I regularly get requests from self-build house projects for alternative staircases to the stairs drawn on the original plans submitted by the architect.

A typical scenario is that the self builder employs an architect to draw up plans for submission to the Planning and Building Control departments. Unless told otherwise the architect will quite rightly plonk a house stair on the plans that he or she knows will comply with the Regs. This will invariably be a nice safe traditional timber design that will cause no problems. Approvals are obtained and everyone is happy so far.

As the building work progresses, the self-builder will quite rightly start to get involved in some of the finer details like colour schemes, kitchen fixtures etc. At this point someone usually realises one of two things
A, there is a really boring staircase proposed for the hallway, or
B, they have gone over budget and cannot afford the feature glass spiral staircase that seemed a good idea before the recession kicked in.

On the other hand if you are reading this blog because you are in the early design stage of a house build or refurbishment, well done you, that is the right time to look at such an important fitting as a stair in your dream home.
Staircases can and should be ordered and installed later in the building project, but the hole in the floor that the stair passes through has to be constructed early. The dimensions of this aperture are likely to be specific to the original stair design, and may need adapting if you are trying to change things. Altering trimming joists in an already constructed first or second floor can prove expensive.
If you are in the first category and are trying late in the day to change a staircase up market, do not panic yet. Assuming that the original design worked, the floor aperture size should also allow a similar but posher design to fit. This is likely to be a made-to-measue stair that by the nature of the beast can be made to suit. It may however be trickier if you are trying to save money and are going for say a stylish kit stair. These are made to a module and though they are invariably adaptable and can be squeezed in, the squeezing may put it outside of the all important Regs.

Probably the most common request that I get is from self-builders who half way through the building work realise that there is a whole loft area that they had not considered, and would now like to add onto the project as bedroom number 8 or 9.There is nothing wrong with this; it must be cheaper to do it during the main building work rather than later on. However again space for the access stair on the first floor has to be planned early. There nothing worse than realising too late that a very small alteration to your floor layout before it was built, would have allowed a lovely kit stair to access your extra bedroom.
The moral is think ahead, stairs take up space and need to be considered early in the project.