Help me design/renovate the downstairs of my house

[DownmarketSellingSunset]

I had a thread on here some time ago where I asked people about opening up the downstairs space in our house a bit more. Someone suggested opening up the back of the house rather than knocking through from the kitchen to the dining room, which is what we're going to go ahead with. But I'm a bit lost as to how to arrange the space.

I want to keep a downstairs loo, but move it so it's out of the way. To complicate matters we need to add in some level access as at the moment we haven't got any way of getting a wheelchair into the back of the house and we need that. We aren't attached to the store, but I had assumed we'd put the loo in the utility room.

We're probably looking at a budget of approx £60k for the whole job.

Anyone got any suggestions to maximise the space and make the most efficient use of it? We currently use the breakfast room as a play room/tv room for the kids so we'd need a sofa and toy space in the new big room.

Moving loos is expensive, so first thing I'd do is work out where the outside drains run so you can work out where the easiest (cheapest) place to move the loo is.

What about under the stairs?
Or make a loo next to the utility in the store space.

Unfortunately we can't put the loo under the stairs as there are stairs there down to the cellar. I assumed it would have to be a loo in the utility room but open to any and all suggestions!

Loo to store by utility if you need to move it, but looks sensible to keep where is with your budget.

I’d probably just open up the other side of both fireplaces and have them open both sides as features. So two large rooms with those in the middle.

You could move your front door.
If you put this at the side of your house so you enter into the side of what is now the lounge you can build a porch onto the front of the utility room and have what is now the lounge as your dining room / hall.
You move the toilet to behind where the front door currently is.
Open the breakfast room through the kitchen.. now no toilet in the way.
And back into the dining room. Extend here if money stretches.
I would probably move the kitchen from the back to the front of the house.
And depending on your longer term plans you could use a small amount of the space in the current dining room, now kitchen which is bigger, to install a lift to come up where the bedroom cupboard currently is.