If your building work requires any part of a public access way or area of Council property to be fenced off, you'll need a hoarding permit.
Hoardings and barricades are usually required to be installed around building sites to protect the public and to secure the site when unattended.
You might still need a hoarding permit even when you don't need a building permit or where work is not 'building work' (for example, painting not associated with a building project).
It's the responsibility of the relevant building surveyor, in accordance with the Building Regulations to:
- decide when precautions are required through the project
- seek details of precautions from the designer or builder
- approve the suitability of those precautions
- apply for report and consent pursuant to Regulation 116 of the Building Regulations (see apply for a hoarding permit for more information).
A hoarding permit is required when building works will be close to or on the title boundary, and an area outside of the title boundary is required to construct the building. It is only required for building works that need a building permit, at the request of the Relevant Building Surveyor. To apply, you will require the following:
- Hoarding permit application form (Regulation 116 – Siting of Public Protection for works requiring a Building Permit).
- Relevant fees - See Building Services Fee Schedule(PDF, 174KB)
- A detailed traffic management plan (scale 1:200) showing the dimensions of the footpath or road that will be occupied and any pedestrian or traffic advisory signs or devices that are required.
- An indication of the height and type of hoarding to be erected (preferred minimum height is 1.8 m), and the sectional detail showing the methods of support to ensure lateral stability.
- Start and finish dates which must be clearly stated and adhered to.
- A letter from the relevant building surveyor of the project giving approval to the proposed method of public protection.
- Evidence of a public liability insurance policy with the minimum required coverage of $20,000,000.
- If the hoarding relates to building works, also submit a completed 116 - Application for siting of public protection for works requiring a building permit.
Download a Hoarding Permit application form:
Regulation 116 – Siting of Public Protection for works requiring a Building Permit(PDF, 128KB)
Regulation 116 – Siting of Public Protection for works requiring a Building Permit - accessible(DOCX, 468KB)
The applicant must also:
- maintain a minimum clearance of 1.5 m next to the border of the hoarding, to allow safe pedestrian movement
- ensure that no part of the hoarding/barricade supports (feet/blocks) are allowed to intrude beyond the face of the hoarding
- pay the application fee.
- In some circumstances, other access arrangements will need to be made for pedestrians. In these situations a detailed plan (scale 1:200) showing the alternative pedestrian path will need to be approved by us.
- Ensure that Council assets, such as footpath, kerb, channel and nature strip are not damaged throughout the works.
In assessing hoarding applications, our team will refer to our engineering team to check suitability against likely risks and the impact on pedestrians, traffic movement and services.