Upper Floor Levels no more than 4.5m Above ground level:
(Houses LHS) All habitable rooms (not kitchens) within the upper storey of a dwelling which has only one stairwell must have egress windows fitted in compliance with the Building Regulation unless that stairwell is protected in which case no egress window will be required. Using an Egress window that is over 4.5m above ground level is not viable as it is unlikely that if a fire should occur that the occupants will jump through and out of the building at such a height. Therefore the Part B approved document states: -
(Houses RHS) “The dwelling may either have a fire protected stairwell or the top storey of the dwelling is separated from the lower storeys using fire resistant construction materials and provide an alternative escape route leading to the main door. If the dwelling has more than one stairwell which are separate then this is deemed as an alternative means of escape and therefore the ruling above for floor levels above 4.5m need not apply.”
