How Much Does a New Bathroom Cost in Burgess Hill? 2026 Itemised Guide
- Ben Cooke
- 7 days ago
- 10 min read
A full bathroom refit in Burgess Hill in 2026 typically runs from £4,500 for a like-for-like basic
swap to £20,000 or more for a larger room with premium tiles, underfloor heating and a walk-in shower. Most three-piece family bathrooms we see in Burgess Hill, Hassocks, Hurstpierpoint and Haywards Heath land between £7,500 and £13,000 all-in.
That's the short answer. The long answer is what this guide is for.
Cost pages from the big national directories give you a range and leave you guessing. This post breaks the number down the way a proper quote does. Labour day rates. Materials line by line. Tile pricing. The extras that catch people out in Victorian and Edwardian Burgess Hill homes. And what a fair stage-payment schedule looks like in 2026.
We're based in Burgess Hill, we're Gas Safe registered, and we've done enough full bathroom renovations across Mid Sussex to know where the money actually goes.
What does a new bathroom actually cost in 2026?
A new bathroom cost in Burgess Hill in 2026 sits in three fairly predictable bands. The band you land in depends less on luxury and more on three things. Room size, how much plumbing is being moved around, and the spec of the suite.
Here are the working bands we price against.
Basic like-for-like refit, same layout, standard white suite, budget tiles: £4,500 to £7,500
Mid-range family bathroom, mid-spec suite, quality porcelain tiles, thermostatic shower: £7,500 to £13,000
High-spec large bathroom, moved plumbing, porcelain or natural stone, underfloor heating, walk-in enclosure: £13,000 to £20,000+
Full wet room or mobility-led conversion with tanked floor: £8,000 to £15,000
These are total-project numbers. Labour plus materials plus VAT on materials. They assume a single bathroom between 3m² and 7m². A downstairs cloakroom or WC usually comes in at £2,500 to £5,000 on its own.
Labour: what a Burgess Hill fitter actually charges
Labour is typically 35% to 50% of the total bill. On a £10,000 bathroom, that's £3,500 to £5,000 in labour alone.
Day rates across West Sussex in 2026 sit around £220 to £320 for a skilled fitter, more for a small specialist team. A full bathroom takes between 5 and 10 working days on site, not counting materials lead time. Here's how those days usually break down.
Day 1: strip-out, disposal, protect landing and hallway
Days 2 to 3: first-fix plumbing and electrics, any pipe or wiring moves, new soil or waste routes
Day 4: plaster or board-out, screed if needed for new flooring
Days 5 to 7: tiling (floor and walls), including waterproofing and grout cure
Days 8 to 9: second-fix, fit sanitaryware, shower, taps, screens and lights
Day 10: silicone, snag, clean and handover
Not every job needs all ten. A like-for-like swap in a small 4m² bathroom in a terrace can come in at 5 or 6 days. Moving a toilet to the other wall, adding a shower where there wasn't one, or running new 22mm hot and cold feeds to a different side of the room pushes the labour total up quickly.
Labour on a wet room is longer because of the tanking and fall-setting stages. Budget 8 to 12 working days.
Where the money actually goes: materials, line by line
Here's the line-item side, using the mid-range £7,500 to £13,000 band as a reference point. These are typical UK supply prices in 2026, not B.Cooke prices. Your actual quote will vary with the specific products and tile choice.
Item | Basic | Mid-range | High-spec |
Toilet (pan, cistern, seat) | £150 to £300 | £300 to £700 | £700 to £2,500 |
Basin and vanity unit | £200 to £450 | £450 to £1,200 | £1,200 to £3,500 |
Bath (acrylic or steel) | £180 to £400 | £400 to £900 | £900 to £2,500 |
Shower valve and head | £150 to £300 | £300 to £700 | £700 to £2,000 |
Shower enclosure or screen | £200 to £450 | £450 to £1,000 | £1,000 to £3,000 |
Wall and floor tiles (per m²) | £25 to £45 | £45 to £80 | £80 to £150+ |
Taps (basin and bath) | £80 to £180 | £180 to £400 | £400 to £1,200 |
Heated towel rail | £90 to £180 | £180 to £400 | £400 to £900 |
Underfloor heating (electric mat) | N/A | £350 to £700 | £700 to £1,400 |
Extractor fan | £40 to £80 | £80 to £180 | £180 to £400 |
Sundries (silicone, grout, adhesive, boxing, waste) | £250 to £450 | £450 to £700 | £700 to £1,200 |
Two things push a materials total hardest. Tile choice and shower kit. Jumping from a £35/m² porcelain to an £85/m² large-format porcelain on a room with 12m² of walls and floor adds roughly £500 to £700 in tile alone. A thermostatic shower system with a rainfall head and a separate handset can sit at £1,500 when a perfectly good thermostatic mixer is £350.
