Removing WC from "outhouse".

[jrwmaccas]

Hi I've bought an 1880s house with no heating, barely any electrics and a bathroom in an outhouse. The outhouse is connected to the house by a now-rotting wooden porch-like structure. This structure could easily be knocked down and removed and the outbuilding would again be completely separate from the main house.

I want to put a bathroom in an upstairs 2.4x2.4m bedroom. I then want to knock out the facing wall of the outhouse, knock down the outhouse's internal walls, and join the outhouse to the main house as one big room, removing the bathroom in the process, and turn this new converted outhouse into a new kitchen.

I have just learnt that it is against building regulations to remove a downstairs WC. However, as the WC in this property could be considered as not technically in the house, would I be contravening regulations by removing it?

Here's a rough plan of the ground floor (some details such as doors missing). Front of the house is top of the picture; front door is top right with stairs below that; the narrow bit 2/3 of the way down is the porch-like structure and everything below that is the outhouse with the room on the right being the bathroom and the room to the left of that being the toilet.

Cheers folks!

 

[John D v2.0]

I'd be surprised if it's against building regs, who told you that? If you're creating a new dwelling eg change of use, you have to make reasonable provision for disabled users (part m) but you can just put a loo somewhere else appropriate.

 

[jrwmaccas]

Cheers John. I rang the building regs people at the local council, and they told me that if there's a ground floor WC, I can't get rid of it (or at least I have to put in another WC somewhere on the same level which is as or more compliant as the one being removed), as you say, because it would make the property less compliant with Part M. There's no where else really to put another ground floor loo. I didn't reveal my identity or the property location, so I'm still tempted to just get on with it. I bought the house at auction and even the auction catalogue got the facts wrong about where the bathroom is (it claimed it was upstairs), so I doubt the council would catch on. A little dodgy though I guess.

 

[John D v2.0]

Well how useful is the current loo to a disabled person? The council are just giving the theory.
To be honest a downstairs loo is generally a good idea, but common sense would be not likely to prevail in a non theoretical situation

 

[oldbutnotdead]

If you've got the room somewhere in your scheme, a downstairs loo (extra to an upstairs bathroom) is very useful especially if there are teenagers about

 

[SFK]

JR,
My personal feeling is that you simply need to change your mindset.
You do not currently have a DownStairs Toilet, you currently have an OutSide or Outhouse Toilet.
Always say that and then no issues on your "Finally Installing a Toilet into the house (upstairs)".
sfk

 

[jrwmaccas]

Thanks so much for all your advice, folks. I agree, oldbutnotdead, that it would be nice to have a downstairs toilet and so I will try to factor this into plans, although I think it may be difficult to fit it into the footprint. The current toilet is pretty disabled unfriendly anyway - there are steps up to the house, and then several more up and down within the house to get to the back door! But as you have said, John D, common sense may not prevail unless I have a reasonable person from the council come to take a look. The house was bought at auction and, as I mentioned, even the auction catalogue was not factually accurate about the location of the bathroom, saying that it was in fact upstairs.. So I'm not sure it would ever be questioned and i'm tempted just to get on with the work! If it ever gets questioned I can then use SFK's advice and just simply state that there was never a downstairs toilet, but rather an outdoor one. Thanks again.