Internal Staircase may not comply with building regs?

[Chucklehead]

I'm interested in a flat that is on the market at the moment. It was once a very large detached Victorian house but is now split in to three flats. The top floor takes over the full footprint and is now one flat. The ground floor is split in to two "duplex" properties with kitchen / living upstairs and bedrooms downstairs.

The conversion looks to have been done 5-10 years ago and is a little bit tired and is on my risky-but-might-be-worth-a-punt list. I like it, but there are a number of issues - mainly concerns about damp (rising or penetrating) and quite a lot of tidy up work required, aesthetic mainly I hope.

There is one thing on the home report that I was looking for advice on.. "the internal staircase may not comply with current building regulations and further advice should be sought". The staircase is, I'm told, Italian. I'm rubbish at descriptions, but if you imagine that each step is a wooden leaf held together at one end with a series of very large bolts and caps in a sort of half spiral design. It can be tightened by removing the caps and hulking up the bolts. According to the owner, the space inbetween the steel bannister was too wide and she had to screw plywood over them before she was allowed to rent it.

I'll be removing that! But does this sound accurate, and what potential repercussions are there. Is there any way to confirm this conversion has been "signed off"?

[Chucklehead]

Thanks all. I viewed the property again last night and unfortunately didn't get any pictures of the stairs, I'll get some next week when I intend to get a second survey done.

Implications if I remove the plywood and get on with life? Or is that more of a resale issue?

[Chucklehead]

Turns out they had some decent images on the rightmove page. No measurements yet though

[Chucklehead]

Thanks - great question. I'd like to know that myself. How can I check?

The flat itself is ground floor and basement although ground floor has a second exit out the back (on a slope front to back). So technically the whole property is basement, ground, first.

[Chucklehead]

Definitely had planning permission. 2004 it was granted.

[Chucklehead]

So it's bannister stuff we're talking about here rather than the gap between the steps?

[Chucklehead]

Thanks all for your advice.

Spudler, if not the bannister, why ruin an interesting staircase by screwing plywood to the banister??

How can I confirm building control?