Ladder side, doors, radiators and windows
Put the ladder on a clear piece of floor, not over a radiator and not in the door swing. Keep window blind cords out of the bed.
The ladder is a piece of floor
Whoever sleeps on top will use the ladder half-asleep. They need a foot space at the bottom and a handhold that is not a curtain or a bookshelf. If the bed can be built with the ladder on either side, choose the side that stays clear. If it cannot, turn the whole frame so the fixed ladder lands in the clear spot.
Radiators, doors and windows
A ladder over a radiator blocks the climb and the heat. A door that opens onto the frame will chip both. Measure the door’s swing with a piece of card before you commit to the wall.
A blind cord that can hang into the sleeping space or down the ladder is a strangulation risk for a child. Move the bed, or fix the cord up on a cleat, so it cannot be reached from the mattress or the climb. Do not tuck the pillow under the cord and call it fine.
What sits above the pillow
A ceiling light, a beam or a smoke alarm belongs in the headroom measurement. If the only place the bunk fits is under the light, move the light before the bed arrives. It is a cheaper job on a clear ceiling.
Questions people ask
Can the bed go against the window wall?
Yes, if the child is not sleeping against a reachable blind cord and the window can still open for air. Measure the slope there as well.
Does the guard rail replace a wall?
Flair’s summary of BS EN 747-1:2024 says the upper bed has continuous barriers all round, with one access opening. A wall is not a substitute you invent on the day. Fit the rails the sheet shows.
Sources
Opened 13 November 2026. The maker’s sheet and the mark on the bed take precedence.