Planning & Development

Exempt and Complying Development

Since January 2000, small scale development, primarily residential in nature, has either been Exempt Development (ie: does not require Council approval) or has been able to be certified, or approved, by way of Complying Development provisions of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act, as an alternative to the lodgement of a formal Development Application and Construction Certificate. Complying Development is essentially work carried out to a defined set of standards (eg: height limits, floor space ratio, distances to boundaries, compliance with the Building Code of Australia) which may be certified by either Council or a privately accredited certifier.

The NSW State Government has gazetted a State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP), effective from 27 February 2009, which provides for approval of residential developments including detached single and double storey dwellings, home extensions and other ancillary development on lots of greater than 450m² as Complying Development with either council or accredited certifier sign-off. This portion of the SEPP is commonly referred to as the NSW Housing Code. The SEPP also outlines 41 types of minor residential developments (eg: decks, bbqs, pergolas) which may be constructed without any planning approval. A copy of a consolidated list of Exempt Development under both the SEPP and Blacktown Local Environmental Plan 1988 (BLEP) is available here:  Exempt Development Summary

The SEPP, and Housing Code particularly, is the first stage of a series of similar documents, which will also encompass industrial, commercial, retail and medium density residential use.

A copy of Council's Complying Development provisions under the BLEP are available here:  Complying Development Criteria . These provisions will run in parallel with those of the SEPP until February 2010, when the SEPP will become the sole approval document for Complying Development. Until February 2010, applicants for Complying Development approval must identify which of these provisions they wish their development to be considered under. Council's Complying Development application form is available here:  Complying Development Certificate Application

For full details of the implementation of the SEPP and Housing Code, please visit the NSW Department of Planning website