What pushes a Burgess Hill bathroom quote up
Most cost surprises come from what's behind the plaster, not what's in the showroom. A lot of
Burgess Hill housing stock falls into three categories. Victorian and Edwardian terraces near the station and Sussex Road. 1930s and post-war semis around Folders Lane and World's End. 1980s to modern estates on the edges toward Wivelsfield Green and Keymer. Each brings its own extras.
Older Burgess Hill homes almost always need at least some of the following.
Replacing 15mm lead or old iron feeds with 22mm copper or plastic
Re-routing cast-iron soil stacks where the pan is being moved
Pulling back lime plaster that's blown behind existing tiles
Upgrading the electrical supply to the bathroom to meet current Part P zone requirements
Replacing rotten floorboards under the bath, especially over original joists
On 1980s builds, the usual culprits are undersized extractor fans, a single feed serving both hot taps and the shower, and chipboard floors that have swelled after years of tile cracks.
Moving the position of a toilet is the single biggest cost driver most homeowners don't expect. If the new pan sits more than 1.8m from the existing soil stack, you're either running a new soil pipe at fall (which can mean lifting boards in the next room) or fitting a macerator, which has implications for warranty and resale. A straightforward repositioning adds £600 to £1,500 to a quote before any tiling starts.
Gas is another common trigger. If the refit disrupts the flue run, the condensate pipe, or the boiler's drain, that work needs a Gas Safe registered engineer to sign it off. Our guide on what a boiler service includes covers what's actually checked when we combine a service with bathroom works.
Wet rooms, walk-in showers and bath-to-shower conversions
Three of the fastest-growing Burgess Hill jobs in 2026 are full wet rooms, walk-in shower enclosures replacing tired baths, and level-access showers for future-proofing.
A full-tanked wet room in a typical semi runs £8,000 to £15,000. The tanking stage, a liquid or sheet waterproof membrane under the tiles, is non-negotiable. It takes a day to apply and another to cure. It is the single most common place a cheap wet room goes wrong. Skimping here is why budget wet rooms leak into the ceiling below within 18 months.
Replacing a bath with a walk-in shower is usually £5,000 to £10,000 in Burgess Hill. The range depends on whether you're keeping the same footprint (cheaper), going bigger and pushing into what was tiled wall (mid-range), or going for a frameless glass screen with a low-profile tray and a rainfall head (top of the range).
Mobility-led conversions funded by the Disabled Facilities Grant have their own rules. The DFG is means-tested and capped at £30,000 in England. It's administered locally by Mid Sussex District Council for Burgess Hill addresses. Where it applies, VAT on the qualifying works is zero-rated, which can take 20% off materials if you meet the disability criteria. A DFG-approved installer will itemise the zero-rated lines separately on the quote.
What should be included in a proper Burgess Hill bathroom quote?
A good quote itemises. A bad quote hides the detail behind a single "supply and fit" total and hopes you won't ask. If you're reading a quote right now, look for these lines.
A room-by-room scope: strip-out, first-fix, plastering, tiling, second-fix, snag
A suite schedule with manufacturer and model numbers, not "white bathroom suite"
A tile spec with m² rate and total m² area
A day rate and estimated number of working days
A stage-payment schedule tied to completed stages, not calendar dates
Notice of any Part P electrical certificate and who issues it
Notice of Gas Safe work if any boiler, gas hob or flue is disturbed, and who's registered
A snagging and handover clause with a defined window
VAT treatment clearly stated
If the quote is a single line on headed paper, ask for an itemised version before you sign anything. And if anything gas-related is involved, your installer should already be talking to you about a fresh Gas Safety Certificate. It's the law for notifiable gas work to be done by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
Stage payments: what's normal in 2026
Most legitimate bathroom fitters in Burgess Hill take payment in three or four stages, never all
up front.
A typical four-stage schedule on a £10,000 bathroom looks like this.
10% to 20% deposit on order, covering materials and slot reservation
30% on day 1, once strip-out is complete and the site is secured
30% on completion of first-fix and tiling
Final 20% to 30% on handover, after snag items are cleared
A deposit over 25% on a £10,000 job is a flag worth querying. An installer asking for 50% up front before any work is a flag worth walking away from.
Hidden costs most Burgess Hill homeowners forget
Even a well-itemised quote usually sits alongside costs that aren't on it. Budget for these separately.
