Confined Space First Aid Requirements in Australia
Australian work health and safety rules do not say every worker entering a confined space must hold a first aid certificate. They do require something wider. The business (the PCBU) must set up first aid and rescue procedures before anyone enters, make sure workers practise them, and have trained people and equipment ready to act from outside the space. This guide sets out what that means on a real site, how it varies between jurisdictions, and how to build the arrangements well.
TL;DR
Under the model WHS Regulations, a PCBU must establish first aid and rescue procedures for each confined space and make sure workers practise them.
No rule says every entrant needs a first aid certificate. A PCBU must have an adequate number of trained first aiders or access to other trained people, and workers who perform rescues must be adequately trained.
Before entry you need a standby person, a working communication system, rescue equipment close by and a written entry permit that reflects the risk assessment.
Remote and isolated sites can need more: advanced first aid, aerial evacuation planning and one first aider for every 10 workers in high risk workplaces without timely medical access.
Check your own state or territory code. Wording and penalties differ.
Table of Contents
What the law requires for first aid and rescue
The core duty sits in section 74 of the model WHS Regulations. According to Safe Work Australia’s Model Code of Practice for confined spaces, a PCBU must establish first aid and rescue procedures to be followed in an emergency in a confined space, and must ensure workers practise those procedures so they are efficient and effective.
The same code adds several practical points:
First aid and rescue procedures must be started from outside the confined space as soon as practicable.
Entry and exit openings must be large enough to allow emergency access, and must not be obstructed.
Plant, equipment and PPE provided for first aid or emergency rescue must be kept in good working order.
The key phrase is “from outside”. The plan is built so a rescuer does not have to rush in after a colleague. That is where many confined space fatalities occur, and it shapes everything below.
Does every worker need first aid or CPR training?
No. The model rules do not require every worker who enters a confined space to hold first aid or CPR certification. Two separate duties apply instead.
Confined space training (regulation 76). A PCBU must ensure relevant workers receive suitable and adequate training on the hazards, risks, controls and procedures for working in a confined space, including emergency procedures. WorkSafe Queensland notes that records of this training must be kept for two years. In Western Australia, the Confined Spaces Code of Practice says the training must cover the hazards, the use of risk controls, the selection, fit, use, testing and maintenance of PPE, the contents of the entry permit and emergency procedures.
General first aid arrangements (regulation 42). The PCBU must ensure an adequate number of workers are trained to administer first aid at the workplace, or that workers have access to an adequate number of other trained people. Safe Work Australia’s first aid code of practice says first aiders should, as a minimum, hold nationally recognised Statements of Attainment for the Provide First Aid unit of competency.
In practice, a confined space crew usually works with a mix: every entrant trained in confined space entry and emergency procedures, plus enough first aiders on site to cover the crew and the standby role. Many employers choose to certify the whole crew in first aid and CPR, because the person nearest the casualty in the first minutes is the most useful responder. That is a sensible choice, not a legal minimum.
If you are working out how many first aiders your site needs, our guide to first aid risk assessment walks through it step by step.
What must be ready before anyone enters
The model code sets out the building blocks of emergency readiness. Treat the list below as a pre-entry check.
Documented first aid and rescue procedures. Written down, specific to the space and rehearsed with the workers who will use them.
A standby person. Someone assigned to continuously monitor the wellbeing of those inside and to start emergency procedures when needed.
A communication system. It must let people inside and outside talk to each other and summon help.
Rescue equipment close to the space. Kept in close proximity so it can be used immediately, not locked in a shed across the site.
Trained rescuers with the right protective equipment. Workers performing a rescue must be adequately trained, and air-supplied respiratory protective equipment must be provided if they enter the space in an emergency.
A way to call emergency services. The ACT’s 2025 Code of Practice asks how the alarm will be raised and by whom, how local emergency services will be notified, and whether rescue personnel can reach the workplace on night shift, weekends and holidays.
The Western Australian Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety frames this from the competency side. Its confined space audit guide expects workers to be able to carry out confined space tasks, take part in standby roles including initial rescue procedures, and take part in emergency response.
