We got called out to a property in Rainham where a previous extension had left the staircase in a bad state. One of the treads had a 400mm drop to the next, which is not something you want in a family home. The client had building experience and had already moved the trimmer 600mm to make room for a new staircase, but he could not get the headroom to work. His numbers gave him 1810mm, and that is not enough.

Working it out

That is where we came in. We looked at the numbers and worked out that by reducing the tread count by one compared to the original staircase, we could gain enough room for a proper landing and bring the headroom up to 1950mm. Still not quite building regs, but the original staircase with its 400mm death drop had already been signed off, so the bar was not exactly high. We always prefer to work within the regulations. Sometimes the existing structure makes that impossible, and this was one of those jobs. The improvement was significant either way.

The finish

Once the staircase was in, the client chose oak handrails and base rails with 14mm matt black spindles. The oak against the black keeps things clean and modern without trying too hard, and it gives the hallway a bit of weight that the old setup never had.

The client was over the moon with the result, which is always the best part of a job like this. A staircase that was genuinely dangerous is now something the whole family can use without a second thought.