Essential Safety Provisions
Essential safety provisions (ESPs) are required to be installed in all commercial buildings including industrial sites, multi-unit residential buildings, and boarding houses and, by law, must be regularly maintained.
Note: They do not apply to domestic homes or smaller outbuildings
Examples of ESPs
ESPs include a range of fire and life safety measures and systems that help protect both the building and its occupants. These include (but are not limited to):
- Portable fire extinguishers
- Fire doors
- Fire detection and alarm systems
- Fire hydrants
- Exit signs
- Kitchen exhaust systems
- Fire dampers in ventilation systems
- Microbiological controls (such as cooling towers and warm water systems)
- Emergency and stretcher-accessible lifts
Proper maintenance and regular testing of these systems are critical to preventing and slowing the spread of fire and supporting safe, timely evacuation during a fire or emergency.
To see the complete and current list of ESPs which can apply to a building, visit Ministerial Building Standard MBS 002 - Maintaining the performance of essential safety provisions.
Maintaining the performance of ESPs
If your building has, or requires, ESPs, there should be formal records showing which ones apply. These records are based on and part of the building’s development approvals over time.
You’ll usually find this information in one or both of these documents:
- Form 1 – Schedule of Essential Safety Provisions (used today)
- Part 59 Fire Safety Log Book (used before the early 1990s, mostly for older, less developed buildings)
These documents list all the safety features that are required, planned for installation, or already installed in the building. They also outline how each one should be installed and maintained.
All ESPs must be checked and serviced regularly to at least the standard that was required when the ESP was first installed. This is confirmed on the Form 3 – ESP Maintenance Certificate.
Unless your building is exempt (see Exemptions below), you must complete and send the Form 3 to Council within 60 business days after the end of each calendar year. This verifies that the testing and maintenance were done – for that calendar year.
The current Form 3 template is the official document required to verify annual maintenance, per Regulation 94 of the Planning, Development and Infrastructure (General) Regulations 2017.
You can download the Form 3 from the PlanSA website.
By adhering to these maintenance requirements, you are not only complying with legislation but also ensuring the safety of your building and more importantly the people who occupy it.
Failure to comply and enforcement
Failing to meet the legal requirements for ESPs is an offence under South Australian law.
These obligations are enforceable by Council where necessary. In particular, failure to return a properly completed Form 3 within the required timeframe may lead to fines or legal action. In serious cases, Council may revoke a Certificate of Occupancy or order the evacuation of the building.
Penalties
Fines range from on-the-spot expiation notices of $500–$750, up to a maximum penalty of $10,000 if prosecuted.
Specific penalties include:
| Offence | Fine |
|---|---|
| Failure to submit a completed Form 3 within 60 business days of the end of the calendar year | $750.00 |
| Failure to maintain ESPs | $750.00 |
| Failure to produce maintenance records within 48 hours of a request | $500.00 |
Beyond Council enforcement, neglecting ESP obligations can also affect insurance coverage and may leave the building owner legally liable in the event of a fire or emergency.
Exemptions
Building owners are always responsible for maintaining their ESPs to the required standards. However, they may be exempt from submitting proof of that maintenance (a completed Form 3) to Council in either of the following cases, as outlined in the regulations:
- if the building is a Class 1a or 10 building under the National Construction Code (NCC) – i.e. domestic housing and smaller outbuildings and structures where ESPs do not apply;
- if the building is a Class 1b building under the NCC – i.e. smaller boarding houses where fewer ESPs apply (therefore considered lower risk);
- if the building is a Class 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9b building under the NCC that does not have a rise in storeys exceeding 2 (see FAQs for definition) and does not have a total floor area exceeding 500m2 – i.e. smaller commercial/industrial buildings including residential where fewer ESPs apply (therefore considered lower risk).
(Note that a Class 2, 9a, or 9c building is not exempt under any circumstance.)
Even if your building qualifies for an exemption, Council may still require the return of a completed Form 3 if:
- the ESPs were installed under a condition of approval or as part of a performance solution under the NCC; or
- the building has been the subject of a fire safety defect notice.
Not sure what applies to your building? Please contact us – we are here to help you meet your obligations.
Need more information?
For assistance with maintaining your building's ESPs or submitting a Form 3, please don’t hesitate to contact the City of Adelaide’s Building Compliance Team:
Frequently asked questions
The building owner is ultimately legally responsible for both ESP maintenance and supplying Council with an adequately completed Form 3 each year. This applies regardless of whether the owner is an individual, a group of individuals, a company, or a strata/community corporation.
Any internal agreements or disputes between the owner and tenants, property managers, or contractors are not the concern of Council and are irrelevant – for if enforcement action is required, it will always be directed to the building owner.
It depends on the types of ESPs required for the building, but generally you will require the services of licensed contractors specialising in the relevant essential safety provisions or trades to undertake installation and or maintenance. These contractors include:
- Fire technicians and plumbers;
- Electricians;
- Mechanical/HVAC (air handling) technicians;
- Water treatment/microbiological technicians;
- Lift technicians; and
- General builders.
Some ESPs require less specialised technical expertise or trade qualification and can be signed off/maintained by competent persons with the appropriate knowledge such as:
- Building surveyors;
- Registered architects; and
- Property managers, owners, tenants with appropriate training and skills.
Many companies specialise in multiple trades (mainly fire and electrical testing and maintenance) and can offer a maintenance service that covers most of the items on a Form 3.
