Independent Audits

WHS Compliance Audits for Australian Workplaces

Know exactly where your safety system stands against the WHS Act and the WHS Regulations that bind you — and what to fix first. Independent WHS audits run by senior consultants. Fixed scope, fixed fee, and a report your executive team can actually act on.

Reviewed by Nathan Owen, Senior Safety Consultant · Updated September 2026

Book a WHS audit Call 1300 156 382

Australia-wide — every state and territory
Senior WHS auditors, never junior placements
Draft report within 5–10 business days of the site visit

★ 5.0 from 97 Google reviews · Trusted by Qantas, AEMO, Brisbane City Council

Most WHS systems fail on evidence, not intent

Regulators and certification bodies don't assess what you meant to do. They assess what you can prove. A WHS compliance assessment almost never finds an organisation that doesn't care about safety — it finds an organisation that can't produce the records to show its system is running.

Procedures that exist as documents but can't be evidenced in practice
Risk registers not reviewed since the last incident or change of process
Psychosocial hazards absent from the risk management process entirely
Contractor prequalification records that don't survive scrutiny
Plant, chemical and training registers that are out of date or incomplete
No evidence trail showing officers exercised due diligence

The stakes have moved. Every Australian WHS jurisdiction now carries an industrial manslaughter offence, and every jurisdiction now has explicit psychosocial hazard duties. A PCBU holds the primary duty of care; an officer holds a separate, personal duty to exercise due diligence — and the only way to demonstrate that duty was exercised is with evidence the system produced at the time.

Audit scope

What a WHS audit covers

A WHS compliance audit is a structured, evidence-based review of your work health and safety arrangements against the legislation that binds you. It is not a site inspection and it is not certification. An inspection looks at conditions on one day; certification is issued by an accredited body. An audit tells you whether your system meets its legal obligations — and gives you the evidence to prove it or the gap analysis to close it.

We apply a systematic audit methodology against the WHS Act and Regulations in your jurisdiction, or Victoria's OHS framework, then verify whether the system described on paper is operating in practice through interviews, record sampling and physical observation.

WHS policy, objectives and measurable targets
Worker consultation, HSRs and health and safety committees
Hazard identification and risk management processes
Psychosocial hazard identification and controls
Safe work method statements and high-risk construction work
Plant, equipment and pre-start inspection records
Hazardous chemicals, SDS register and manifest requirements
Contractor management, prequalification and induction
Training, competency, licensing and verification of competency
Emergency preparedness, response plans and drill records
Incident reporting, notifiable incidents and investigation quality
Injury management and return-to-work arrangements
Officer due diligence evidence under section 27
Document control, record keeping and retention
Performance monitoring, system review and improvement records

Scope is confirmed before we start. Call 1300 156 382, or use our free WHS self-audit tool first.

Audit Types

WHS audits and assessments we deliver

WHS legal compliance audit

Clause-by-clause assessment against the WHS Act and Regulations in every jurisdiction you operate in. The default starting point if you've never been audited.

WHS gap analysis

A forward-looking review against your legal duties — what is missing before an inspector or an incident finds it. Delivered as a ranked closure plan with effort estimates.

Post-incident and regulator-directed audit

A targeted audit after a notifiable incident, improvement notice or regulator visit — evidence that your system, supervision and response held up when it mattered.

Psychosocial risk management audit

Assessment against the psychosocial hazard duties now in force in every Australian jurisdiction, including consultation, control adequacy and reporting pathways.

Contractor and principal contractor audit

Prequalification, SWMS review, induction records and on-site verification — for organisations carrying principal contractor duties or managing large contractor panels.

High-risk operations audit

Targeted verification of high-risk construction work, hazardous chemicals, confined spaces, working at heights, plant and traffic management.

Mine safety management system audit

Specialist audit against mine-specific safety and health management system obligations in Queensland, Western Australia and New South Wales.

