Exterior and shopfront timber doors

At a glance

England. Approved Document Q 2015 edition; Approved Document M volume 2 (2015 edition incorporating 2020 and 2024 amendments) and volume 1 (2015 edition incorporating 2016 amendments), read 8 November 2026. PAS 24 itself not read.

Which rule applies: dwelling door or shopfront

Two different questions get called "a secure external door". For a new dwelling, Building Regulations Part Q applies: Approved Document Q (England, 2015 edition) says in 0.2 that its guidance applies to new dwellings only, including dwellings formed by a material change of use. It asks that easily accessible doorsets into a dwelling, or into a building containing flats, are secure doorsets (1.1). It is the only place the regulations set a security test for a door.

For a shopfront, restaurant, hotel or club entrance there is no equivalent requirement in Approved Document Q. Any security rating there comes from the client, the insurer, the licensing authority or a lease, and the specifier has to write it into the schedule. This sheet covers both: what the regulations say for the dwelling case, and the questions to put when the rating is a commercial decision.

The bespoke timber route: Appendix B of Approved Document Q

Appendix B is the clause that matters to a joinery specifier: B.1 says a timber doorset built to it is considered a secure doorset, so a bespoke door does not need its own PAS 24 test if it follows the list. The figure shows the features the appendix sets. Three limits are worth stating plainly.

• Size. The note to B.1 says the appendix applies to doorsets up to 1,000 mm wide and 2,000 mm high, and that additional measures may be necessary for larger doorsets. A pair of doors, a tall entrance door or a fanlight over the door goes beyond it and needs a different route.
• Locks. The main door needs a multipoint locking system to PAS 3621, 8621 or 10621 (key, non-key or dual mode), or a mortice lock to BS 3621, 8621 or 10621 with a surface rim lock to the same standard 400 to 600 mm away (B.6). Secondary doors can use a mortice lock with two morticed bolts at least 100 mm from the corners (B.7). The edition cited is 2007+A2:2012; confirm the edition your building control body will accept.
• Glass. Glazing that would let a hand reach the inside locking device if broken must include at least one pane of class P1A to BS EN 356:2000 (B.11).

The appendix is a minimum list, not a full door specification. It gives nothing for weathertightness, thermal performance, fire resistance or finish.

Thresholds, weather and the accessible entrance

A threshold has to keep water out, stay safe underfoot and, at an accessible entrance, avoid a step. Approved Document M volume 2 (2015 edition incorporating the 2020 and 2024 amendments) says for accessible entrances to buildings other than dwellings:

• The threshold is level or, if a raised one is unavoidable, not more than 15 mm in total height, with a minimum number of upstands and slopes, and any upstand higher than 5 mm chamfered or rounded (2.7(e)).
• A level landing of at least 1,500 × 1,500 mm, clear of any door swing, sits immediately outside (2.7(d)).
• Weather protection is provided at manual non-powered entrance doors (2.7(g)), and a level threshold is preferred, especially for doors in frequent use (2.6).
• For external doors to buildings used by the general public, the effective clear width is 1,000 mm in a new building and 775 mm in an existing one (Table 2).

For a dwelling, volume 1 defines an accessible threshold in its key terms in the same way: level, or raised no more than 15 mm in total, with the fewest upstands and slopes and any upstand over 5 mm chamfered. The same 15 mm is the practical limit for a timber sill with a weather bar and a drip, which is why the sill section and the floor build-up outside and in have to be drawn together.

These are the accessibility figures. How well the door excludes rain and wind is a separate performance: BS 6375-1 classifies weathertightness of windows and doors (BSI lists the 2015 edition with the 2016 amendment as the one in force; not read here). Ask the supplier which class the door has been tested to, and for what size.

Asking for a security rating on a commercial door

When a security rating is required for a commercial or hospitality door, ask for it in these terms, in this order.

1. The standard and edition. PAS 24 is the reference Approved Document Q uses for dwellings. BSI Knowledge lists PAS 24:2022+A1:2024 (published 30 September 2024) as current and as superseding PAS 24:2022. Approved Document Q itself cites the 2012 edition and says (page i) that a newer version of a listed standard may be used as guidance if it still addresses the requirement.
2. Equivalents. The 2015 document lists LPS 1175 (Issue 7:2010, rating 2), STS 201 Issue 5:2013, STS 202 Issue 3:2011 (burglary rating 2) and LPS 2081 Issue 1:2015 (rating B) as giving similar or better performance (1.2 note). Secured by Design, in the archived page dated 7 April 2026, lists later issues of several of these. Check the issue current when you specify.
3. The test report and certificate. It must be for the same construction as the door you are buying: size, leaf, frame, glazing, lock set and hinges. Approved Document Q warns that evidence passed from one organisation to another can become unreliable and that laboratories should be UKAS-accredited or equivalent (Appendix A notes 1 and 2).
4. What changes the evidence. A different timber, a larger leaf, a new glazing bead, a different lock or a fanlight added is a different door. Ask the partner workshop to say in writing which features are fixed by the test and which are open.
5. Who signs off. For a commercial door the signer is the insurer, the client's security adviser or the licensing authority, not the building control body.

