What does a new bathroom design cost in Essex?
Design has no separate fee on a supply-and-fit job. A complete fitted bathroom in Essex typically costs £6,900–£12,750 including VAT. Prices in Essex run at about 6% above the UK guide, based on East of England labour rates.
Survey and layout
- Layout options on paper
Detailed design
- Lighting and electrical plan
Full project
- Design, supply and fit
Guide prices for Essex including VAT. Your itemised written quote after the free survey is the price that counts.
Which towns do we cover in Essex?
- Southend-on-Sea
- Basildon
- Colchester
- Chelmsford
- Harlow
- Grays
- Braintree
- Brentwood
- Clacton-on-Sea
- South Benfleet
- Canvey Island
- Billericay
- Rayleigh
- Stanford-le-Hope
- Wickford
- Witham
- Pitsea
- Maldon
- Waltham Abbey
- South Ockendon
- Harwich
- Hadleigh
- Walton-on-the-Naze
- Frinton-on-Sea
- Rochford
- Saffron Walden
Supplies across most of Essex are very hard. We plan easy-clean glass, rimless toilets and finishes that do not show limescale. Hardness varies street by street, so check the figure for your postcode with your water supplier. For loft rooms and sloping ceilings in Southend-on-Sea homes, the design checks head height where you stand, not just the floor area.
What the job includes
- A measured survey of the room, including ceiling heights, slopes, window and door positions and any boxing
- Layout options drawn to scale, showing the bath or shower, WC, basin, storage and towel rail
- A clear view of which changes are cheap and which mean moving drainage or opening floors
- Checks on the soil stack, waste routes, joist direction, water pressure, hot water system and existing electrics
- A lighting and electrical plan showing switches, fittings, shaver socket and extractor fan
- Elevations and tile layouts on a design, supply and fit project, so the setting-out is agreed before tiling starts
Decisions to make first
Storage
Fitted furniture, a vanity with a tall cupboard, or recessed niches and a mirror cabinet. Recessed storage costs no floor space but needs a stud wall or deep boxing to sit in.
Keep or change the layout
Keeping the WC and shower where they are saves on plumbing. The WC is the costly one to move, because it is tied to the soil stack.
Where the shower goes
A shower on an outside wall is easier to ventilate; one under a sloping ceiling needs full head height where you stand, not just at the high side.
The door
Re-hanging the door on the other side, fitting a sliding pocket door or moving the opening can free up a whole wall in a small room.
Rules that apply in England
Changing the layout inside an existing bathroom does not need planning permission. The design does have to respect the electrical zones around the bath and shower under BS 7671, the water fittings rules for new WCs and taps, including a maximum 6-litre flush, and adequate extract ventilation. Listed buildings need listed building consent for alterations affecting their character, including new soil or vent pipes through walls, and in a flat the lease often requires freeholder consent for moving the WC or adding a new vent.
In England, a new connection to the soil stack or new drainage can be building regulations work under Part H, and new circuits or alterations to circuits in the bathroom are notifiable under Part P. Where a new bathroom is formed, Approved Document F asks for extract at 15 l/s intermittent or 8 l/s continuous.