What we’re doing

WorkSafe is developing a draft code of practice for residential construction. It will set out expectations under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (HSWA), helping businesses reduce harm and confidently meet their legal duties. If approved by the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety, the document will be issued as an approved code of practice (ACOP). The draft working title is: Approved code of practice for roles and responsibilities in residential construction.

In collaboration with the sector, we’re creating practical, plain language guidance to help construction businesses and others (including homeowners), to understand their duties when working together on residential construction sites. This includes builders and specialist tradespeople that work on the sites.

For the purpose of this ACOP, residential construction means the building or renovating of homes and multi-unit dwellings where people live. It includes, but is not limited to, standalone homes, townhouses, apartments and developments, including government developments.

This new guidance reflects the strategic direction set out in WorkSafe’s 2025–2029 Statement of Intent, which focuses on educating and engaging businesses.

Definition of an ACOP

An ACOP sets out standards for how duty holders can comply with the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (HSWA) and its regulations. They differ from other types of HSWA guidance in three ways:

• An ACOP can be used as evidence of whether or not a duty or obligation under HSWA has been complied with.
• WorkSafe ACOPs are approved by the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety.
• Developing ACOPs must include consultation with people affected.

Put simply, an ACOP is a type of health and safety guidance. It may include requirements, recommended standards, and good practice information about how specific work can be done safely. Like our other guidance, businesses and workers can follow an ACOP to help keep themselves and others safe.

ACOPs aren’t mandatory

It isn’t mandatory to follow an ACOP, but it sets a standard for compliance. You can meet your duty another way as long as it is equivalent or better than the standard set out in the ACOP.

Why we’re developing this ACOP

Construction is high-risk

Residential construction has:

• the highest volume of activity in the wider construction industry
• the highest rate of injuries, including body stressing, slips, trips and falls, falls from height, and incidents involving tools.

Clear guidance is needed

Most of the residential sector is made up of small-to-medium operators, who typically:

• don’t have in-house health and safety specialists
• sometimes assume another party is responsible for managing risks
• report uncertainty about overlapping duties – this is where multiple parties have health and safety duties in relation to the same matter. 

Younger workers and migrant workers, who are common in the sector, are especially vulnerable when expectations aren’t clear.

Ministerial directive for change

Through Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden’s 2024 public consultation and WorkSafe’s industry survey, the sector expressed strong support for clearer guidance written in plain language. 

In mid-2025, the Minister confirmed that WorkSafe would develop an ACOP focused on clarifying overlapping duties in construction, with a specific focus on the residential sector. 

Clearer rules and prequalification guidance to support construction | Beehive.govt.nz(external link)

This new ACOP aims to make it easier for everyone to:

• understand what good health and safety practices look like
• reduce confusion about overlapping duties
• help prevent harm on site.

Timeline

We are working towards providing the completed draft code of practice to the Minister for her approval, by 30 June 2026. This will follow drafting, testing, and public consultation phases. 

ACOP scope

In scope

The ACOP will focus on roles and responsibilities in residential construction. It will apply to construction businesses including specialist trades that work on the sites. For example, plumbers, electricians, and roofers. It will address health and safety responsibilities under HSWA, focusing on overlapping duties. ‘Overlapping duties’ means that more than one person or business has health and safety duties in relation to the same matter.

We’re also adding clarity to homeowners on what their duties are if they are building or renovating a house.

Out of scope

The wider construction sector, such as civil and commercial construction. 

How the ACOP is being developed

A collaborative approach

To ensure this ACOP reflects the practical realities of the industry, WorkSafe is engaging with a broad cross-section of stakeholders. Builders, other tradespersons and industry bodies will engage in workshops, testing and consultation, to ensure that the draft code of practice reflects everyday site scenarios in the residential construction sector. We have WorkSafe subject matter experts working across all these groups.

Public consultation starts in April

There will be a public consultation to gather broad and detailed input from the sector on the draft code of practice. This consultation is being planned between 20 April and 10 May 2026. Information on this will be published on this page as soon as it’s available.

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Keep up to date on the development of these ACOPs:

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We want to hear from you

Your insights are important to us, please share your feedback on this work.

If you have any questions, please contact the ACOP Delivery Team at ACOPDelivery@worksafe.govt.nz