Also please note that the contractor who maintains the ESP(s) can be different from the contractor who installed the ESP(s). Conversely, if new ESPs are required to be installed, then the installation contractor can be different from the maintenance contractor.
Unless the building is very old and hasn’t been developed or altered, then there should be a record(s) of ESPs for that building stored with Council, in the first instance. However, all building owners should be keeping a record of developments (Development Approvals) that occur to and within their buildings and a copy of the associated ESP schedule(s) (Form 1s and 3s) that accompany those developments.
The Forms can then be given to contractors as a reference to undertake maintenance against.
The City of Adelaide is also endeavouring to assist with and streamline this process to make it easier for both building owners and Council by consolidating a building’s ESP information across multiple records or Forms into one single master Form 3 document (in the current, legislated format and to the most relevant standard) to give to owners as an up-to-date reference. However, please note that this process will be undertaken systematically and over a number of years. So, if you have not received notice from Council yet, then you will still be required to submit maintenance, but with the information on hand at the time.
The City of Adelaide is endeavouring to assist with and streamline ESP information and maintenance to make it easier for both building owners and Council by consolidating a building’s ESP information across multiple records or Forms into one single master Form 3 document (in the current format and to the most relevant standard) to give to owners as an up-to-date reference.
However, please note that this process will be undertaken systematically and over a number of years. So, if you have not received notice from Council yet, then you will still be required to submit maintenance, but with the information on hand at the time. This may mean multiple Form 3s (with some ESPs repeated), which need to be referenced to determine the full list of ESPs required to be maintained and to the most relevant standard.
Yes. The Form 3 is required to be signed by both the building owner, or the owner’s delegate (representative/property manager), and the person(s) who performed the routine maintenance of the ESPs listed in Table 3.1 on the Form.
If more than one party performed the routine maintenance, then a separate Form 3 should be submitted from each, with the items that don’t apply struck out.
Similarly, if only common areas and or base building items are contractually maintained by the owner, then ultimately it is still the owner’s responsibility to ensure that all ESP maintenance (for the whole building) is undertaken and that separate Form 3s are completed and returned to reflect maintenance of each common area/base building item as well as each tenancy.
So, whilst you are allowed to submit to Council multiple Form 3s for the same building, please ensure that they are clearly labelled (to identify areas of the building) for ease of reference.
Legally, the minimum number and type of ESPs required for a building is determined by the relevant authority (a council or private building certifier) and then issued as a schedule to the applicant/owner as part of a formal Development Approval. Additional items installed to the building that are not listed in the schedule(s) may not legally be required or may be surplus to ESP requirements. Therefore, they may be at the owner’s discretion as to whether they be maintained or decommissioned/removed – provided they don’t impact on those ESPs listed that are required to be in the building and provided they weren’t an oversight by the relevant authority during the approval process.
Additional ESPs onsite can also mean that unapproved development was undertaken and required the installation of additional provisions to ensure safety.
Conversely, having a shortfall of ESPs installed compared to what’s in the approved schedule is cause for concern and the deficiency must be addressed – the missing items must be installed and maintained.
Please note that retrospective development applications may be required to formalise any changes onsite and amend the ESP schedule.
In any case, if there is a discrepancy between what’s installed or being maintained onsite and what should be installed and maintained, then please contact us as soon as possible to discuss your situation.
Currently, the legislation allows all ESPs, listed either on the Form 1 and 3 or in the Part 59 Log Book, to be maintained to at least the standard that was required when the ESP was installed – which in a lot of cases is an older standard, albeit still applicable.
So being on, or maintaining to, a Log Book (or pre Log Book) generally means that the building is quite old and undeveloped and there is neither an existing Form 3 template under that system to complete and return, nor is it easy to transfer the relevant information from a Log Book onto the current Form 3 template.
Therefore, while it is acceptable to continue to maintain to a Log Book, you must ensure that you are maintaining to and not deviating from that standard and produce evidence as such. Any change or upgrade to the existing/approved ESP maintenance standard (at the time of installation) must be formally documented and approved by Council.
However, considering the age and more rigorous maintenance requirements of a Log Book, you are encouraged to review your building’s ESP assets and consider formally upgrading to the latest maintenance standard – which would also mean migration from the Log Book to a new and easier Form 1 and 3.
Lastly, if there is a scenario where perhaps your building ESP maintenance predates a Log Book – in which case there may be no formal standard to maintain to – then evidence of maintenance must still be provided, and further conversations will need to be had with Council moving forward to discuss the likely possibility of upgrading to the latest maintenance standard.
We at City of Adelaide will always work with you in the first instance to ensure that you meet your ESP obligations, provided that you are making a concerted effort to maintain your ESPs and are being open and honest about your situation.
We understand that circumstances can arise which may make it difficult for you to complete your routine maintenance on time, and so we encourage you to complete the Form 3 as best you can and return something (partially completed) with a reasonable explanation rather than nothing at all.
Communication is key and can avoid you being slapped with an unexpected and unnecessary fine.
Rise in storeys is defined in the National Construction Code and is essentially the number of storeys of a building above the finished ground level (FGL). The simplest example being a conventional square or rectangular multistorey building built on a level site or ground surface and with no basement or mezzanine levels.
However, there are caveats to the above and scenarios where it may be more difficult to determine the rise in storeys – for example, a sloping site, a storey situated partly below and above FGL, or a building(s) separated by a fire wall.
It is always best to check with us if you are unsure of the rise in storeys or own/manage a complex building.