Skip hire or waste disposal if not included: £200 to £400
Building control notification fee for notifiable electrical or structural work: £150 to £500 depending on Mid Sussex District Council's current schedule
New flooring outside the bathroom if old hall tiles are lifted during access
Temporary bathroom arrangements if you only have one and the job runs 10 days
Redecoration of the landing or hall where the strip-out caused dust damage
None of these are anyone's fault. They're the realistic tail of a bathroom job that a confident quote will warn you about up front. A sudden boiler pressure drop after the refit is also worth watching for, and our boiler problems guide covers what to check first if the combi starts acting up once the bathroom is back in use.
Quick reference: 2026 Burgess Hill bathroom cost summary
Project type | Typical size | 2026 total | Working days |
Cloakroom / downstairs WC | 1 to 2m² | £2,500 to £5,000 | 3 to 5 |
Like-for-like basic refit | 4 to 5m² | £4,500 to £7,500 | 5 to 7 |
Mid-range family bathroom | 5 to 7m² | £7,500 to £13,000 | 7 to 10 |
High-spec large bathroom | 7m²+ | £13,000 to £20,000+ | 10 to 14 |
Full wet room | 4 to 6m² | £8,000 to £15,000 | 8 to 12 |
Bath to walk-in shower | existing footprint | £5,000 to £10,000 | 5 to 8 |
En-suite from scratch | 2 to 4m² | £5,000 to £12,000 | 7 to 10 |
Need Help With a New Bathroom in Burgess Hill or West Sussex?
B.Cooke Plumbing & Heating is based in Burgess Hill and covers Haywards Heath, Hassocks, Hurstpierpoint, and surrounding towns across West Sussex.
All our engineers are Gas Safe registered. Any gas or boiler work that touches your bathroom refit gets signed off properly. We also carry common plumbing parts and fittings on our vans, so first-fix issues rarely stop a job running. For wider plumbing work alongside a bathroom renovation, see our plumbing services page.
For a proper itemised bathroom quote, request a bathroom renovation quote or call us on 07895 681098 or 01444 216790.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a small bathroom cost to renovate in Burgess Hill?
A small 4m² to 5m² bathroom in a Burgess Hill terrace or flat typically runs £4,500 to £7,500 for a like-for-like refit and £7,500 to £10,000 if you're moving a toilet or adding a proper shower. Labour accounts for around 40% of that total. If you're in an older property with original joists or lime plaster, add a contingency of £500 to £1,000 for what appears when the old bathroom comes out.
Do I need planning permission for a new bathroom in Burgess Hill?
You don't need planning permission to replace a bathroom in the same room. You will need building regulations approval for new drainage, new electrics in the bathroom zone, or a structural change like knocking through to extend the room. Mid Sussex District Council administers building control for Burgess Hill addresses, and your fitter or a registered third-party inspector will notify them.
How long does a full bathroom installation take in Burgess Hill?
Most full refits take 5 to 10 working days on site once materials are ordered. Materials lead times add another 2 to 4 weeks before work starts, longer for bespoke tiles or imported suites. Wet rooms run 8 to 12 days because of tanking cure time. Don't trust any quote promising a full refit in 3 days. Corners are being cut somewhere.
Is it cheaper to replace the bath with a shower?
Usually yes, but not always. Pulling out the bath and fitting a tray and enclosure in the same footprint is normally £5,000 to £8,000. Going wider than the old bath footprint means re-tiling more wall, and a frameless glass screen adds £500 to £1,500 over a standard framed one. A walk-in shower also tends to add resale value in Burgess Hill, especially in properties aimed at downsizers.
What qualifications should my bathroom fitter have?
Gas Safe registration for any work touching a gas boiler, gas hob or flue. Part P certification (or a registered electrician subcontractor) for notifiable work in the bathroom zone. Public liability insurance of at least £2 million. Check the Gas Safe ID card in person and ask for the Part P certificate number on the quote.
Can I supply my own bathroom suite and just pay for fitting?
Technically yes. In practice it tends to work out more expensive, not less. Fitters buy at trade prices, often 20% to 35% below showroom list, and a fitter won't warrant the product if there's a fault they had no part in selecting. If you're set on a specific imported piece, agree with the fitter up front which items you're supplying and who's responsible if something arrives damaged.
How much does a wet room cost compared to a normal bathroom in Burgess Hill?
A full wet room is usually 20% to 40% more than the equivalent standard bathroom, mostly because of tanking, screed and fall-setting. A £7,500 standard bathroom equivalent wet room is closer to £9,500 to £11,000 in 2026. If the wet room qualifies for a Disabled Facilities Grant through Mid Sussex District Council, the grant can cover up to £30,000 and the qualifying works are zero-rated for VAT.
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