A little known safety requirement

[Tamara (Homes Down Under)]

I know that many of our councils have different requirement but I bet that not many people knew about this...

 

There are hundreds of small pools sold every year

I worry about my own grandchildren getting access to the small pool in their backyard.

 

 

Wading pool got 30cm of water? You need development approval

 

January 11, 2016 12:18pmDan Jervis-BardyEastern Courier Messenger

 

 

Got a blow up pool in your backyard? It might pay to check with your local council to make sure you don’t need planning approval to have it there.RESIDENTS are risking $500 fines by setting up blow-up pools in their backyards this summer, under a little-known State Government regulation aimed at preventing children from drowning.

Campbelltown Council last month posted a notice to its website reminding residents they needed development approval to install inflatable pools.

It came after the council received “several inquiries” from residents about the increasingly popular pools.

 

The regulation — included a decade ago in the state’s Development Act — applies to any pool that can be filled to a depth of 30cm, or has a filter system.

Development applications cost a minimum of $354 and take three to six weeks to process.

Prices for blow-up pools requiring council approval range from $55 to $160, according to an Eastern Courier Messenger survey of major retailers, including Target and Big W.

 

 

Local councils, Kid Safe SA and the State Government this week supported the regulation, saying it triggered a requirement for the pools to undergo a council safety inspection.

The councils’ support came despite only Campbelltown having received any applications for blow-up backyard pools in the past two years.

Campbelltown acting chief executive Michelle Hammond said the council had received “probably less than 10” applications in that period.

No local council had handed out a $500 fine — which would only be issued if the resident did not comply with a request to remove the pool — in the past two years.

Ms Hammond said the reminder was posted on Campbelltown’s website after “several” inquiries from residents about putting inflatable pools in their backyard.

“Most people are unaware of the requirement,” Ms Hammond said.

 

Burnside Council community services general manager Louise Miller-Frost said the regulation was about ensuring pools were safe for children.

Ms Miller-Frost said if the council was alerted to breaches, it would encourage the resident to lower the water level in the pool, or deflate it, before issuing a fine.

Unley Mayor Lachlan Clyne said it was important parents understood that inflatable swimming pools posed “a very real, life-threatening risk to young children”.

A Planning Department spokesman said the regulation “existed to save lives”.

He said it was designed to apply to pools that would be filled with water and used for extended periods.

Independent MLC John Darley, who has long been outspoken on the need to cut government red-tape, labelled the approval requirement “ridiculous”.

He called for the minimum $354 development application fee to be brought in line with the cost of the pool.

Kids Safe SA chief executive Holly Fitzgerald called on every council to alert residents about the requirement.

“These pools are so cheap and readily available these days, so it is increasingly important to make sure that they get a safety inspection,” Ms Fitzgerald said.

“It only takes 5cm of water and a few seconds for a child to drown.

[notpom]

I know that many of our councils have different requirement but I bet that not many people knew about this...

 

There are hundreds of small pools sold every year

I worry about my own grandchildren getting access to the small pool in their backyard.

 

Thanks for the info Tamara.

 

Councils (and Governments of all levels) apparently are in the business to turn the society in a blanket dob-in culture.

 

I propose that DA must be introduced for installing the kettle in your kitchen. With fencing requirements. Otherwise children may scold themselves. Same goes for kitchen stoves.

 

As to me, I know of the most effective safety device for kids. It is called "mother".

 

And responsible mothers pour a mug of water when they bath their newborns. This way kids are taught to hold the breath and it is first step to teach newborns to dive.

 

As to me, it would have been much better if Governments turn their attention to that parents who drink alcohol, consume drugs and engage in violent acts when kids watching.