Disability Access Certificate and Toilet requirement in preschool

booksale

I am going to start up a childminding service in my home taking in up to 5 ECCE kids in Sept 2019 with the hope to expand and change it to a preschool taking in up to 11 ECCE kids in Sept 2020.  Our house is in a rural area in County Cork. The building and extentions were built between 1840 - 1960.
I think I don't need Disability Access Certificate for childminding setting but the preschool set-up. Am I right?

There is a separate entrance to the preschool and outdoor area. But since the house is in a mountain, there are a few steps at the back entrance to the big open space. Is it impossible to get disability Access Certificate without alterations? And how wide the entrance door need to be? And there is a porch at the front door which might make it hard for disability access.

About the toilet, the room we want to use as a preschool classroom was actually a function room, thus it has already got two washrooms, in which there are 1-2 toilet cubicles. But the washroom doors (not the toilet doors!) are directly off a preschool room. Is this OK? Or I need to add a divider between the washrooms and preschool classroom to create a ventilated lobby?

Million thanks!

Calahonda52

Plenty written on this forum about these issues: not my area of expertise but I do recall a need for fire certificates, as well as satisfying what ever your insurers will require.
Try using google advanced search, with boards.ie as the site domain and put in specific word(s)

The toilet cubicles I suspect are not suitable for wheelchair access.

I have seen the washroom doors in classrooms in National schools.
Is there rere access that is wide enough.

Part M here will get you started.
https://www.housing.gov.ie/housing/building-standards/tgd-part-d-materials-and-workmanship/Technical-guidance-documents

However I don't know if there are any additional requirements for a project such as yours.
Good luck with it.

Gumbo

Planning required for change of use.
Fire cert required and disability access cert required.

If you can demonstrate in your DAC application that the existing site cannot allow for the level entry it may be ok. With existing buildings you have to have allowances for existing site constraints that cannot be overcome.

*my experience is Dublin so may not be exactly the same in Cork.

Doop

You really need to obtain professional advice...

Gumbo

Doop wrote: »

You really need to obtain professional advice...

+1
Engage a local professional.

BryanF

http://universaldesign.ie/Built-Environment/Building-for-Everyone/

Aim.gov.ie

booksale

Thank you guys. Glad to know there might be an exemption for existing buildings. We will definitely need help from an architecture engineer when we will apply for the planning permission.

About the toilet, I re-read the regulations. My main concern was that they don’t allow the toilet to open directly to the classroom whereas our washroom doors do open directly to the classroom. Fortunately they count the space between the washroom door where the washing basin is and the toilet cubicle door as ventilation space if the toilet cubicle is closed from ceiling to floor. That would make it easier for us to alter then.

And we have two washrooms, one is big enough to change into disabled toilet if needed.