Falls in NSW housing construction: a small building still needs a serious safety plan
A one-storey building does not make a fall harmless. Workers can fall from ladders, through an unfinished floor, into a stairwell or service pit, or from a roof edge. Preventing those incidents means planning the construction sequence and protection before people are exposed, not relying on a warning to “be careful”.
SafeWork NSW’s Managing the risk of falls in housing construction code gives detailed guidance for the housing work within its scope. This article explains what clients, workers and representatives should look for. It is not a scaffold design, roof-construction procedure or instruction for installing fall-protection equipment.
First, establish whether this is the right code
The August 2019 code covers construction or extension of specified housing: detached houses, attached dwellings separated by fire-resisting walls, certain small boarding or guest houses and hostels, and associated buildings such as private garages and carports.
Its scope excludes building maintenance or renovation and multistorey buildings above two habitable storeys. It is not complete guidance for roof dismantling or demolition. Read it alongside the general falls and construction codes.
That distinction matters for public or community housing projects. It also matters when an organisation commissions staff accommodation. Do not apply a housing example to a correctional building or another structure without first establishing the applicable scope and risks.
The duty does not begin at two metres
The obligation is to manage a fall from one level to another where injury is reasonably likely. A lower fall can still cause serious harm.
Construction work involving a risk of falling more than two metres is one category of high-risk construction work requiring a safe work method statement. That threshold is not permission to leave lower edges, holes or ladders uncontrolled, and other high-risk categories may apply independently.
Choose prevention before relying on a personal system
Work should be done on the ground or on a suitable solid construction where reasonably practicable. If the risk cannot be eliminated that way, follow the required order of protection: fall prevention devices, then work positioning where the higher option is not reasonably practicable, then fall arrest where the higher options are not reasonably practicable. A combination may be needed.
A solid construction means more than a sheet that feels firm. It needs adequate structural capacity, protected edges and openings, a suitable surface and safe access and exit.
Examples of planning decisions include prefabricating components at ground level where practicable, arranging suitable working platforms, and coordinating protection before the next trade arrives. Signs, sequencing and supervision support the controls. They are not a reason to choose a less protective arrangement simply because it is cheaper.
Watch the internal openings
Perimeter scaffolding does not protect every internal hazard. Stairwells, atriums, incomplete floors and other voids need their own protection.
The code points out a less obvious problem: a worker on a ladder or an unguarded raised platform near a void might fall over an existing guardrail. Protection that works at floor level may not be sufficient for that task. Have a competent person assess the actual working position, not just the presence of a rail.
Covers and temporary floors need adequate strength and secure support. Workers should not remove them to make another task easier without an authorised arrangement that maintains protection.
Check scaffolds and equipment, not just paperwork
Ask whether the platform is suited to the work and combined loads, who installed it, and who is responsible for inspections and any required handover. Relevant scaffolding work requires appropriately licensed workers. Damaged, incomplete or unauthorisedly altered scaffolds must not become the next trade’s work platform.
An elevating work platform brings its own hazards, including electrical contact, overturning and crushing. Use the current NSW EWP code and equipment-specific requirements rather than treating an older housing illustration as a complete operating procedure.
Ladders should be considered only after safer alternatives. A short task and a low height do not remove the need to choose suitable equipment, train the worker and assess the task and surroundings.
Fall arrest has particular limits in housing
The code explains that individual fall-arrest systems have limited application in housing construction. A worker may strike the ground or another structure before a system can stop the fall, and partially completed timber structures may not provide suitable anchorages.
Do not assume that supplying a harness resolves these questions. A competent specialist must establish suitability of the complete system, and emergency and rescue procedures must be established and tested. Never improvise an anchorage or copy a generic clearance figure into a site plan.
Coordinate the changing site
Housing construction changes quickly. The removal of a temporary platform, a new opening, a delivery, a change of trade or poor weather can invalidate yesterday’s arrangements.
The builder and relevant contractors must consult, cooperate and coordinate where they share duties. Consult workers and involve their health and safety representatives as required. Make sure people know who can authorise changes and how to report a missing barrier or unsafe access route.
A practical pre-start discussion asks:
Which edges, voids and access routes will this task expose?
What protection will be in place before the task starts?
Could another trade remove, overload or interfere with it?
Who verifies competence, inspections and any necessary handovers?
What change triggers reassessment, and what is the emergency response?
An apprentice or visiting worker should not be expected to work out the answers while already exposed to the fall.
Use the full code with current law
The PDF is dated August 2019; the NSW code originally commenced on 18 July 2014. Its older legislative and technical-standard references must be checked against current requirements, including the WHS Regulation 2025. Since 1 July 2026, section 26A of the NSW WHS Act requires an applicable approved code to be followed, or another method providing an equivalent or higher health and safety standard.
The code contains detailed construction examples and a timber-scaffold appendix. Those are not a substitute for competent design, current standards, manufacturer instructions and a safe system for the particular job. This overview intentionally does not reproduce construction dimensions or operational roof procedures.
Source checked 13 November 2026. Original commentary based on SafeWork NSW, Managing the risk of falls in housing construction, August 2019, including chapters 1–10 and appendices A–C. The official PDF carries a CC BY-NC 3.0 Australia licence, excluding the NSW Government logo, and a non-commercial reproduction notice. We link to the official document rather than reproduce it here. This is general safety information, not legal advice or a site-specific work method.
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