Level access shower room tray - Regulation?

[Hastings]

Does anyone know if a shower tray in an accessible shower room needs to be level access?

It is the only shower room in the house (and there is no bath room).

New build in Scotland.

 

The regulation says:

Quote

An accessible shower room should be of a size that will accommodate either a level- access floor shower with a drained area of not less than 1.0m x 1.0m (or equivalent) or a 900mm x 900mm shower tray (or equivalent).

 

 

Presumably the first part is referring to a wet room?

[JohnMo]

Not sure if I right, but I put in a 1000mm square shower tray 20mm high., There a 10mm lip once tiled on floor.  But the only shower door you can get (or could find) are fitted with an upstanding strip under the actual door about 50mm high.

 

But is there wording in the regulations about providing a space for... accessibility shower or bath.

[Hastings]

42 minutes ago, JohnMo said:

I put in a 1000mm square shower tray 20mm high., There a 10mm lip once tiled on floor.  But the only shower door you can get (or could find) are fitted with an upstanding strip under the actual door about 50mm high.

 

Thank you. Yes I am not sure it is even possible to do a level access tray other than by using a curtain and allowing for some spillage.

With a house accessible door entrance there is a few mm to play with so I guess the same could be true for a shower.

 

56 minutes ago, JohnMo said:

is there wording in the regulations about providing a space for... accessibility shower or bath.

 

 

All I can find is this which I think does not apply (as there is no other bathing room in the house):

Quote

Alternative - space for future shower - where a dwelling has a bathroom or shower room on another level, which is not en suite to a bedroom, some occupants may not require the immediate provision for bathing on the principal living level. Where this is the case, the principal living level may instead have a separate, enclosed space of a size that, alone or by incorporation with the accessible toilet, will permit formation of an accessible shower room (as described above) at a future date. This space can, instead, offer useful storage space.

This space should have a drainage connection, positioned to allow installation of either a floor shower or raised shower tray, sealed and terminated either immediately beneath floor level under a removable access panel or at floor level in a visible position. The structure and insulation of the floor in the area identified for a future floor shower should allow for the depth of an inset tray installation (all floors) and a ‘laid to fall’ installation (solid floors only). If not adjacent to an accessible toilet and separated by an easily demountable partition,

a duct to the external air should be provided to allow for later installation of mechanical ventilation.

 

[Hastings]

I'm feeling now that my answer must be NO.

Otherwise they would surely have specified that requirement clearly.

[skeg0]

@Hastings Did you have any issues with building control eventually on this? We are in a similar position. Our building control officers told us on site we should have a shower tray with minimal height of 15mm but I can't see anything in the documentation that supports this. We have bought a high shower tray which is about 30cm high specifically as it fits our needs now. I really dont want to have to buy and install a low profile tray in order to go and rip it our later.. seems rather ridiculous tbh. 

We will have a bathroom on another level though which suggests we may not need to worry about it based on the text you posted above.

But yeah, was curious as to how you got on, we are Scotland based too.

 

Cheers!

[Hastings]

I still have not been signed off - aiming for submission before mid November now - so I can't definitively answer yet. The inspector has visited and didn't mention it as a problem but I am not sure that he was checking everything to the degree he will/might when he comes for the final sign off.

[skeg0]

ok cool well good luck with it! Fingers crossed.

[Hastings]

I think it is very very unlikely to be a requirement. A wheelchair is not normally designed to be used in a shower and therefore a requirement for level access would not be logical. You transfer from a wheelchair onto a WC and I think the thinking is that you could put a seat in a shower to transfer onto.

 

From memory I don't think a shower in a new build is a requirement at all. You can just provide a bath.

Edited September 29, 2023 by Hastings
After thought

[JohnMo]

We were signed off in March (Scotland), no issues.

 

We have a low profile shower tray, about 20mm, the floor tiles butt up against the shower tray, so in theory a step of a out 10mm.  However the door frame has a 50mm high cross piece at the bottom, giving a step. Still no comments at sign off.