Policy information sourced from Hammersmith & Fulham Planning Guidance

DA7 Access to facilities inside a building

Facilities that are essential to disabled people enjoying full access to a building in its planned use should normally be designed to be all-purpose. Plans submitted for new development or change of use should indicate generally how facilities and circulation will be available to each main area of general public or business visitor use, or to the main area, such as an entrance level, where fully accessible services are to be provided. Guidance on ensuring that sufficient space has been allowed for lifts, toilets, and interview rooms is given below:

  • Lifts to main general public use areas should have an 1100mm wide door and lift cars that are 2000mm x 1400mm inside in accordance with BS 8300:2009. Otherwise lifts in or at the entrances to public use areas should meet building regulation Part M Approved Document requirements. They should have space at each end clear of gates and door swings for wheelchair users to approach, and 1500mm turning squares outside the doors.
  • In larger buildings, plans should identify which enclosed car passengers lifts (other than fire-fighting lifts) are to have a secondary or backup power supply and are equipped to function as Evacuation Lifts for disabled people.
  • Accessible unisex toilets in main general public use areas should be 2.0m x 2.2m in size, and meet the recommendations for internal fittings and layout set out in Fig 51b of BS 8300:2009. Such toilets can be regarded as meeting all user needs, as an alternative to building regulations compliant separate sex toilets with 800mm and 1200mm wide cubicles and at least one unisex wheelchair user facility.
  • In a main general public or business visitor use area, the minimum size of an accessible interview room, quiet room, or one-to one support teaching room, should be 2.1m x 2.3m, as recommended in BS 8300:2009 [Fig. 30].
  • New buildings or major building extensions on smaller school campuses can be designed to provide small group tutorial rooms and all-user or assisted user toilet facilities, as an element in school accessibility plan enhancements that provide ramp entrances and enhance acoustics in other existing school buildings on the campus.

For more information please see the Hammersmith & Fulham Planning Guidance