Does this seem reasonable for an elderly-friendly bathroom in London?

[PinkCamelias]

My in-laws got a quote for 18k for a bathroom renovation including adjustments for the elderly. It's in London, but I stll think it's very steep? It would include leveling the floor, removing a bathtub, sink and toilet and installing a walk-in shower with a seat (with a new electric shower, this is what they have now too), higher toilet 'with a bidet function' (not sure if they mean a 2-in-1, or with a bidet shower attachment) and rails on both sides, new wash basin with a vanity, a standing unit, towel rails, a heated towel rail (I have to ask if that is necessary because it would be opposite the current radiator, so pipes would need to be moved). I think the wall covering proposed is panels, not tiles, and floor is Karndean.

Do this seem right to you? I am torn, because I could design a prefectly nice and safe bathroom for them, and certainly make it look less like a hospital (which would matter at resale) but we don't live in the UK and don't know any London bathroom fitters who would be reliable and available, so I am wary of offering my help. Would it even be cheaper?

is it a big room? It can all add up very quickly.

Just because it meets the needs of older people doesn’t mean it won’t also be a stylish bathroom

Make sure that the shower is completely level access - not even a small step into it and that a wheeled shower chair can fit in through the opening

make sure they will be able to use the controls on the wash /dry toilet (have they tried one? Some people hate it!

I would definitely get a couple more quotes

My FIL was approved for grant for bathroom but was going to take a year. One of their approved tradesmen was the plumber my FIL used anyway so he did It. It was £8k excluding vat as he had disabilities. Sadly he only used it a handful of times as he died fairly soon after it was finished. £18k does sound a lot. I'd have thought nearer 12k.

£20k for my plumber to do DF's bathroom three years ago. Stripped right back to brick. Included new floorboards as old were rotten. Make sure loo is comfort height. Don't put heated towel rail near the shower exit, the temptation to hold on to it is great and they may burn themselves. Also, a regular, non fixed shower chair is better as it gives more flexibility especially when they need to be showered by someone. We have contract non slip flooring (the type used in clinical settings), very practical and hard-wearing. If you get high end grab rails and design it properly, you'd never know it is accessible. We also have a corner bottle basket that has a grab rail function, it just doesn't look like one. It's well worth paying for, the difference it made to us cannot be overstated. Make sure there's enough room for mobility aids such as walking frames etc.

We paid about that for a complete refit of our bathroom but used a local firm which included the design work and a lot of input. It was expensive but there was a lot of moving around to do. Plumbing and walls which had been put up to hide pipes and more. Fantastic attention to detail and every detail thought of and looked after by them. I basically only had to put in towels and a loo roll.

Please, it's not an 'elderly bathroom' it's an accessible bathroom. They may never need some of the extra features but they are sensible to consider them . And if it's their money they can have what they like!

My parents' bathroom cost £6k. But they kept the basin & toilet. Bath was removed and replaced with a shower with a low level shower tray & a seat, grab rails, new non-slip vinyl flooring and ceramic tiles on the wall which had to be stripped back to the brick.

Do they need to have so much done?

The organisation of it is no doubt factored in.

We've done a few bathrooms recently and been to various suppliers to choose tiles, white items, taps and accessories.

This keeps the cost down and we chose a super duper shower and a cheap bath (we don't use the bath much).

If FIL is not able to get things like this sorted and delivered on time it costs.

BTW, I hope they have another toilet in the house!

This week City Plumbing has announced a 19% price increase for some plastic piping. My bathroom installer has encouraged me to firm up
my decisions sooner rather than later for some refurb work.

@NetZeroZealot I have no idea if the need all that or was it a case of a successful sale. My husband will ask when he discusses this and the alternatives. Admittedly this bathroom has needed total renovation for a long time, regardless of accessibility, so you can’t argue that something can be saved.

@Mosaic123yes exactly, it’s important that someone can supply everything, they can’t do any of that themselves. We could do it, but logistically it would be very difficult so we are careful in what we advise to not make things too complicated. And no, they have no other toilet, which is a problem in itself; for the time of the works we will find a solution.

Either a hotel or if they want to stay a commode!

My DPs resisted getting a walk in shower for their downstairs bathroom. This resulted in at least two preventable falls and both eventually having to be hand-washed by carers. They are now in a care home which costs £8000 a month each, I believe a walk in shower could have delayed that by a few months.
Does it sound expensive- well yes, but equally is it absolutely necessary- also yes. Maybe you could google some local firms for reviews and send them out to get a couple more quotes. But honestly I wouldn’t hold the work up.

Absolutely @rookiemere. We’re very glad FiL wants to do it at all, and we will not discourage him if other options mean delay. He’s not decided yet and hasn’t signed a contract. We got lots of useful advice here that could be used to revise the daje project even. My husband says it’s 0% VAT already in the offer, by the way.

Suggest contacting your local council or social services there should be a department that does a health assessment & some places give out grants for this type of work to be carried out.