Company Profile

Southern Sydney Building Certifiers (SSBC), previously known as Sutherland Shire Certification Services, has been a business enterprise of Sutherland Shire Council since 1999 and now provides its services throughout southern Sydney and Wollongong.

The service was established as a consequence of the amendment to the Environment and Assessment Act, 1998. These amendments introduced the principles of private certification and the ability of privately accredited certifiers to issue certificates which were previously only able to be issued by Councils.

Sutherland Shire Council, at the time, identified the need to formally separate the roles of the consent and certifying authority and to implement a certification unit at arms length from the development assessment service. The Council established Sutherland Shire Certification Service which is now known as Southern Sydney Building Certifiers.

Following the accreditation of Geoff French, Danny Ford and Craig Tibbey as private building certifiers by the NSW Building Professionals Board, SSBC is now able to issue complying development certificates and construction certificates as well as acting as the principal certifying authority (PCA).

Our services are available throughout New South Wales, but generally work within the Sutherland Shire and the St George areas, as well as Canterbury, Bankstown, Liverpool and Wollongong local government areas.

SSBC will continues to provide its customary high level of service and responsiveness that its clients have enjoyed for over ten years.


Services

The services we provide include:

  • Construction Certificate application assessment
  • Complying development certificate application assessment
  • Principal Certifying Authority (PCA) inspection service
  • Compliance and occupation certificate application
  • Energy assessments, including BASIX & ABSA Certificates for houses, villas, townhouses and flats
  • Section J Energy assessments for commercial & industrial developments
  • Building Code of Australia (BCA) inspection and reporting
  • Planning and Building Regulation advice

All services are available during normal business hours, which are 7.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. Monday to Friday.

Appointments for construction inspections can be also arranged for Saturdays, subject to 48 hours notice being given.

SSBC prides itself on our fast turnaround times for applications and our responsiveness to the needs of our clients.

Our experienced, qualified and accredited staff are able to deal with most types of development including residential alterations and additions by owner builders to complex residential, health care, commercial and industrial development.

Full detailed and competitive quotations can be prepared for any of our services - these services can also be tailored to meet your individual needs.

News

Complying Development under Local Environmental Plans (LEPs)

Complying development under individual Council LEPs is again permissible until such time as a Council makes a new LEP under the standard template or format.

We have amended our checklists for the Sutherland Shire LEP and have published them for downloading.

Applications may be lodged under either the State Codes or the Council LEP.

If your proposed development cannot satisfy the standards of, say the State Code, try the related LEP standards and see if you can comply with those. Your development need only comply with one, not both, to be complying development.

Amended checklists now available

Amended checklists that include the second amendment of the State Environmental Planning Policy (Exempt and Complying Development Codes) 2008 and the NSW Housing Code that took effect on 25/2/2011 are now available by clicking here

Further amendments to State Environmental Planning Policy (Exempt and Complying Development Codes) 2008 (1 March 2011)

The Department of Planning have advised of amendments to the NSW Housing Code, additional to those referred to in earlier "News" items. These additional amendments also took effect on 25 February 2011.

Consequently SSBC has found it necessary to remove the recently published checklists and is looking to re-publish them in the next few days.

 We apologise for any inconvenience.

Further amendments to complying development (8/12/2010)

The Department of Planning (DOP) has announced further changes to State Environmental Planning Policy (Exempt and Complying Development Codes) 2008 to provide additional opportunities and controls for exempt and complying development.

The new provisions will come into effect on 25/2/2011.

SSBC will be amending our complying development checklists which are available on this website a s soon as the consolidated SEPP is published.

The DOP has prepared "Fact Sheets" on the changes to the SEPP. These fact sheets are available by clicking here.

Local complying development to remain in force until 1/9/2011 (8/12/2010)

The Department of Planning has this week confirmed that the complying development provisions contained in Local Environmental Plans (LEP) will remain in force until 1 September 2011.

It was initially intended that the LEP provisions would cease as of 31/12/2010. However, the DOP has confirmed the extension of the transition period to encourage the further uptake of complying development.

As a result of the extension of the transition period we have amended our complying development checklists for the Sutherland Shire Local Environmental Plan. These checklist are available by clicking here.

December 2010

After 31 December 2010 the complying development provisions contained in all council local environmental plans will superseded by the provisions contained in State Environmental Planning Policy (Exempt and Complying Codes) 2008.

All applications submitted on or after 1 January 2011 must be made under the provisions of either the NSW Housing Code, the NSW Housing Internal Alterations Code, the NSW General Commercial and Industrial Code or any other relevant state environmental planning policy such as State Environmental Planning Policy - (Affordable Rental Housing) 2009 or State Environmental Planning Policy (Infrastructure) 2007.

December 2010

Welcome to Southern Sydney Building Certifiers' new website.

We hope that the site provides the information that you need . If you believe that additional information would be of benefit or we could display the existing information in a better way please send an email to gfrench@ssc.nsw.gov.au.

Our Clients Say...

The staff were very professional and had a very good helpful attitude.

CK of Bangor

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