accessible means having features to enable use by people with a disability.
accessway means a continuous accessible path of travel (as defined in AS 1428.1) to, into or within a building.
aged care building means a Class 9c building for residential accommodation of aged persons who, due to varying degrees of incapacity associated with the ageing process, are provided with personal care services and 24‑hour staff assistance to evacuate the building during an emergency.
assembly building means a building where people may assemble for —
(a) civic, theatrical, social, political or religious purposes, including a library, theatre, public hall or place of worship; or
(b) educational purposes in a school, early childhood centre, preschool, or the like; or
(c) entertainment, recreational or sporting purposes, including —
(i) a discotheque, nightclub or a bar area of a hotel or motel providing live entertainment or containing a dance floor; or
(ii) a cinema; or
(iii) a sports stadium, sporting or other club; or
(d) transit purposes, including a bus station, railway station, airport or ferry terminal.
atrium has the same meaning as in the BCA.
BCA means the Building Code of Australia 2019.
carpark means a building that is used for the parking of motor vehicles but is neither a private garage nor used for the servicing of vehicles, other than washing, cleaning or polishing.
drainage means any sanitary drainage, liquid trade waste drainage or stormwater drainage system.
early childhood centre means any premises, or part thereof, providing or intending to provide a centre-based education and care service within the meaning of the Education and Care Services National Law Act 2010 (Vic), the Education and Care Services National Regulations (NSW) and centre-based services that are licensed or approved under State and Territory children’s services law, but excludes education and care primarily provided to school aged children in outside school hours settings.
Note: In 2020, the Education and Care Services National Law Act 2010 (Vic) could be accessed from www.legislation.vic.gov.au and the Education and Care Services National Regulations (NSW) could be accessed from .
electric passenger lift means a power-operated lift for raising or lowering people in a car in which the motion of the car is obtained from an electric motor mechanically coupled to the hoisting mechanism.
electrohydraulic passenger lift means a power-operated lift for raising or lowering people in a car in which the motion of the car is obtained from the action of liquid under pressure acting on a piston or ram, the pressure being generated by a pump driven by an individual electric motor.
exit has the same meaning as in the BCA.
fire‑isolated ramp means a ramp within a fire‑resisting enclosure which provides egress from a storey.
fire‑isolated stairway means a stairway within a fire‑resisting shaft and includes the floor and roof or top enclosing structure.
fire safety system means one or any combination of the methods used in a building to:
(a) warn people of an emergency; or
(b) provide for safe evacuation; or
(c) restrict the spread of fire; or
(d) extinguish a fire;
and includes both active and passive systems.
floor area means:
(a) in relation to a building — the total area of all storeys; and
(b) in relation to a storey — the area of all floors of that storey measured over the enclosing walls, and includes:
(i) the area of a mezzanine within the storey, measured within the finished surfaces of any external walls; and
(ii) the area occupied by any internal walls or partitions, any cupboard, or other built‑in furniture, fixture or fitting; and
(iii) if there is no enclosing wall, an area which has a use that:
(A) contributes to the fire load; or
(B) impacts on the safety, health or amenity of the occupants in relation to the provisions of the BCA; and
(c) in relation to a room — the area of the room measured within the finished surfaces of the walls, and includes the area occupied by any cupboard or other built‑in furniture, fixture or fitting; and
(d) in relation to a fire compartment — the total area of all floors within the fire compartment measured within the finished surfaces of the bounding construction, and if there is no bounding construction, includes an area which has a use which contributes to the fire load; and
(e) in relation to an atrium — the total area of all floors within the atrium measured within the finished surfaces of the bounding construction and if no bounding construction, within the external walls.
health‑care building means a building whose occupants or patients undergoing medical treatment generally need physical assistance to evacuate the building during an emergency and includes:
(a) a public or private hospital; or
(b) a nursing home or similar facility for sick or disabled persons needing full‑time nursing care; or
(c) a clinic, day surgery or procedure unit where the effects of the predominant treatment administered involve patients becoming non‑ambulatory and requiring supervised medical care on the premises for some time after the treatment.
heated water means water that has been intentionally heated. It is normally referred to as hot water or warm water.
inclined lift means a power-operated device for raising or lowering people within a carriage that has one or more rigid guides on an inclined plane.
luminance contrast means the light reflected from one surface or component, compared to the light reflected from another surface or component.
low-rise, low-speed constant pressure lift means a power-operated low-rise, low-speed device for raising or lowering people with limited mobility on a carriage that is controlled by the application of constant pressure to a control.
low-rise platform lift means a power-operated device for raising or lowering people with limited mobility on a platform, that is controlled automatically or by the application of constant pressure to a control.
mezzanine means an intermediate floor within a room.
NCC means the National Construction Code 2019.
Note: In 2020, the National Construction Code 2019 could be accessed from www.ncc.abcb.gov.au.
performance requirement means a requirement which states the level of performance which a Performance Solution or Deemed-to-Satisfy Solution must meet.
private bushfire shelter means a structure associated with, but not attached to, or part of a Class 1a dwelling that may, as a last resort, provide shelter for occupants from immediate life threatening effects of a bushfire.
private garage means:
(a) any garage associated with a Class 1 building; or
(b) any single storey of a building of another Class capable of accommodating not more than 3 vehicles, if there is only one such storey in the building; or
(c) any separate single storey garage associated with another building where such garage is capable of accommodating not more than 3 vehicles.
required means required to satisfy a Performance Requirement or a Deemed‑to‑Satisfy Provision of the Access Code as appropriate.
residential aged care building means a building whose residents, due to their incapacity associated with the ageing process, are provided with physical assistance in conducting their daily activities and to evacuate the building during an emergency.
sanitary compartment means a room or space containing a closet pan or urinal.
school includes a primary or secondary school, college, university or similar educational establishment.
small-sized, low-speed automatic lift means a restricted use power-operated device for the infrequent raising or lowering of people with limited mobility on a platform that is controlled automatically but has the capability of being electrically isolated by a key-lockable control.
sole‑occupancy unit (SOU) means a room or other part of a building for occupation by one or joint owner, lessee tenant, or other occupier to the exclusion of any other owner, lessee, tenant, or other occupier and includes:
(a) a dwelling; or
(b) a room or suite of rooms in a Class 3 building which includes sleeping facilities; or
(c) a room or suite of associated rooms in a Class 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9 building; or
(d) a room or suite of associated rooms in a Class 9c building, which includes sleeping facilities and any area for the exclusive use of a resident.
stairway platform lift means a power-operated device for raising or lowering people with limited mobility on a platform (with or without a chair) in the direction of a stairway.
storey has the same meaning as in the BCA.
swimming pool means any excavation or structure containing water and principally used, or that is designed, manufactured or adapted to be principally used for swimming, wading, paddling, or the like, including a bathing or wading pool, or spa.