OFSC Accreditation: Getting Ready for the WHS Accreditation Scheme

It usually arrives in a tender. A clause says the head contractor must be accredited under the WHS Accreditation Scheme, and the project is funded, directly or indirectly, by the Australian Government. Without accreditation you can’t hold the head contract, however good your safety record is.

Getting there is a WHS job first: a working safety management system, and sites that run it. Streamline prepares builders for OFSC accreditation, from the first gap analysis through mock audits to closing out the findings, and we’ve taken two construction businesses through to accreditation.

Do you need OFSC accreditation?

The requirement sits with the builder that holds the head contract. If the funding recipient carries out the building work itself, such as a council, it is the builder and needs accreditation. The Australian Government, and corporate Commonwealth entities, must not fund building work above the thresholds unless the builder is accredited under the Scheme.

Funding	Accreditation is required when	Notes
Direct funding	A head contract for building work under the project is worth at least $4 million (GST inclusive)	Funded directly by the Commonwealth or a corporate Commonwealth entity
Indirect funding, such as grants	A contract for building work is worth at least $4 million (GST inclusive), and the Commonwealth contribution is at least $6 million and at least 50 per cent of the total project funding, or at least $10 million regardless of share	Applies to funding through a third party, such as a state, council or community organisation
Housing Australia funding	The same indirect funding test applies to Housing Australia’s contribution	Brings builders on social and affordable housing projects into the Scheme
Below the thresholds	The Scheme generally doesn’t apply	Check the funding agreement: the thresholds turn on contract value and the Commonwealth’s share

If you are not sure whether a project triggers the Scheme, the funding agreement and the tender documents are where to look, and the OFSC can confirm.

How accreditation works

1. Apply through FSC Online. The application covers your past WHS performance, a gap analysis of your safety management system, your operations and your current projects as head contractor. You also sign a declaration on complying with the National Construction Code where it applies. 2. Systems Validation audit. A Federal Safety Officer assesses your WHS management system against the Scheme criteria, virtually or at your premises. A report usually follows about 10 business days later, and the OFSC decides whether you move on or need another validation audit. 3. On-site audit. Usually two days, at an active project where you are the principal contractor. The auditor checks evidence that the system is actually running on site. More than one on-site audit is common, and follow-up audits generally cover only the nonconformities. 4. Decision. The Federal Safety Commissioner decides, and accredited companies go on the Accreditation Register.

After accreditation, the OFSC schedules monitoring audits based on your risk profile. Companies with a strong record can expect them about every 12 months, others more often. You also report WHS performance to the OFSC. At reaccreditation, a good record can earn an accreditation period of up to six years.

What the auditors look at

The OFSC’s audit criteria work in three layers.

• Your company WHS management system. Legal requirements, hazard identification and risk control, emergency preparedness, health surveillance and exposure monitoring, incident investigation and corrective action, and auditing your own system.
• The project. Criteria the OFSC calls focus points: senior management commitment, integrating design issues into risk management, consultation across the whole project, managing subcontractor WHS (including SWMS for high risk work), project performance measurement, and training and competency.
• The high risk work on your project. Hazard-specific criteria for the work you actually do, such as working at heights, demolition, asbestos, structural alterations and temporary support structures, confined spaces and excavation.

The first layer is mostly documented systems. The second and third are tested on site: whether senior managers visit and talk safety, whether SWMS are reviewed before the work starts and followed once it does, and whether inspections happen as planned. That is where preparation pays off.

Where ISO 45001 fits

You don’t need ISO 45001 to get OFSC accreditation, and ISO 45001 certification doesn’t give it to you. They are separate schemes, audited by different people against different criteria. For the difference between the two kinds of recognition, see ISO accreditation vs certification.

A certified ISO 45001 system does cover much of the company layer: legal requirements, risk control, incident investigation, consultation and internal audit. That is why builders who already hold it can usually be ready sooner. The project and high risk work layers still need building, because ISO 45001 doesn’t prescribe them in the way the Scheme does.

