2.3 Amending service approval on application

[  National Law & Regulations, Section 54, Regulation 34 ]   WA 

An approved provider may apply to the regulatory authority for an amendment of a service approval.

An application must be made in writing and include payment of the fee (see Fees). An application must include:

• the name of the service
• the service approval number
• the name and contact details for the contact person for the application
• the details of the amendment applied for, and sufficient information or documentation to support the application.

If the application includes a request for an approval of a family day care venue, the application must also include:

• the location and street address of the venue
• a statement that the applicant has the right to occupy and use the place as a venue and any document evidencing this (e.g. a lease of the premises)
• an assessment (including any risk assessment) of the place conducted by the approved provider to ensure that the health, safety and wellbeing of children is protected.

The regulatory authority may ask the approved provider for further information reasonably required to assess the application.

[  National  Regulations, Regulations 174–175 ]

Approved providers are not required to submit a service approval amendment to change the location of the family day care principal office. However, they are required to notify the regulatory authority at least 14 days before the change. Regulatory authorities should update the service approval when they receive a notification (see Operational Requirements – Governance and leadership and Applications and Approvals – Amendment of service approval without application).

The approved provider may seek to amend the service approval when requesting approval of a place as a family day care venue. The regulatory authority may approve the application if it considers there are exceptional circumstances and the approved provider has included an assessment of the proposed venue in the application. See Applications for service approval including request for approval of a family day care venue and Assessments of family day care residences and venues.

Incomplete applications

If an application does not include all the prescribed information, the regulatory authority may treat the application as invalid. The timeframe for processing an application does not begin until an application is complete and therefore valid.

Timeframe for assessing an application

A decision must be made within 60 calendar days of the regulatory authority receiving a complete application.

Calculating time

The National Law sets out how timeframes are calculated at schedule 1, clause 31.

An application cannot begin to be processed unless the application is complete/valid and includes all the required information.

Considering the application

The National Law and Regulations do not specify the type or level of information needed to assess an application for amendment of service approval, other than requiring an application to include ‘sufficient information’. ‘Sufficient information’ means enough information for the regulatory authority to make a decision on the application.

Determining the application

Once the regulatory authority has received a complete application, it must decide to:

• amend the provider approval in the way that was applied for; or
• amend the provider approval in another way, with the applicant’s written approval; or
• refuse the amendment of the provider approval.

An amendment may include a change to a condition of the provider approval or introduce a new condition.

Appeals

[  National Law, Section 190 ]

A decision to refuse to amend a service approval is a reviewable decision under the National Law (see Reviews).

After approval has been amended

[  National Law, Section 57 ]

If the regulatory authority amends the service approval, it must give a copy to the approved provider.