behalf of the Australian Building Codes Board under the title Building Code of Australia, as in force from time to time. "Department" means the Division of Local Government within the Department of Premier and Cabinet. "the Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Guideline" means the document entitled Guideline 7: Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation published in February 2006 by the Australian Resuscitation Council. "testing apparatus" means a cylindrical test object having a diameter of 105 millimetres, plus or minus 1 millimetre, and having at least one solid flat-faced end. "the Act" means the Swimming Pools Act 1992. (2) Notes included in this Regulation do not form part of this Regulation. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 4 References to compliance with AS 1926.1—2007 or Building Code of Australia 4 References to compliance with AS 1926.1—2007 or Building Code of Australia For the purposes of this Regulation, a child-resistant barrier, window or doorway is taken to comply with the standards set out in a clause in AS 1926.1—2007 or the Building Code of Australia so long as it complies with the minimum requirements for that clause. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - NOTES Note to Part 2This Part prescribes standards for the restriction of access to new swimming pools. Clause 23 deals with swimming pools completed before 1 September 2008. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 5 General requirements for outdoor swimming pools 5 General requirements for outdoor swimming pools For the purposes of sections 7 (1) (b) and 12 (d) of the Act, the prescribed standards in accordance with which a child-resistant barrier surrounding a swimming pool is to be designed, constructed, installed and maintained are the standards set out in the Building Code of Australia. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 6 Standards required for certain swimming pools to be exempt from requirement to separate swimming pool from residential building 6 Standards required for certain swimming pools to be exempt from requirement to separate swimming pool from residential building (1) For the purposes of section 8 (2) of the Act, the prescribed standards in accordance with which the means of access to a swimming pool from a residential building are to be restricted are that: (a) each doorway, and each opening portion of a window, that gives access to the swimming pool is to be designed, constructed, installed and maintained in accordance with the standards set out in AS 1926.1—2007, and (b) in relation to each opening portion of a window giving access to the swimming pool—there must not be any footholds wider than 10 millimetres between the bottom of the lowest opening panel of the window and any point within 1.1 metres below the bottom of that panel. (2) Subclause (1) (b) does not apply to a window that is: (a) of substantial construction and is so fixed (by means of a keyed locking device or other child-resistant device) that it has no opening through which it is possible to pass a testing apparatus, or (b) totally enclosed by a grille (including a fixed grille) that is of substantial construction and is so fixed (by means of a keyed locking device or other child-resistant device) that it has no opening through which it is possible to pass a testing apparatus. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 7 Standards required for swimming pools on large or waterfront properties to be exempt from requirement to surround swimming pool 7 Standards required for swimming pools on large or waterfront properties to be exempt from requirement to surround swimming pool For the purposes of sections 9 (2) and 10 (2) of the Act, the prescribed standards in accordance with which the means of access to a swimming pool from a residential building are to be restricted are the standards set out in AS 1926.1—2007. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 8 General requirements for indoor swimming pools 8 General requirements for indoor swimming pools For the purposes of section 14 of the Act, the prescribed standards in accordance with which the means of access to an indoor swimming pool is to be restricted are that each doorway, and each opening portion of a window, giving access to the swimming pool must be designed, constructed, installed and maintained in accordance with the Building Code of Australia. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 9 Standards required to be exempt from requirement to surround spa pool 9 Standards required to be exempt from requirement to surround spa pool For the purposes of section 20 of the Act, the prescribed standards in accordance with which access to the water contained in a spa pool is to be restricted are that the spa pool must be covered and secured by a lockable child-safe structure (such as a door, lid, grille or mesh) that is: (a) of substantial construction and having no opening through which it is possible to pass a testing apparatus, and (b) fastened to the spa pool by a device that is itself of substantial construction and having no opening through which it is possible to pass a testing apparatus. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 10 Contents of warning notices 10 Contents of warning notices (1) For the purposes of section 17 (1) of the Act, the sign referred to in that subsection must bear a notice that contains all of the following: (a) the words: (i) “YOUNG CHILDREN SHOULD BE SUPERVISED WHEN USING THIS SWIMMING POOL”, and (ii) “POOL GATES MUST BE KEPT CLOSED AT ALL TIMES”, and (iii) “KEEP ARTICLES, OBJECTS AND STRUCTURES AT LEAST 900 MILLIMETRES CLEAR OF THE POOL FENCE AT ALL TIMES”, (b) a simple flow sequence (which may be the flow sequence depicted in the Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Guideline) containing details of resuscitation techniques (for infants, children and adults): (i) that are set out in accordance with the relevant provisions of that Guideline, and (ii) that comply with the other relevant guidelines of the Australian Resuscitation Council, and (iii) that are illustrated by drawings with key words only in bold print, (c) a statement to the effect that formal instruction in resuscitation is essential, (d) the name of the teaching organisation or other body that published the sign and the date of its publication. (2) However, any sign erected between 1 September 1995 and 31 August 2008 that bears a notice in accordance with clause 9 (a) and (b) of the Swimming Pools Regulation 1998 (as in force immediately before its repeal) is taken to comply with this clause. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 11 Legibility of warning notices 11 Legibility of warning notices For the purposes of section 17 (1) of the Act, the sign referred to in that subsection: (a) must be legible from a distance of at least 3 metres, and (b) must be maintained in a clearly legible condition. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 12 Application for exemption 12 Application for exemption (1) An application made to a local authority under section 22 of the Act is to be in the form approved by that authority. (2) That form must contain statements to the effect that: (a) if the local authority fails to finally determine the application within 6 weeks after it is made, then the local authority is taken, for the purposes of any appeal proceedings, to have refused the application, and (b) if the local authority refuses the application for an exemption, or is taken to have refused the application, or imposes a condition on an exemption, the owner of the premises on which the relevant swimming pool is situated is entitled to appeal to the Land and Environment Court against the local authority’s refusal or against the condition. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 13 Fee for application for exemption 13 Fee for application for exemption (1) A local authority may impose a fee of up to $70 on an application for an exemption under section 22 of the Act. (2) An application made to a local authority that has imposed a fee must be accompanied by that fee. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 14 Circumstances that justify an exemption 14 Circumstances that justify an exemption For the purposes of section 22 (1) (a) of the Act, the fact that an adult occupier of the premises in or on which a swimming pool is situated would (because of a physical disability or impairment of the occupier) be significantly impeded in gaining access to the swimming pool if the requirements of Part 2 of the Act were complied with is a special circumstance that justifies the granting of an exemption from those requirements. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 15 Notice concerning certain decisions on exemptions 15 Notice concerning certain decisions on exemptions (1) A local authority: (a) that refuses to grant an exemption under section 22 of the Act in respect of a swimming pool, or (b) that imposes conditions on an exemption under section 22 of the Act in respect of a swimming pool, must cause notice of the decision to be served on the owner of the premises in or on which the swimming pool is situated. (2) Such a notice: (a) must give reasons for the decision, and (b) must state that the owner of the premises is entitled to appeal to the Land and Environment Court from the decision. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 16 Application for certificate of compliance 16 Application for certificate of compliance (1) An application made to a local authority under section 24 of the Act must be in the form approved by that local authority. (2) That form must contain statements to the effect that: (a) if the local authority fails to finally determine the application within 6 weeks after it is made, then the local authority is taken, for the purposes of any appeal proceedings, to have refused the application, and (b) if the local authority refuses the application for a certificate of compliance, or is taken to have refused the application, the owner of the premises on which the relevant swimming pool is situated is entitled to appeal to the Land and Environment Court against the local authority’s refusal. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 17 Fee for application for certificate of compliance 17 Fee for application for certificate of compliance (1) A local authority may impose a fee of up to $70 on an application for a certificate of compliance under section 24 of the Act. (2) An application made to a local authority that has imposed a fee must be accompanied by that fee. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 18 Notice concerning refusal to grant certificate of compliance 18 Notice concerning refusal to grant certificate of compliance (1) A local authority that refuses to grant a certificate of compliance under section 24 of the Act in respect of a swimming pool must cause notice of the decision to be served on the owner of the premises in or on which the swimming pool is situated. (2) Such a notice: (a) must give reasons for the decision to refuse to grant the certificate, and (b) must state that the owner of the premises on which the relevant swimming pool is situated is entitled to appeal against the decision to the Land and Environment Court. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 19 Directions by local authorities 19 Directions by local authorities A local authority that gives a direction under section 23 of the Act to the owner of any premises must include in the direction: (a) the reasons for its decision to give the direction, and (b) a statement to the effect that the owner of the premises is entitled to appeal to the Land and Environment Court against the decision. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 20 Certificates of identification 20 Certificates of identification For the purposes of section 27 (2) of the Act, the prescribed form of certificate of identification is the form set out in Schedule 1. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 21 Public access to AS 1926.1—2007, Building Code of Australia and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Guideline 21 Public access to AS 1926.1—2007, Building Code of Australia and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Guideline (1) The Department must ensure that a paper copy or electronic version of AS 1926.1—2007, the Building Code of Australia and the Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Guideline are made available for public inspection at no cost at each public office of the Department during ordinary business hours. (2) Each local authority must ensure that a paper copy or electronic version of AS 1926.1—2007, the Building Code of Australia and the Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Guideline are made available for public inspection at no cost at each public office of the local authority during ordinary business hours. (3) The Department and each local authority must ensure that the Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Guideline is available for viewing on its website. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 22 Penalty notices 22 Penalty notices For the purposes of section 35 of the Act: (a) each offence under each section of the Act referred to in the Table to this clause is a prescribed offence, and (b) the penalty specified in that Table in respect of each such offence is the prescribed penalty for that offence. Table _____________________________ |_____________________________| |_____________________________| |_____________________________| |_____________________________| |_____________________________| |_____________________________| |_____________________________| |_____________________________| SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 22A Effect of changes to prescribed standards for existing complying swimming pool barriers and means of access 22A Effect of changes to prescribed standards for existing complying swimming pool barriers and means of access (1) In this clause, "relevant amendment" means: (a) an amendment to this Regulation that amends or substitutes a standard prescribed for the purposes of a provision of Part 2 of the Act, or (b) an amendment to a standard that is prescribed, as in force from time to time, for the purposes of a provision of Part 2 of the Act. (2) If a child-resistant barrier for a swimming pool is required to comply with a standard prescribed under a provision of Part 2 of the Act and the standard is amended or substituted by a relevant amendment, the barrier is taken to comply with the amended or substituted standard so long as: (a) immediately before the relevant amendment took effect, the barrier complied with the standard that applied to the barrier at that time and the barrier continues to comply with that standard, or (b) if the barrier has been substantially altered or rebuilt, the barrier complied with the standard that applied to the barrier when it was so altered or rebuilt and the barrier continues to comply with that standard. (3) If the means of access to a swimming pool are required to comply with a standard prescribed under a provision of Part 2 of the Act and the standard is amended or substituted by a relevant amendment, the means of access are taken to comply with the amended or substituted standard so long as: (a) immediately before the relevant amendment took effect, the means of access complied with the standard that applied to the means of access at that time and the means of access continue to comply with that standard, or (b) if the means of access have been substantially altered or rebuilt, the means of access complied with the standard that applied to the means of access when they were so altered or rebuilt and they continue to comply with that standard. Note: Subclause (3) applies to standards prescribed under provisions of Part 2 of the Act that relate to indoor swimming pools, outdoor swimming pools or both. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 23 Existing complying swimming pools may continue to comply with earlier standards 23 Existing complying swimming pools may continue to comply with earlier standards (1) This clause applies to a swimming pool the construction or installation of which was completed before 1 September 2008. (2) It is sufficient compliance with Part 2 of the Act for a swimming pool to comply with that Part on the basis of the requirements of Part 2 of the Swimming Pools Regulation 1998 (as an alternative to compliance on the basis of the requirements of Part 2 of this Regulation). (3) However, this clause does not apply: (a) in relation to an outdoor swimming pool—if the child- resistant barrier by which access to the swimming pool is restricted is substantially altered or rebuilt, and (b) in relation to an indoor swimming pool—if the premises in which the swimming pool is situated are substantially altered or rebuilt in a way that affects the means of access to the swimming pool. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - REG 24 Savings 24 Savings Any act, matter or thing that, immediately before the repeal of the Swimming Pools Regulation 1998, had effect under that Regulation is taken to have effect under this Regulation. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - SCHEDULE 1 SCHEDULE 1 – Certificate of identification (Clause 20) Certificate of identification (Swimming Pools Act 1992) This certifies that [insert name of inspector], whose photograph and signature appear below, is an inspector for [insert name of local authority] for the purposes of the Swimming Pools Act 1992. ______________________________________ ||(attach ||(signature of inspector) | ||photograph||(seal of local authority)| |______________________________________| The holder of this certificate is empowered, by section 28 of the Swimming Pools Act 1992, to enter any premises in or on which he or she suspects that a swimming pool is situated and to examine the premises and, in particular, any swimming pool, and any barrier or other means of restricting access to any swimming pool, situated in or on the premises. This power may be exercised with the consent of the occupier of the premises or, if that consent cannot be obtained, at any time (between 9.00 a.m. and sunset) after 24 hours’ notice of the proposed exercise of the power has been given to the occupier of the premises. The holder of this certificate is not empowered to enter such part of any building as is used for residential purposes, or any moveable dwelling, otherwise than with the consent of the occupier of the building or dwelling or under a search warrant. SWIMMING POOLS REGULATION 2008 - NOTES Historical notes The following abbreviations are used in the Historical notes: ______________________________________________________________________ |______________________________________________________________________| |______________________________________________________________________| |______________________________________________________________________| |______________________________________________________________________| |______________________________________________________________________| |______________________________________________________________________| |______________________________________________________________________| Table of amending instrumentsSwimming Pools Regulation 2008 (399). GG No 106 of 29.8.2008, p 8832. Date of commencement, 1.9.2008, cl 2. This Regulation has been amended as follows: __________________________________________________________________________ | | |Statute Law (Miscellaneous | |2008|No 114|Provisions) Act (No 2) 2008. Assented to 10.12.2008. | | | | | |__________________________________________________________________________| | | |Swimming Pools Amendment (Penalty Notice Offences) Regulation | |2010|(121) |2010. LW 9.4.2010. | | | | | |__________________________________________________________________________| | | |Swimming Pools Amendment Regulation 2011. LW 3.3.2011. | |2011|(174) | | |__________________________________________________________________________| Table of amendments __________________________________________ |__________________________________________| |__________________________________________| |__________________________________________| |__________________________________________| |__________________________________________| |__________________________________________| |__________________________________________| |__________________________________________|