Weathering, finish and site checks

An exterior door lives in the weather. The choices that decide how it ages are species and durability, moisture content at manufacture, the finish system, end-grain sealing, water-shedding detail and drainage at the sill. None of these have figures in Approved Document Q, so they come from the supplier and from the timber and finish sheets in this library: see timber species for joinery, finishes on timber joinery and timber movement. For hinges and ironmongery see hinges and hardware metals and ironmongery finish codes; for doors that are also on an escape route, fire door specification and accessible doors and ironmongery.

Ask for a mock-up or a first-off door on site before the run. A door that is correct on paper can still fail on a threshold that was set to the wrong floor level, so keep the sill drawing and the finished floor levels inside and out on one page: site survey and dimension verification.

Entrance doorset [D01], solid [or laminated] timber of density not less than 600 kg/m³ [species]. Stiles, rails and muntins not less than 44 mm thick; frame components retain not less than 32 mm of timber after rebating. Panels not less than 15 mm thick, smaller dimension not more than 230 mm, beading mechanically fixed and glued. Multipoint lock to [PAS 3621 / PAS 8621 / PAS 10621]. Hinge bolts on hinges accessible from outside. Letter plate, where provided, aperture not more than 260 × 40 mm with a flap. Glazing within reach of the lock to include one pane of class P1A to BS EN 356. Doorset not more than 1,000 × 2,000 mm. Construction to Approved Document Q 2015, Appendix B.

Doorset [D01] to be a design shown by test to [PAS 24:2022+A1:2024 / named standard, issue and rating] as required by [building control / client / insurer, reference], with a certificate and test report for the as-built construction from a UKAS-accredited body. Any change to timber, leaf size, glazing, lock set or hinges to be approved in writing before manufacture. Weathertightness class [to be agreed] for the size supplied.

Threshold level with the internal floor finish or, where a raised one is unavoidable, not more than [15] mm in total height, upstands over [5] mm chamfered or rounded. Level landing not less than [1,500 × 1,500] mm outside, clear of the door swing. Sill and weather detail shown on the shop drawing against finished floor levels.

Standards and sources

• Approved Document Q: Security in dwellings (2015 edition): page updated 22 Nov 2024. Read 8 Nov 2026.
• Approved Document M volumes 1 and 2: vol 2 incl. 2020 and 2024 amendments; vol 1 incl. 2016. Read.
• PAS 24:2022+A1:2024: BSI Knowledge: current, published 30 Sep 2024, supersedes PAS 24:2022. Approved Document Q cites the 2012 edition. Not read.
• BS EN 356:2000; BS 3621; BS 6375-1: listings only: 356:2000 current; 3621:2017+A1:2024 shown (ADQ cites 2012); 6375-1:2015+A1:2016 current. Not read.

Questions we are asked

Does a front door in England have to be tested to PAS 24?

Only for a new dwelling, and only as one of two routes. Approved Document Q (2015) paragraph 1.2 accepts a design shown by test to PAS 24:2012 or a bespoke timber doorset built to Appendix B. Equivalent standards are also accepted. Approved Document Q applies to new dwellings only (0.2).

What is a bespoke timber secure doorset?

A timber door built to Approved Document Q Appendix B: solid or laminated timber of 600 kg/m³ or more, stiles, rails and muntins at least 44 mm with 32 mm left after rebating, panels at least 15 mm with a smaller side of 230 mm or less, set locks, hinge bolts, a restricted letter plate and P1A glazing near the lock. It applies to doorsets up to 1,000 × 2,000 mm.

Does Approved Document Q apply to a shopfront or restaurant door?

No. Its scope is new dwellings (0.2). A commercial door's security rating comes from the client, insurer or licensing authority and has to be written into the specification.

How high can a threshold be at an accessible entrance?

Approved Document M volume 2 asks for a level threshold or, if a raised one is unavoidable, not more than 15 mm in total height with a minimum of upstands and slopes and any upstand over 5 mm chamfered or rounded (2.7(e)). Volume 1 defines an accessible threshold the same way.

If a partner workshop changes the timber or glazing, does the PAS 24 certificate still apply?

Not safely. Approved Document Q Appendix A says small differences in construction can significantly affect performance and that test evidence must apply to the intended use. Ask the certifying body whether a change is covered before ordering.

Which edition of PAS 24 should I name?

BSI Knowledge lists PAS 24:2022+A1:2024 as current. Approved Document Q (2015) names the 2012 edition and says a newer version of a listed standard can be used as guidance if it still addresses the requirement. Name the edition in the schedule and confirm that your building control body accepts it.