ISO 45001 internal audit

Clause-by-clause readiness for stage 1, stage 2 or surveillance audits

Our Process

How our WHS audit process works

1
Scope and plan
A 15-minute scoping call establishes your jurisdictions, sites, worker numbers and the standard you're being measured against. You receive a written audit plan and a fixed-fee proposal.
2
Document review
We review your system documentation off-site before we arrive, so on-site time is spent verifying practice rather than reading policies.
3
On-site verification
Physical observation, worker and management interviews, and record sampling across the elements in scope. Workers are interviewed without supervisors present.
4
Report and gap analysis
Findings rated by risk and legal exposure, mapped to the specific clause or regulation, with a prioritised corrective action plan — typically within 5–10 business days of the site visit.
5
Close-out support
A walkthrough of the report with your leadership team, and optional verification that corrective actions have been implemented and evidenced.

What You Receive

What you receive

A written audit report with every finding rated by risk and legal exposure
A compliance matrix mapping each finding to the specific Act or Regulation clause
A prioritised corrective action plan with recommended owners, actions and due dates
An executive summary written for officers and boards, not for safety specialists
An evidence register recording what was sighted, sampled and interviewed
A close-out walkthrough with your leadership team

No 200-page document nobody reads. The report is built so your safety lead can work from it and your board can approve it in the same meeting. Need help closing the findings? See WHS Consulting & SWMS for ongoing advisory support.

Why Spire

Why organisations choose Spire for WHS auditing

Senior consultants, not junior placements

The consultant who scopes your audit is the consultant who runs it. You are not paying senior rates for a graduate with a checklist.

Findings you can afford to close

Every finding comes with a practical control recommendation, ranked. We tell you what to fix this month and what can wait until next quarter.

Written for decision-makers

Reports are structured so officers can demonstrate section 27 due diligence — evidence of the enquiry, the finding and the action taken.

Every jurisdiction, every framework

Harmonised WHS jurisdictions, Victoria's OHS framework and mine safety obligations. Multi-state operations audited under one scope.

Nathan Owen

Senior Safety Consultant

Masters Workplace Health and Safety · Masters Business Administration · Diploma of Vocational Education

15 years across WHS and HSEQ, including construction, mining, aviation and government environments.

Tanya Protasova

Senior Safety Consultant

Diploma WHS · Diploma Civil Engineering · Bachelor of Economics

10 years across construction and engineering, with management-system and audit experience.

“Quick turnaround and thorough and practical report. Much appreciated.”

Shaun Harris · Google review

Industries we audit

Audit criteria change with the risk profile. We audit against the hazards your industry actually carries.

Construction and civil
Mining and resources
Transport and logistics
Local and state government
Manufacturing
Utilities and energy
Healthcare and aged care
Aviation and airports
Education
Warehousing and distribution

How much does a WHS audit cost in Australia?

The cost of a WHS audit in Australia depends on scope, not on time. The variables that move the price are the number of sites, worker headcount, the standard you're audited against, the amount of high-risk work you perform and how many contractors you manage. We quote a fixed fee after a short scoping call — no hourly billing, no scope creep.

A WHS compliance audit for a small business is a genuinely different exercise to a multi-site corporate audit. For single-site operations under 20 workers, a desktop compliance assessment with a half-day site verification is usually enough to establish where you stand and what to fix — and it costs a fraction of a multi-site corporate audit.

Number of sites and their geographic spread
Worker and contractor headcount
Legislative scope — one jurisdiction or several, plus any client or contract requirements
Volume of high-risk work and licensed plant
Whether close-out verification is included

Book a WHS audit

Does a WHS audit cover psychosocial hazards?

Yes. Psychosocial hazards are part of every WHS compliance audit we run, because they are now an explicit legal duty in every Australian jurisdiction. Victoria's Occupational Health and Safety (Psychological Health) Regulations commenced on 1 December 2025, completing national coverage — psychosocial risk is no longer an emerging obligation, it is an audited one.

Most organisations have a wellbeing program and no psychosocial risk management process. Those are not the same thing, and an auditor will find the difference immediately. We assess against the Code of Practice published by your regulator — SafeWork NSW, WorkSafe Queensland, SafeWork SA, WorkSafe WA, WorkSafe Tasmania, WorkSafe ACT or NT WorkSafe — or WorkSafe Victoria's Compliance Code if you operate there.

