Installed UK-wide
Folding glazed doors
Multi-panel aluminium folding doors that open most of a frontage, fitted across the UK. They suit cafés, bars and restaurants that trade onto the pavement in good weather. Indicative prices run from £3,000–£5,000 for three panels to £8,000–£14,000 for an eight-panel run.
Consents this work tends to involve
- Planning permissionUsually needed
Opening up a frontage changes its appearance, and a café spilling onto the street can raise questions beyond design.
- Listed building consentSometimes
Almost certain to be needed — and hard to get — on a listed shopfront.
- Building regulationsUsually needed
Escape routes, safety glazing and thresholds all apply.
An installer’s general guide; your council decides.
Will a council allow bi-folds on a traditional frontage?
It depends heavily on the building. On a modern unit they are often uncontroversial. On a traditional front the problem is that a folding system replaces the stallriser, pilasters and fixed glazing with a stack of frames, and when the doors are shut the proportions are rarely those of a shopfront. Show the council the closed elevation, not just the summer photo.
Can folding doors be a fire exit?
A folding set is a poor primary escape door: the leaves have to be unlocked and folded in sequence. Keep a conventional door within the run, or elsewhere, as the escape route.
Do I need anything from the council to put tables outside?
Planning for the doors and permission for tables on the pavement are different things. Furniture on the public highway usually needs a pavement or street café licence from the council — check that before the doors are designed around it.
Standards and regulations
| Reference | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Approved Document K | Safety glazing in doors and side panels. |
| Approved Document B | Fire safety, including escape doors and routes. |
| BS EN 14351-1 | Product standard for windows and external pedestrian doorsets. |
Indicative prices
- Three panels£3,000 – £5,000Opening up to about 3 m
- Five panels£5,000 – £8,000Opening up to about 5 m
- Eight panels£8,000 – £14,000Wide commercial frontages
Supply and fit, before survey. How prices are built up.
Questions
How secure are bi-fold doors when closed?
Related
- Aluminium shopfronts — Framed glazed fronts in powder-coated aluminium, proportioned to the building they sit in.
- Frameless glass fronts — Structural glass with patch fittings, for settings where the view in is the point.
- Roller shutters and grilles — Internal, lattice and vision shutters chosen for the street they face, not just the risk.