Public Health and Wellbeing Premises

The main objective for Latrobe City Council is to ensure all Pubic Health and Wellbing Act Premises including businesses where prescribed accommodation, rooming houses, hairdressing, beauty therapy, electrolysis, earpiercing, colonic irrigation, skin penetration or tattooing procedures are carried out either on the premises or from a mobile operation are registered and inspected by Latrobe City Council's Environmetal Health Officers on a yearly basis. Please note that approval will not be granted for mobile health businesses of high risk nature.

Setting up a new health premises
Buying an existing health premises
Useful links
Prescribed Accmoodation
Heatwave Safety

Setting up a new health premises

Commercial Premises

Council annually registered all hairdressing, skin penetration, tattooing, beauty therapy, ear piercing and electrolysis businesses within the Latrobe City.

Environment Health Officers inspect these facilities to ensure that they operate in accordance with guidelines produced by the Department of Health.

Unsafe or unhygienic practices within commercial businesses can affect the health of clients, the health of the operator and can aid in the spread of infectious disease.

More seriously, where procedures including the penetration of the skin are not managed correctly, they can be the means of transmitting organisms that can cause diseases like AIDS and Hepatitis B.

All new hairdressing, skin penetration, tattooing, beauty therapy, ear piercing and electrolysis businesses must register with Latrobe City Council before beginning operation. This process involves submitting plans and specifications, completing a registration application form, and undergoing a final inspection before the new business can begin operating.

Several Latrobe City Council Departments may be involved in the setting up of a new business whether it be a new building, existing building or mobile operation. It is important to be aware that departments operate indepently within the Council. You will need to determine which approvals are required for your particular business and complete application forms and submit plans seperately to each of the relevant departments, whether it be Planning, Buliding or Environmetal Health.

Please Note:- It is important that you do not commence any structural work or fit-out until you have obtained all the relevant approvals. It can be very costly to have to make changes after construction if the work you have undertaken does not meet the standards guidelines which approvals are assessed against.

Environmental Health Officers will investigate all complaints made in relation to the above type of businesses.

Everybody who operates a health premises has a legal obligation to be registered under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 with their relevant local Council.

Plan Lodgement

In addition to receiving the necessary Building and Planning Permits, you will need to submit two copies of scale plans to the Health Services Team for approval prior to commencement of works. Plans must be submitted and attached to the Plan Approval Application for Food and Public Health and Wellbeing Act Premises with the approprate fee of $80 for a Public Health and Wellbeing premises. When lodging plans it is important to include as much detail as possible in relation to the services/treatments that will be offered by your business.

Buying an existing health premises

If you are buying or intend to buy an existing Public Health and Wellbeing premises, it is necessary to organise a transfer assessment of the premises under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 prior to negotiating the purchase. Such a request should include the following:

Application for Request for Conveyancer Transfer Assessment
Notification of any proposed refurbishment with a Plan Approval Application
Application for Request for Consent to Release Information

To request a form please contact Latrobe City Council on 1300 367 700.

A copy of the Health Guidelines for Personal Care and Body Art Industries can be obtained from:

www.health.vic.gov.au/ideas/regulations

Useful links

Blue Book - Guidelines for the control of infectious disease

Prescribed Accommodation

Prescribed accommodation premises were six or more residents (who are not part of the proprietor’s family) are living must be registered with Latrobe City Council under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 (Vic)

Rooming or boarding houses must also be registered with Latrobe City Council under the provisions of the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 (Vic) where four or more residents are living.

Specific requirements relating to the prescribed accommodation premises are the Health (Prescribed Accommodation) Regulations 2001.

Premises which must be registered as prescribed accommodation include residential accommodation, hotels, motels, hostels, student dormitories and holiday camps.

Heatwave Safety

It is expected that climate change will increase with frequency and intensity of heatwaves. Heatwaves can affect anybody including young and healthy people, however there are certain people that are at more risk than others. Those people at greater risk are people 65 years and over, people with a chronic medical condition or disability and people living alone.

Heat-related illness occurs when the body is unable to adequately cool itself and ranges from mild conditions such as rash or cramps to life-threatening conditions such as heat stroke.

What to do during a heatwave

Keep hydrated by drinking extra water, even if you are not thirsty. (Note: if your doctor normally limits your fluids, check how much to drink during hot weather).
Look after yourself and check up on older, sick and frail friends, neighbours and relatives.
Spend as much time as possible in cool or air conditioned buildings (for example shopping centres, libraries, cinemas, community centres)
Keep yourself cool by using damp towels and taking cool showers in the day and night.
IF you must go out, stay in the shade and take plenty of water with you. Wear a hat and light coloured loose fitting clothing.
Block out the sun during the day by closing curtains and blinds and open up windows and doors where there is a cool breeze.
Do not leave children, adults or animals in parked vehicles.
Avoid strenuous activity like sport, home improvements and gardening.

Important Contact Information

For 24 hour health advice contact the Department of Health Nurse on Call 1300 60 60 24.

Useful Link

For further information surviving a heatwave go to: