"blakey9000" wrote in message
m...
Yes the stairs downstairs are open plan, however I have building regs
approval and the staircase was clearly indicated on the plans, the new
stairs are however enclosed.

Are you sure you have an "approved" plan? If you've left it to an architect
or plan drawer, it's not beyond the realms of possibility that he may have
put the application on a Building Notice, or the plans may be rejected, or
conditionally approved subject to this item. I'm not clear from your reply
whether the open plan stair was indicated at ground floor level. If not, it
may have just been assumed by the plan checker that it was enclosed.

If none of the above apply, and you have fully approved plans showing an
open plan layout, then the Council can't take enforcement action against you
for failing to provide an enclosure (except by way of an injunction to the
High Court for a dangerous building). However they can withhold a
completion certificate on the basis that it doesn't comply with the
requirements.

However, the lack of an enclosure at ground floor level is so fundamental to
the safety of a loft conversion that any competent architect or Building
Control Surveyor should have picked it up on day one. It's one of the first
questions I ask when I'm asked, "what do I need for a loft conversion?".
--
Hugo Nebula
"The fact that no-one on the internet wants a piece of this
shows you just how far you've strayed from the pack".