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The Better Practice Inspections Playbook

Guidance for regulators on how to improve inspection practices and prepare for digital reform.

Details

Topic:
Regulatory reform
Audiences:
State government - regulatory operations, State government - regulatory policy
Regulatory functions:
Practice and processes, Digitisation, Compliance and enforcement
Industry:
All relevant industries
Document types:
Framework, Guide, Playbook, Template
Author:
Better Regulation Victoria
Date published:
30 April 2025

About

The Inspections Playbook provides guidance for all Victorian regulators on how they can prepare for digitisation and improve their compliance monitoring processes (with a focus on inspections) in a standardised way. The material is intended to complement BRV’s Better Practice Permissions Playbook.

The Inspections Playbook has been developed to assist regulators with existing systems and process, as well as those developing better practice from a blank slate.

How this tool can help

Regulators can use the playbook to:

  • assess how ‘digitally ready’ their practice and processes are
  • implement improved practice and process
  • prepare for future digital reform and/or undertake periodic reviews.

Support to apply this tool

A quick overview of how a regulator can assess and build digital readiness for compliance monitoring inspections. Includes ten digital considerations.

Better Practice Inspections Playbook - Overview
PDF 1.68 MB
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Better Practice Inspections Playbook - Overview
PPT 430.67 KB
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Part A: Review the foundations of your compliance monitoring practice

Primarily to help executives and senior managers assess whether their organisations have effective regulatory strategies in place to guide their operational practices.

Better Practice Inspections Playbook - Part A
PDF 4.48 MB
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Better Practice Inspections Playbook - Part A
PPT 795.19 KB
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Part B: Designing better practice compliance monitoring inspection processes

Primarily for managers and reform officers implementing system reforms. Provides a ‘how to guide’ and process mappings to support inspections process reforms in a consistent, standardised way.

Better Practice Inspections Playbook - Part B
PDF 6.55 MB
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Better Practice Inspections Playbook - Part B
PPT 872.96 KB
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Download

To complement this guidance, specialised 'tools' to support regulators have been developed to help them make practical reforms to compliance monitoring processes.

Toolkit 1 - Strategic Resource Allocation Tool

Support for regulators to plan how they allocate their resources across inspection activities.

Toolkit 1 - Strategic Resource Allocation Tool - Better Practice Inspections
Excel 3.25 MB
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Toolkit 2 - Data and information architecture

Provides a framework for regulators to consider when assessing how data is structured within their systems and ‘knowledge management’ processes.

Toolkit 2 - Data and Information Architecture - Better Practice Inspections.pptx
PPT 430.29 KB
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Toolkit 3 - Triggering inspections from complaints and referrals

Support for regulators to develop a clear view of what initiates (or ‘triggers’) an inspection, so they are conducted consistently and are an appropriate regulatory response.

Toolkit 3 - Triggering Inspections from Complaints and Referrals - Better Practice Inspections.pptx
PPT 466.75 KB
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The Permissions and Inspections Playbooks complement other regulatory guidance

The Playbook links to other regulatory guidance, including the Victorian Guide to Regulation, Towards Best Practice guide for regulators, and the Victorian Permissions Framework and Guidance.

Updated