My challenges with a 19 month old Banksy wannabe are finding a paint colour scheme that I like that will stand up to crayons, chalk etc - we're stuck with the last owner's magnolia for now, just because it is easy & cheap to touch up when there's a colour attack... But also, and mostly, layout is an issue for us as it is about getting the space to work so that there's storage for toys, space for play, hazards are minimised and it looks like a grown-up space when it needs to. I'm working on it (!!!) but would welcome ideas.

If you decide to proceed make sure the loft has been built to building regs (This is a solicitor job). Because the stairs don’t sound like they meet regs it could be the case that the owners of this house have in fact not strengthened and insulated the loft which are expensive jobs. If you don’t have the building regs then it is not a proper room and you shouldn’t be paying for it.

Hi Belinda, The only internal height restrictions that I'm aware of in the building regulations are related to headroom over staircases. You could probably achieve something acceptable in this instance with more of a ladder type access to a bed platform. Who told you that you couldn't legally have one? And on what basis? Best wishes with your design! Jane award winning chartered architect eco-home and conservation area specialist www.i-architect.co.uk For helpful videos watch my YouTube Channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@iarchitect

Hey Lee, Just another idea not covered above, without moving the stairs or load-bearing walls (which is obviously super expensive). I wondered if you could move the new WC and utility in your hallway space, using that space also under the stairs. This would then do a similar thing as moving the staircase to open up the space but would leave you with wider rooms rather than narrower ones. I'm also not a fan of long halls as they are a bit of a waste of space. So if I can ever get rid of them I do! I am also not a fan of a WC right off a living/dining space so having this off the hall seems more logical. If you also have the WC in the utility/panatry area your guests have to go into it to get to it, which for me defeats the purpose of having this hidden messy space!!! The doors between spaces can obviously be adjusted, you could also enter the utility from the dining area if preferred but I've seen so many great designs for small utilities/WC's that would be great in that space. Purley going from the thickness of the wall between the dining area and old utility, I assumed it was load bearing, so left it in, but could open it up, or if you want more of a broken plan feel, you could put barn door type dividers in or glass doors to let in light but keep spaces sperate. Depending on how load-bearing the walls are. This should only mean a small stud between WC and utility and then the old utility walls in the new kitchen space. I blocked up the door between the dining room and utltiy but this also could be kept in if you don't mind accessing it from this room. Hope this helps :) Rhiannon