Access and door compliance - The "small" compliance with the big impact

 

Once again we have some more compliances and this time they might not be something that you have necessarily thought about or maybe not even put too much consideration into! There is so much to think about when building but in construction every last detail needs to be planned. When taking on any project you need to ensure that every aspect adheres to the standards that are laid out in the relevant part of the building regulations.  You must think about the access to your property and make sure that if there was an emergency you would have available access to your home for an emergency vehicle. If your property caught fire you would need said vehicle to be able to reach the fire and get within a certain distance. This will come under the fire safety regulations of your build and there are many aspects to this and a lot more to consider. Your architect will be able to help you out with these requirements and ensure that your plan is completed correctly to factor them in as there may be more to think about than you realise.  Access to and use of buildings is referred to in Part M of the Buildings Regulations. This document provides information relating to the ease, access and the use of buildings and will include facilities for disabled people. The ease of moving through a building with wider doorframes and halls, suitable bathrooms and toilets etc must be a consideration. Part M can be split into a few categories; everyone, including disabled people, should be able to access all parts of the building.  Toilets should also be made available to all and if the building is a public building and seating is available then there must also be seating/access for disabled people.  This is an excellent source of information if you need a bit of help regarding Part M of the building compliance  https://www.homeadviceguide.com/guide-to-building-regulations-part-m/ Part Q of the building compliance refers to security and this in turn discusses windows and doors. Essentially all doors and windows need to adhere to the security measures that are set out. This is only in relation to newly built properties. All products used must adhere to British standards PAS 24:2012/2016. This site might be able to help with your questions https://origin-global.com/b2b-advice-centre/building-regulations-faqs-security-approved-document-q Don't forget doors may also be required to be considered for fire safety.  The other section of the building regulations that you might like to take a look at is Part B. This discusses fire safety and is where you will need to consider the access to your property as discussed at the beginning of this blog. Here you will also have to take into consideration the materials that you've used within your construction to make sure  that they are also compliant.  More information and further details can be found here https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fire-safety-approved-document-b These sections of the building regulations are equally important as any other and they need to be taken seriously when building any construction. Each section of the building regulations can be discussed at length. There are so many different parts and there are a lot of elements covered. Just make sure that you understand each compliance ATSPACE (https://atspaceltd.co.uk) really can help you with any issues and just remember that your reputation will only be as good as your last build.