NSW Cladding Taskforce Update: 9 August 2019

The Cladding Taskforce is coordinating the NSW Government’s 10-point plan released in July 2017 to address fire safety risks arising from the use of aluminium cladding on buildings in NSW.

The Taskforce has met over 50 times since its creation, to plan, implement and monitor actions across Government to identify affected buildings, ensure they are inspected, communicate with affected owners, residents and the public, and drive assessments and remediation of buildings.

The Taskforce has also liaised with councils to share information and coordinate action to address cladding risks.

Details of all the Taskforce activities are provided on previous updates on this website.

The Taskforce has worked since July 2017 to identify affected buildings.

As at 24 July 2019, 4,019 buildings in NSW had been identified by the Taskforce as requiring assessment for the potential presence of cladding. Fire & Rescue NSW has inspected every one of those buildings.

• 754 of these buildings have been assessed as having cladding that does not pose a significant fire safety risk, and a further 2,712 buildings have been assessed as not at risk from cladding.
• 629 of the buildings were initially assessed as requiring further assessment because they have cladding in a quantity, location and/or arrangement which potentially increases fire risks. Seventy-six (76) of these buildings have been cleared now, with the remaining 553 buildings still undergoing assessment or rectification. 154 of the remaining buildings are residential high rise.
• These numbers have increased since the previous Taskforce update following amendments to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation that made it compulsory for owners to register certain buildings with cladding via an online portal. Registrations were due by February 2019 for existing buildings, with over 2,000 registrations received to date.
• Each registration is referred to the relevant local council and Fire and Rescue NSW. Fire and Rescue will continue to inspect any newly registered buildings.
• The Taskforce has coordinated a review of all government buildings by the responsible government agencies to ensure these buildings are assessed and safe. Out of thousands of buildings and structures assessed, 34 had cladding requiring investigation and remediation. Half of these properties have been rectified and the remaining 17 are undergoing works or planning for rectification.