Fire Safety Assessment
The Fire Safety Assessment (FSA) class of FPAS accreditation
accredits individuals who undertake assessment of the performance
capability of fire safety measures (FSMs) for the purpose of
informing an annual or supplementary fire safety statement.
This class of accreditation has been designed to address the
requirements for certain fire protection work in New South Wales to
be carried out by an "Accredited Practitioner (Fire Safety)", under
the state's 2017 fire safety reforms.
Scope of the role
The role of the Fire Safety Assessor is to satisfy the
Accredited Practitioner (Fire Safety) aspects of Part 9 Division 5
of the EP&A Regulation to:
- Identify the standard of performance to which FSMs are required
to operate and perform;
- Assess (inspect and verify) that FSMs are operating and
performing as required;
- Inspect exits and paths of travel to exit to ensure there is no
offence under the Regulation (as applicable); and
- Complete the APFS aspects of the approved Fire Safety Statement
Form for Annual or Supplementary Fire Safety Statements.
A more detailed description of the Fire Safety Assessment role
commensurate with the requirements of the EP&A Regulation and
validated via the FPAS accreditation process is expressed in
section 4.9 of the NSW Competent Fire Safety Practitioner
document, available here.
This assessment and inspection role is to satisfy
clause 175 of the
Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment Regulation
2000 (the Regulation).
Transitional
Accredition
From 1 July, 2021, the Transitional
Accreditation pathway for NSW Fire Safety Assessment
closed and all new applicants must meet the Qualified
Accreditation requirements.
Practitioners who hold a Transitional Accreditation for
NSW Fire Safety Assessment will have a period of four
years dating either from the day they were accredited or 1 July,
2020, whichever is the later to meet the Qualified criteria, as
detailed in the Fire Protection Accreditation Scheme (FPAS).
If you have questions regarding your transtional accrediation,
please contact the team via fpas@fpaa.com.au.
Qualified Accreditation
The Qualified pathway requires applicants to hold a relevant
nationally recognised qualification aligned to the Fire Safety
Measures they wish to apply for. There are 5 key requirements to
meet the Qualified Criteria:
- Qualification
- Units of Competency
- Experience
- Assessment
- Insurance
Qualified Accreditation applications are now open; please refer
to the online
Qualified FSA Accreditation Application.
FSA
Qualification Pre-Check
Qualification Pre-Check has been created to assist new and
existing practitioners identify any gaps in their Qualified
Application before applying for the Fire Safety Assessment
accreditation. Complete this form and return to fpas@fpaa.com.au.
Insurance
The Fire Protection Accreditation Scheme (FPAS) requires accredited
individuals to be appropriately covered by insurance for the fire
protection services they undertake.
Further information about the insurance requirements can be
found in the Scheme.
If you have more questions, visit the Insurance
FAQ page.
Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
Practitioners accredited under FPAS are required to undertake
continuing professional development (CPD) in order to maintain
their accreditation. This ensures that these practitioners can keep
their knowledge and skills relevant and up-to-date.
It is a condition of accreditation for individuals to attain 20
CPD points per year, which can be met in a variety of ways.
Practitioners will not be able to renew their accreditation each
year without providing evidence to FPA Australia that they have met
the required threshold.
More information
relating to CPD can be found here.
Advice
Any questions relating to Registered Training Organisations
(RTO's) for FPA Australia must be directed to training@fpaa.com.au
The FPA Australia Accreditation Team are not an RTO, and as such
are unable to provide advice regarding qualifications, units of
competency or costs associated with obtaining these.