Building Regulations for Staircases in England & Wales
Please
find some notes from Approved Document K of the Building Regulations
1992:
Stairs, Ramps and Guards
gives provisions for stairways in the design and building of stairways
which form part of the structure and guidance on the aspects of
geometry and guarding
of stairs.
BS585 Part 1 1989: Woodstairs
covers specifications for stairs with closed risers for domestic
use, including straight and winder flights and quarter or half landings.
Appendix A of this standard also details the recommendations for
the site fixing of stairs.
BS5395 Part 1 1977: Stairs, Ladders and Walkways covers the design
of straight stairs.
BS6180 1982: Code of practice for protective barriers in and about
buildings.
DEFINITIONS
Private stairs intended to be used for only one dwelling
with a maximum rise of 220mm and a minimum going of 220mm. A maximum
pitch of 42° is stipulated for domestic stairs.
Institutional and
assembly stairs serving a place where a substantial number of
people will gather, with a maximum rise of 150mm and a minimum going
of 280mm.
Other stairs covers
all other types of buildings, with a maximum rise of 190mm and a
minimum going of 250mm.
The normal relationship
between the dimensions of the rise and going can be expressed as
detailed in Approved Document K, which states that twice the rise
plus the going (2R+G) should be between 550mm and 700mm.
Pitch the angle
between the pitch line (notional line connecting nosings) and the
horizontal. The maximum pitch for domestic stairs is 42°, semi-public
stairs, eg factories, offices and common stairs serving more than
one dwelling, 38° and public stairs, eg places of public assembly,
33°.
Height of handrails Approved Document K states that flights should have a handrail on
at least one side if they are less than one metre wide and on both
sides if they are wider than one metre. There is no need for handrails
beside the bottom two steps of a stairway. Minimum domestic handrail
heights of 900mm for both stairs and landings, public handrail heights
should be a minimum of 900mm on stairs and 1100mm on landings.
It is also a Building
Regulations requirement that no openings in any balustrading should
allow the passage of a 100mm sphere.
Please
note this is not a full representation of the building regulations
on staircases and Stairplan take no responsability for any staircases
manufactured by any other staircase manufacturer or joiner.
For more detailed information on the current UK Building regulations
on staircases use this link .
Here are some Links to pages
out of The Building Regulations Document K.
Page 4
.This is a short introduction to Document K.
Page 5. This page is titled Guidance and
covers topics titled Performance, Intoduction and Definitions.
Page 6. This page covers the Steepness of
the Staircase with information on the Rise and Going, this page also notes
on the construction of the steps in relation to the 100mm sphere rules.
Page 7. This page covers Headroom, Stair
Widths and the total length a flight of stairs can go to.
Page 8 .This page refers to the areas required
to be left when a doorway is near the staircase, and also provides information
on the layout of Winder staircases.
Page 9. This page covers the Space Saver
staircases otherwise known as Alternating Tread Staircases. Fixed ladders.
also Handrails to staircases.
Page 10. This covers Ramps.
Page 11. K2 and K3 Health and Safety in
repect of Guarding.
Page 12. Guarding to different areas.(handrail
heights)
Page 13. 100mm Sphere Rule.
Please note we cannot guarentee these to be the latest publication.