How we help

• Gap analysis against the Scheme criteria. Where your WHS system and your sites stand, with a prioritised action list. The application asks for a gap analysis, so this also feeds straight into it.
• Building and closing the gaps. Procedures, project WHS management plans, subcontractor management, SWMS review, inspection programmes and training records, written around how your business actually builds.
• Mock Systems Validation audit. A desktop audit of your system against the criteria, run the way a Federal Safety Officer would run it, before the real one.
• Mock on-site audit. A full audit at one of your live projects, interviewing site managers, supervisors and subcontractors, and testing SWMS, inspections and records.
• Senior management preparation. Senior management commitment is tested directly, so we help your leaders show it.
• Application and close-out support. Help with the FSC Online application, and with closing out corrective action reports after each audit.
• Staying accredited. Internal audits and preparation for monitoring audits, through management system maintenance or ISO mentoring for an in-house WHS person who wants to run it themselves.

Why outside help is common. Federal Safety Officers can explain the gaps in their reports and point you to resources. Even under the expanded support for Housing Australia applicants, the OFSC says they can’t give prescriptive advice on designing your system or draft procedures for you. That work is yours, or your consultant’s.

How long it takes

Three to six months for most builders, from engagement to a ready application. It can be faster where a certified ISO 45001 system already covers the company layer.

Two things move the timeline more than anything else, and the OFSC says the same: having an active project ready for the on-site audit, and closing out nonconformities quickly.

We don’t publish a cost range. The size of the business, the high risk work you do and whether you already hold ISO 45001 move the number too much. The OFSC itself doesn’t charge for accreditation or its audits.

Common questions

What is OFSC accreditation?

It is accreditation under the Work Health and Safety Accreditation Scheme, run by the Office of the Federal Safety Commissioner. Builders need it to hold the head contract on Australian Government-funded building work above the Scheme thresholds.

Who needs OFSC accreditation?

The builder holding the head contract for building work funded by the Australian Government, directly or indirectly, where the project meets the funding thresholds. That includes projects funded through Housing Australia.

What are the OFSC funding thresholds?

For direct funding, a head contract for building work of at least $4 million (GST inclusive). For indirect funding, a building contract of at least $4 million, plus a Commonwealth contribution of at least $6 million that is at least 50 per cent of the total project funding, or at least $10 million regardless of share.

How long does OFSC accreditation take?

Three to six months for most builders, and often faster where a certified ISO 45001 system is already in place. Having an active project ready for the on-site audit, and closing out findings quickly, make the biggest difference.

Does ISO 45001 certification mean we are OFSC accredited?

No. They are separate schemes with separate auditors and criteria. An ISO 45001 system covers much of the company-level criteria, which usually shortens the work, but the project and high risk work criteria still have to be met.

How much does OFSC accreditation cost?

The OFSC doesn’t charge for accreditation or its audits. The cost is the time to get your system and sites ready, plus any consultant support you choose to use.

How long does accreditation last?

A first accreditation runs for three years. At reaccreditation, companies with a good audit and reporting record can be granted up to six years.

Do we need an active project for the audit?

Yes. The on-site audit is held at an active project where your company is the principal contractor, so plan your application around a suitable site.

Can the Federal Safety Officer help us prepare?

Only up to a point. They can explain the gaps in their reports and point you to resources, but the OFSC says they are not a substitute for a WHS manager or consultant, and they won’t design your system or write procedures for you.

Where Streamline fits

Streamline is run by a practising WHS auditor and ISO 45001 Lead Auditor, with more than 14 years building WHS and compliance frameworks for councils, utilities and infrastructure organisations. We’ve taken two construction businesses through to OFSC accreditation, and you deal with the auditor from the first conversation.

The honest first step is a gap analysis: it tells you how far you are from ready, and it is something the application asks for anyway.

Sources

• Office of the Federal Safety Commissioner, How to apply for accreditation
• Office of the Federal Safety Commissioner, Fact sheet: How to get accredited and stay accredited
• Office of the Federal Safety Commissioner, Exemption 1: building work valued below Scheme funding thresholds
• Office of the Federal Safety Commissioner, FSC Audit Criteria Guidelines (version 1.3)
• Office of the Federal Safety Commissioner, Fact sheet: Federal Safety Officers
• Office of the Federal Safety Commissioner, Applying the Scheme to indirectly funded building work
• Office of the Federal Safety Commissioner, Fact sheet: Federal Safety Officers, scope of assistance for Housing Australia related Scheme applicants
• Department of Finance, Work Health and Safety Accreditation Scheme clause bank
• Federal Register of Legislation, Federal Safety Commissioner (Accreditation Scheme) Rules 2023