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FLIGHT OF STAIRS GETTING IN THE WAY OF A DREAM RENOVATION? ARCHITECTURE FOR LONDON’S AMRIT MARWAY TELLS US HOW TO GO ABOUT CREATING A NEW ONE
Designing a staircase might seem like a mountain of a job but the upheaval can be worth it. Don’t get us wrong, it’s definitely not a simple endeavour: you’ll almost certainly need professional help and it will be an investment. But what it does do is offer the opportunity to completely alter your home’s entrance, potentially turning it into an enviably striking one. Changing the staircase can improve a bad layout and turn a standard interior into something stunning. To begin, think about whether a new staircase will actually change your space for the better – will it improve the layout, could it add value and is it doable? Amrit Marway, associate director at Architecture for London, shares her tips for embarking on a new staircase adventure.
1Look closely at your layout. Where do you arrive when you reach the last step on your existing staircase? It’s usually better to line your staircase along an external wall so you are not using up the centre of a room as circulation space. There may be instances where a central location for a staircase is desirable, such as a sweeping spiral or helical statement staircase within the centre of the floor plan.
2Straight or winding steps? Once you have established the location of a new staircase there are a number of factors that have to be considered in its design.
The shape of the staircase is dictated by the number of steps that are required between the two different floor levels. Measure the height between the two floors and divide this into an even number of steps. Make sure you have enough space for the head height, the width and the length of the stairs. Calculate the number of risers and treads that you need and sketch out the stairs in elevation from the side profile.
Check to make sure that the rake or angle of the stairs is under 43 degrees. The guidelines for designing new stairs can be found in Planning Portal’s Building Regulations Approved Document Part K on staircase design.
3Consider the staircase material, whether that’s timber, metal, stone, concrete or glass. Timber staircases are by far the most cost-effective option to add to a property. A good joinery outfit should be able to put this together for you. If you are going with a traditional timber staircase your joinery firm will visit and carry out its own survey and drawings. But if you are looking at using alternative materials you will have to ensure that the components of the staircase are robust, including how it is supported structurally and how it all connects together, and you will need a structural engineer involved to help with the design.
4You can employ an experienced contractor who will be able to source their own specialist stair manufacturer and joi