Whether psychosocial hazards appear in your risk management process at all
Identification of hazards including job demands, low control, poor support, bullying, harassment and exposure to traumatic content
Adequacy of controls, assessed against the hierarchy — not wellbeing initiatives substituting for control
Worker consultation on psychosocial risk
Reporting pathways, response processes and confidentiality
Jurisdiction-specific requirements — the Codes of Practice in the harmonised states, and WorkSafe Victoria's Compliance Code

Explore our dedicated Psychosocial Risk Management service.

Watch

Watch: what happens during a Spire Safety WHS audit

A short overview of Spire Safety's independent WHS compliance audits, gap analyses and the plain-English reports we deliver.

FAQ

WHS audit FAQs

01Is a WHS audit a legal requirement in Australia?

WHS laws do not generally prescribe one universal audit interval for every business. However, a PCBU must ensure health and safety so far as is reasonably practicable, while officers must exercise due diligence. A documented audit can help verify that controls, consultation, training and records are working and can provide evidence of systematic review. Contracts, licences, regulator directions, incidents or industry requirements may create more specific audit obligations.

02What happens if the audit finds serious non-compliance?

We raise any immediate or serious risk with your nominated contact as soon as it is identified rather than waiting for the final report. The report then records the evidence, relevant duty, risk rating and recommended corrective action. You remain responsible for controlling the risk, but we can help prioritise actions, develop missing documents and verify that corrective actions have been closed.

03How often should a WHS audit be conducted?

Annually as a minimum for most organisations. High-risk industries, or organisations that have had a notifiable incident, a change in operations or a regulator visit, should audit more frequently.

04What is the difference between a WHS audit and a WHS gap analysis?

A WHS audit measures your arrangements against your legal duties and reports conformance. A WHS gap analysis is forward-looking — it identifies what you're missing before an inspector or an incident finds it, and delivers a ranked closure plan. Most organisations that have never been audited start with a gap analysis.

05What is the difference between a WHS audit and an OHS compliance audit?

The methodology is identical — the terminology differs by jurisdiction. Victoria operates under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004, so audits there are usually called OHS compliance audits. Every other Australian jurisdiction uses the harmonised WHS Act, so the term WHS audit applies. We audit against whichever framework binds you.

06Do we need a WHS audit if our system isn't certified?

Yes. Your duties under the WHS Act and Regulations apply regardless of any certification. An audit is how you generate the evidence that officers exercised due diligence — and that evidence matters most when something has already gone wrong.

07Will an audit trigger a regulator notification?

No. A Spire Safety audit is an independent engagement between you and us — our findings are confidential to your organisation. The exception is a genuine, imminent risk to life, which we would raise with you immediately as a matter of professional obligation.

08Can you audit multiple states under one engagement?

Yes. We audit across harmonised WHS jurisdictions and Victoria's OHS framework under a single scope, with jurisdiction-specific findings identified separately so each site knows what applies to it.

09What do we need to prepare before the audit?

Your WHS documentation, training and competency records, risk registers, incident records and contractor documentation. We send a specific document request list after the scoping call — nothing more is required, and we work with what exists rather than asking you to build it first.

10Do you also audit against ISO management system standards?

Yes. We run ISO 45001 internal audits against clauses 4 to 10 to prepare you for Stage 1, Stage 2 or surveillance audits. For gap analysis, implementation and certification readiness, see our ISO 45001 Consulting and Integrated Management Systems services. When one engagement covers both, we report WHS legal compliance findings and ISO conformity findings separately, because the criteria and audiences are different.

Related WHS and ISO services

WHS management systems — build the system the audit measures: documented, jurisdiction-correct and built to be used.
Psychosocial Risk Management — assess psychosocial hazards and establish practical controls.
WHS Consulting & SWMS — close documentation and implementation gaps identified by the audit.
ISO 45001 Consulting — prepare an OH&S management system for certification.
Mine safety management systems — site-specific systems and audits against mine safety obligations.

Related guides

WHS audit and gap analysis guides

Browse the full WHS resource library.

Where we work

WHS audits across Australia

Brisbane-based and delivered remote-first nationally. See our full list of service locations.

Book an independent WHS audit

Tell us what prompted the audit, where you operate and any deadline. A senior consultant will confirm the right scope and a fixed-fee proposal.

Book a WHS audit 1300 156 382