Premises and buildings
A registered non-government school's premises and buildings must be satisfactory.
The premises and buildings of a registered non-government school must comply with:
- relevant council and government requirements
- occupational health and safety legislation and subordinate legislation
- environmental and land use guidelines.
In NSW, buildings need to meet the building standards operational at the time of the approval to build. In 1997, all states and territories gave the Building Code of Australia (BCA) the status of building regulations. The BCA contains technical provisions for the design and construction of buildings and other structures and covers such matters as fire resistance, access and egress, services and equipment and aspects of health and amenity.
While the BCA applies to new buildings, proprietors and principals (or equivalent) of schools have a common law responsibility to ensure that older buildings are safe for educational purposes. In a dispute regarding the safety or appropriateness of a building, guidance is often sought by referring to the BCA. For older buildings, it is therefore advisable for the proprietor and principal (or equivalent) of a school to refer to local government requirements with respect to compliance with the relevant sections of the BCA.
Registered schools must be able to provide assurance that the premises and buildings are satisfactory throughout any registration period.
Evidence of compliance
A registered non-government school must:
- maintain written evidence that any school premises and/or buildings first occupied after 2003 comply with all legislation relevant at the time of occupation
- maintain written evidence that any school premises and/or buildings that are the subject of a development application after 2003 comply with all legislation relevant at the time of occupation
- have policies to assess and monitor the current standard and state of repair of the school's premises and buildings, making reference to current building requirements
- maintain details of annual fire safety assessments which comply with Part 9 Division 5 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2000.
- confirm that it has policies and procedures to meet the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 in terms of the school's buildings and premises