Over £300 for a bath panal! Any alternatives?

[CRtester]

Our slightly odd shaped bath desperately needs a new bath panal as the current one is cracked and broken. We saw one in B and Q for about £30. Great. But then when we measured properly, we realised ours is an odd size and so we'd have to get it from the same shop the bath originally came from. (Luckily there was a sticker on the inside with the name of the shop on it) I just can't believe how expensive it is. Seems ridiculous.

I can't work out a way around it though unless anyone has any brilliant suggestions??

Could you get one custom made? A joiner to make a panel and then either tile it or get one of those (pretend) wall panels that is made of plastic but looks like marble or whatever.

We just made a panel out of wood and tiled it. Can you do that?

I don't know! Thing is the panal is curved so I'm not sure how it would work. Would hiring a joiner be cheaper than just buying a new panal?

It might be cheaper if your bath isnt standard shape tbh. I dont suppose you or DH is handy with a saw and drill?

Not particularly! Dh isn't bad at diy but it doesn't come naturally to him iyswim.

You've both got me googling about how to make your own bath panel by the way!

And just realised I've been spelling it wrong - eek. Thought it didn't look right.

I am very spoiled in that my dad served his time as both a joiner and a tiler. And manages a bit of plumbing too. I would be completely lost without him.

Your dad sounds a very useful person to know!

Thanks for your suggestions - will discuss it with dh. We have a friend who is a carpenter, so he might be able to recommend a joiner.

Your friend might even be able to do it himself unless its a really tricky job.