FAQs
- what training an assistance animal needs
- the responsibilities of handlers
- how council staff can check access rights
- how council supports safe and inclusive access to council places.
- guiding someone with vision or hearing impairment
- Alerting someone to the start of a medical episode – like a seizure
- Helping someone move around
- stopping symptoms of a mental health condition.
- Be a dog
- Be desexed, microchipped, and registered on the NSW Companion Animal Register or NSW Pet Registry
- Not be a dangerous, menacing, nuisance dog or restricted dog breed
- Be trained to carry out tasks that assist with their handler’s disability, and for public access
- Be actively working with their handler at the time
- Wear a marker to show it’s an assistance dog (e.g. vest, harness, or badge)
- Always be under control, and on a harness or a short lead
- Calm and not aggressive or disruptive
- Be clean and healthy.
Have a disability
Be able to control their dog and keep it on a short leash or harness,
Ensure their animal is clean, healthy and well-behaved
Follow all signs, rules, and staff directions
Clean up after their animal.
Show evidence their dog is an assistance animal, if requested by a Council staff member.
Libraries and community halls
Parks, beaches and reserves
Public toilets and change rooms
Tweed Holiday Parks and camping grounds
Commercial kitchens
Swimming pools (assistance animals can access surrounding areas but not the water)
Quarantine or biosecurity zones
Is trained to perform disability-related tasks or enrolled in formal training
Is trained for public access (Public Access Test)
is trained to perform specific tasks that reduce the effects of a medically diagnosed disability, and actively working
is trained for public access and not aggressive or disruptive
is clean and healthy, and
meets all other access requirements listed in the draft policy.
is not well-controlled,
it poses a risk to safety or health, or
it does not meet the requirements of the policy.
Dogs consistently demonstrate the high standards of training, public safety, hygiene, and animal welfare.
There is no reliable evidence that other species can consistently meet these standards in Council places.
Aren't there already laws that cover assistance animals' access to public spaces?
Yes, the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 protects the rights of people with disability to use assistance animals.
However, there are currently no laws in NSW that clearly outline training or certification standards for assistance animals. This means there is confusion.
This draft policy aims to fills this gap in the Tweed Shire. It supports people to understand their rights and responsibilities in Council places, and sets out:
What is an assistance animal?
The draft policy defines an assistance animal as a dog specially trained dog to perform tasks that support a person’s disability.
Tasks they perform can include:
To access Council places, the assistance animal must be trained, well-behaved, under control, and meet high standards of hygiene and behaviour suitable for public spaces.
What standards apply to assistance animals in Council places?
These animals are not pets. They are working animals. To access a Council place, an assistance animal must:
What are a handler’s responsibilities?
Handlers must:
Where can assistance animals go?
People with disability can bring their assistance animals into most public spaces and Council facilities that are open to the public and where pets are restricted, including:
Some areas may be restricted, such as:
Council will clearly signpost any restrictions and make changes to improve the access and inclusion of assistance animal teams wherever possible.
What’s the difference between an assistance animal, a companion animal and other support animals?
An assistance animal is a specially trained dog that helps a person with a disability by performing specific tasks to alleviate the effects of their disability. These animals also are trained to behave and meet health and hygiene standards appropriate for public places, as set out in the policy.
A companion animal is a pet, like a dog or cat, that provides friendship and comfort but isn’t trained to perform specific disability-related tasks.
Emotional support animals and therapy animals can offer comfort, companionship and therapeutic support, particularly in hospital settings, but they may not be specifically trained to alleviate a person’s disability, or for public access.
Do I need to show proof that my dog is assistance animal?
A Council staff member may ask that you show proof that your dog:
For private or self-trained assistance animals, other requirements like medical or veterinary declarations may apply. Please refer to the full policy for detailed information.
My dog helps me stay calm during anxiety. Does that make it an assistance animal?
Yes, but only if your dog meets the policy’s requirements for an assistance animal, in that it:
To access Council places, handlers also have responsibilities to care for and control their assistance animal and follow relevant rules.
Can Council refuse my dog's entry?
Yes. Council staff can refuse access if the assistance animal:
This helps keep public places safe and fair for everyone.
Can assistance animals be other species besides dogs?
No. The draft policy recognises only dogs as assistance animals because:
This helps keep everyone safe and confident, including handlers, the public, and the animals.
Can someone have an assistance animal if they don’t have a disability?
No. Assistance animals are specifically trained to help people with disabilities, as defined by the Disability Discrimination Act 1992.
I live in a housing estate that doesn’t allow dogs. Can I live there with my assistance animal?
Some residential estates in the Tweed have rules that don’t allow dogs on private properties. These rules protect the environment and threatened wildlife in those areas.
This policy applies only to the public spaces within these estates, including declared Wildlife Protection Areas under the Companion Animals Act 1998.
It does not apply to private residential lots, where other legal instruments operate.
However, the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 protects people with disability who need assistance animals to help with their disability. This means you may have rights to keep an assistance animal where pets are restricted. Restrictions still apply to the keeping of regular companion animals (pets).
Council is working to make sure that dog registrations in these areas can only occur when proof is provided that the animal is a certified assistance animal.