Hi There Brian, I have been pondering your UK project, and like all big cities around the world, affordability is out of reach of most. Harking back to the Aussie House built which was once garage and is now a 5 story home. Is you your plan part of a complex? or is there opportunity for access to a roof top?. My concern is to make the most of internal space, the first floor would be Ok, but for top end dollar I would like to see two good sized bedrooms with ensuite, to accommodate 2 professionals or 2 adults and child/guest. Is there anyway that the 1.5 down stairs out door space could be included as internal space and part of the bedrooms, with glass panels/skylights opening, with blinds for privacy. This would then do 3 things allow more fresh air and light along with space for decent ensuites and WIR. I think that the 1,5 if allowed is more important for internal space. If you do have access to roof top the laundry could be moved back up to the entry level. Also have you considered a single stair case, is it a modern contemporary house. Just thinking cheers

by "other options" i mean that you should consider all other options for locations of fixtures..there is already plumbing along each wall so swapping the location of shower and bath or vanity isn't as challenging as if there were no original plumbing in that area and if you plan to replace the fixtures and tiles rearranging the fixtures will only be a small percentage of the budget and it's a shame to limit the final result without at least considering other options..and although there is enough space to have the vanity hard up against the wall my suggestion is to have the vanity away from the wall to make it easier to clean and also because the small nook is an ideal space for hanging a hair dryer and with the luxury of so much space it will be easier to install a vanity away from the wall

You should create the bathroom that works best for you. I have no family but for me a bathroom with no tub is a big no no because I like to have a bath occassionally. Yet I've walked through many homes recently in which the main bathroom had a shower only. A lot of people find better mileage with an oversized shower. Do you ever take baths? Do you ever have small children in your home? Do you need a tub to wash the dog in? Are you going to ever sell this home to a family with small children? If the answer is no to all of those then it may be a better use of your space to put in a shower only. I disagree that a shower over a bath is a big no no in a family home. If you have children under 5 a bath is a must. You cannot bath a small child in a shower [easily]. I've yet to meet anyone that absolutely hates a shower over a bath who wasn't an octagenarian and even then their objection is the fact their balance isn't what it used to be and they find getting in and out physically difficult. Go with what works for you and your situation. Anyone after you who buys this house can put it the way they like it later.

Hi oklouise The sad part is the existing bathroom is beautifully finished! This whole house was well finished and really well built. It was sad to have to demolish things that were so well done, but the design problems made changes necessary. The bathroom has porcelain wall tiles floor to ceiling on all walls and a white polished porcelain floor (slippery as all hell, and a mongrel to keep the grout lines clean!) is laid over a full 300mm+ of solid concrete, under which are all the drains. Outer walls are 200mm of reinforced solid concrete. Tiles on internal walls are over cypress timber frame with generally two layers of lining glued, screwed and nailed on - and there is way more timber in the frame than necessary. I think the builder (who built it for himself) thought the house would last forever and would never need to be changed in any way. Exact distance from external door to wall is 1.1m on both vanity and shower side. The door combination is 1200 wide and placed dead center. It's worth noting that 300m on the vanity side of the door is full-length frosted glass panel and it's possible to infringe a bit on that area if absolutely necessary, provided there's enough room for the door to swing safely (as it swings toward the vanity. I will take some photos now and share.