12 November 2018
Creating the house of your dreams can sometimes leave you thinking of hundreds of different things all at once. There are so many details that go into creating the perfect living space that, without some professional help, it is almost impossible to get everything just the way you want it. These are problems everyone faces, but it’s multiplied even further for young families!
While you may have grand plans for your new family home, it is always important to consider the needs of all its inhabitants, and this includes your stairs. Recognising the needs of young children or elderly when designing a new set of stairs is essential to ensure the stairs are comfortable for all users, and to avoid any unfortunate incidents occurring.
However, this doesn’t mean you have to child-proof your lovely new staircase from top to bottom or that you must install a stair lift! Consider these simple points before deciding on a new stair design for your family home.
Of course, a family staircase shouldn’t just be considerate of children but of everyone that could use it over its lifetime. For this reason, it’s always important to carefully consider what size your stairs will be.
This often forms the base of the modern debate between choosing traditional straight stairs and a modern spiral or helical staircase. While more and more people want a curved staircase for their home, it’s important to remember that this will be harder to traverse, particularly if people are likely to cross over on their way up and down the stairs. If you have a busy home with young and older people living there you may want to consider the pros and cons for your new chosen stair design, size and model.
Straight stairs are often mistakenly seen as needlessly large and cumbersome. However, a wide, straight staircase will be considerably easier for children or elderly to use, while busier homes will also benefit from the smooth passing of people on each side of the stairs simultaneously. Of course, this is not to say that a helical or spiral staircase won’t work in a family home, as many of the issues with curved stairs can be anticipated and mitigated.
Many people like to have a very minimalist style for their bespoke staircases UK, and while this may look stylish and suit the décor of your home, it’s important to remember the potential risks that an open style can present, particularly for very young children. A common problem, especially with toddlers, is the size of the gap between each baluster, where even a small gap could cause your child to get trapped while in their explorative phase. The UK Building Regulations stipulate that all gaps should be less than 100mm, this parameter is worth checking when working with your chosen stair supplier.
As we mentioned previously, having children should not get in the way of your dreams for your family home, so if a minimalist stair is the perfect design for your space, then you should continue with it. However, consider purchasing some temporary safety measures that can be added to the structure during your child’s early years – items such as temporary wood or plastic coverings for your balusters or suitable stairgates for the top and bottom of your staircase will give you much-needed peace of mind during your child’s early years.
The material is often one of the most important things to consider whenever you are in the position of designing a new staircase, and for a family home, it’s important to choose a material based on more than just its appearance. Your new staircase will become a vital part of daily life for everyone in the home – probably more so than you realise – and it’s important to consider not just how it looks but also how it will feel for everyone to traverse it.
While materials such as glass and concrete may look stylish and modern, they often come with many pitfalls that need to be recognised. Glass is easily scratched and is susceptible to visible wear over time, while concrete usually only works in large spaces. Importantly, both of these materials offer very little in the way of cushion in the event of a fall. Staircases made of timber, such as observed in our Stair Gallery, are usually more forgiving – while famously versatile and long-lasting, wooden stairs are also slightly softer underfoot and wear and tear can usually be repaired and restored fairly easily.
