The aim of the View Out criteria is to allow occupants to refocus their eyes from close work.
Relevant areas are spaces where close work in a fixed position is carried out for sustained periods of time.
The view out criteria are therefore not applicable to occupied areas such as meeting rooms, or other spaces where such close work is not being carried out.
Where rooms contain areas of different functions, only relevant areas should be assessed. In this case a notional line can be drawn on the plans and calculations made based on these relevant areas only.
However, spaces such circulation routes or other transient spaces within a relevant area can only be excluded if the route or area is clearly defined by the building layout. If this is arbitrary or based solely on a proposed furniture layout, it cannot be excluded. Features of the building layout which may be considered as dictating a function area would include, for example, the position of doors or fixed furniture such as a reception desk or canteen servery.
07-Oct-2022 Additional paragraph added to clarify how function areas must be defined. 21-Sep-2022 General principle of 'relevant area' added, and applicability of KBCN extended to BIU V6 Commercial.
