Is a BASIX Certificate required for a Group Home?
Well yes & no (glad that clears it up)! it depends on your Certifier, hence they are more than likely going to require one.
The BASIX website provides the following advice Alternative assessment – Large boarding house | Planning Portal – Department of Planning and Environment (nsw.gov.au). This states a boarding house or more than 12 people or more than 300m2 is NOT a Basix development.
You will note that BASIX refers to the Environmental Planning & Assessment Regulation.
The EP&A Regulation does not specifically refer to a Group Home.
Under the BCA a group home is a Class 3 building i.e. boarding house (unrelated people).
BASIX advises specifically for boarding houses (but doesn’t use the terminology class 3).
The EP&A Regulation uses the terminology hotel, motel, boarding house, hostel or co-living housing and then adds the BCA conditions of more than 12 people or more than 300m2.
Good luck!
it will come down to the individual Certifier and the interpretation of group home verse co-living housing.
Co-living housing
Co-living housing was introduced to the NSW planning system when the Housing SEPP was made in November 2021.
Under the Housing SEPP, the definition of co?living housing:
- is subject to similar built-form development standards as boarding houses
- must provide a primary place of residence for all occupants – it may not be used for short-term tourist and visitor accommodation
- may have as few as 6 private rooms (but most co-living housing developments will typically have about 30 to 40 private rooms)
- must provide indoor and outdoor communal space for residents to relax and socialise
- must have a manager, who will be responsible for implementing the plan of management for the property. The manager does not have to be always on site but must be contactable by phone 24/7.
Sounds like a group home to me, but hey some will interpret it differently!