Why air-supplied equipment matters
If someone has been overcome by lack of oxygen or by airborne contaminants, the ACT code says it should always be assumed that entering to rescue them is unsafe unless air-supplied respiratory protective equipment is used. WorkSafe Queensland lists the related duty under regulation 75: suitable PPE must be provided to workers who must enter in an emergency to give first aid or carry out a rescue.
The lesson for site planning is simple. A first aider with a certificate but no breathing apparatus and no rescue training is not a rescue plan. The rescue plan must name who goes in, with what equipment, and under what conditions, or it must rely on retrieval from outside.
Permits and risk assessments carry the emergency plan
Under regulation 67, a PCBU must not allow or direct a worker to enter a confined space unless the worker has been issued an entry permit. According to the model code, the permit is completed in writing by a competent person. It sets out risk controls based on the risk assessment, including safe entry measures and details of the systems of work.
The risk assessment itself must consider emergency response arrangements, for example first aid and resuscitation, the competency of the people involved in emergency duties, and the type of emergency and rescue procedures required. The WA code notes that rescue plans are often attached to the entry permit, because all rescue equipment must be listed on it.
A copy of the permit must be kept at least until the work is finished. If a notifiable incident occurs, keep it for at least two years after the work is completed.
When you are drafting emergency procedures, the ACT’s 2020 code lists useful questions: can the work be done without entering at all, what is the nature of the space, could oxygen or contaminant levels change, and what type of emergency and rescue procedure does the method of work call for?
Victoria has its own wording. Regulation 69 of the OHS Regulations 2017 requires emergency procedures that cover rescue and the first aid given to a person inside the space and after rescue. The risks of carrying out those procedures, such as loss of consciousness, fire, explosion, oxygen deficiency or engulfment, must be eliminated or reduced so far as is reasonably practicable.
Remote and isolated sites need more
A confined space on a metropolitan plant and one at a remote mine or construction camp face the same hazards, but the time to help is very different. Safe Work Australia’s first aid code says extra first aid considerations may be needed for remote or isolated work. Where access is difficult because of travel time, poor roads or weather, arrangements should include aerial evacuation. It also suggests high risk workplaces without timely access to medical and ambulance services should have at least one first aider for every 10 workers.
The same code says additional training may be required where work is remote or isolated, where dangerous substances such as cyanide or arsenic are present, where specialist first aid equipment is installed, or where psychological risks or workers’ medical conditions call for it.
For a Pilbara or similar site, that points to a few practical decisions:
Higher first aid capability. Consider a person trained in more advanced first aid when you cannot count on timely emergency services.
Resuscitation and oxygen skills. Confined space incidents often involve oxygen deficiency, so breathing support and oxygen therapy are directly relevant.
Extended-care planning. Write down how a casualty is looked after for the hours before an ambulance or aircraft arrives.
Cover for every shift. Night shift and roster changes should not leave the standby or first aid role empty.
Our article on WHS first aid duties at remote sites covers the wider employer obligations in more detail.
How the rules differ between states and territories
Most jurisdictions apply the model WHS Regulations, so the duties above read much the same in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, the ACT, the Northern Territory and, with its own adaptations, Western Australia. Victoria uses its own OHS Regulations 2017. The practical differences are in numbering, code wording, record-keeping and penalties.
Jurisdiction | What to read | Point worth knowing |
Model WHS (most states and territories) | Regulations 74 to 77 and the model code | First aid and rescue procedures practised by workers; permit copies kept at least until work ends, or two years after a notifiable incident |
Queensland | Regulations 75 and 76 as set out by WorkSafe Queensland | Training records kept for two years |
Western Australia | Confined Spaces Code of Practice; WHS General and Mines Regulations | Procedures documented; rescue equipment listed on the permit |
Victoria | OHS Regulations 2017, regulation 69 | Rescue and first aid procedures that can be carried out immediately and rehearsed by relevant employees |
ACT | WHS Regulation 2011 and the 2025 code | Maximum penalty for failing to establish first aid and rescue procedures is $6,000 for an individual and $30,000 for a body corporate |
The ACT figure comes from regulation 74 of the ACT WHS Regulation 2011, which also applies strict liability to each physical element of the offence. Penalties elsewhere differ, so confirm the current figures with your regulator.
