Members of the Australian Childcare Alliance (ACA) NSW will recall our concerns raised last year about imposing fire sprinklers on all ECEC services given their futility for those on the ground and first floors. The Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB)'s proposal was subsequently withdrawn for ground and first floor buildings but continued for those proposed in high-rise buildings.

Given our collective concern about the risk to children and staff in ECEC services in highrise buildings, especially for how quickly and safely can they be evacuated (along with everyone else in the building) as well as where can they be safely evacuated to (where large numbers of people might not be gathering), the ABCB is continuing on its work with the latest round of consultation seeking input about the "definition(s) for building complexities".

The public consultation will close at 11.59 pm AEDT, Sunday, 1 November 2020. Background information and where you can submit your feedback is available via here.

At the time of writing this, ACA NSW has had monthly discussions with senior officers at the NSW Department of Education. They have indicated that the NSW Department of Education has not yet provided any input to the Building Ministers Forum or to the NSW Minister for Better Regulation (the Hon Kevin Anderson MP) who are responding to the rising safety concerns of people in highrise buildings. (Please note that ACA NSW has also been engaging with Minister Anderson in parallel.)

Should members require any further information/clarification, please do not hesitate to contact ACA NSW on 1300 556 330 or nsw@childcarealliance.org.au. 

PUBLISHED: 6 OCTOBER 2020