The safest approach is to read the code of practice your regulator publishes for your state or territory and check it against your procedures. Contractors working across several jurisdictions should expect site owners to ask for evidence of training and drills. Councils, for example, can require that confined space entry is only undertaken by workers who have completed entry training, as one Queensland council’s contractor induction states.
Practising the plan
Both the model code and the Victorian regulations expect rehearsal. A plan nobody has tested tends to fail at the first hurdle: the radio does not reach the standby person, the breathing apparatus is in the wrong shed, or nobody knows who calls triple zero.
A workable drill routine looks like this:
Walk through the permit and rescue plan with the whole crew before the job starts.
Simulate a collapse inside the space and time how long it takes to raise the alarm, start retrieval and begin first aid.
Check that communications work from every point inside the space.
Record who took part, what went wrong and what you changed.
Keeping those records also helps when a client or regulator asks you to demonstrate readiness. General guidance on keeping health and safety compliance documented follows the same principle: practise, record, improve.
We deliver first aid training to teams on remote mine and construction sites, and we see the same pattern. Crews that understand their confined space permit but have never rehearsed a casualty on the ground tend to hesitate when it counts. Our view is that training should be tailored to the site. A crew entering a vessel, a tank or a pit has different hazards from an office, so the scenarios should match. That is why we customise course content to the industry and risks of each client, and why we can deliver onsite anywhere in the Pilbara, including outside standard business hours so night shifts are not left out. We also encourage employers to look at the whole chain: entry training, first aid and CPR for the crew, advanced first aid or resuscitation skills where help is far away, and regular practice of the rescue plan. Each piece supports the others and helps your people step forward with confidence. Vapour
Our view: build the response around the casualty
Training that fits confined space work
We run nationally recognised courses that map to the arrangements above, delivered onsite, mobile or online, with trainers who have industry-relevant experience.
Enter and Work in Confined Spaces covers working safely in the space itself.
HLTAID011 Provide First Aid is $240 and is the nationally recognised first aid unit the Safe Work Australia code names as the minimum for first aiders.
HLTAID013 Provide First Aid in Remote or Isolated Site is $400 and suits crews working far from medical help.
HLTAID014 Provide Advanced First Aid is $400, and HLTAID015 Provide Advanced Resuscitation and Oxygen Therapy is $400.
We can also deliver respirator fit testing, which supports the PPE side of your rescue arrangements. Prices for confined space and fit testing sessions are not published, so contact us for a quote.
To plan training for a whole crew, see all our courses or book online. We would love to work with you on a program that fits your site and roster.
Refresher and review
First aid skills fade, and sites change. Review your procedures when the task, the space, the crew or the equipment changes, and after any near miss. Our guide to first aid refresher requirements explains how to keep certification current across a team, and our article on first aid training needs for your workplace helps you match courses to your risks.
FAQ
Do confined space workers need a first aid certificate?
The model WHS Regulations do not require every entrant to hold one. They require relevant workers to be trained in confined space hazards and emergency procedures, and the PCBU must ensure an adequate number of trained first aiders or access to other trained people. Many employers certify the whole crew anyway.
Who should do the rescue?
Anyone who may enter in an emergency must be adequately trained and provided with air-supplied respiratory protective equipment. Your plan should prioritise retrieval and first aid from outside the space, started as soon as practicable.
What should be on a confined space entry permit about emergencies?
The permit sets out risk controls drawn from the risk assessment, which must cover emergency arrangements such as first aid and resuscitation and the competency of emergency responders. In Western Australia, rescue equipment is also listed on the permit, and rescue plans are often attached to it.
Are the requirements different at remote sites?
The legal duties are the same, but the practical needs grow. Safe Work Australia’s first aid code points to advanced first aid, aerial evacuation planning and, for high risk workplaces without timely medical access, one first aider for every 10 workers.
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