How Much Space Do You Need Behind a Dining Chair?
Allow at least 75cm behind a dining chair, measured from the table edge to the nearest wall or obstruction, rising to 90cm or more where people need to walk past seated diners. This guide explains where those figures come from, how sideboards, door swings, chair arms and accessibility needs push them upwards, and why measuring outwards from the table rather than inwards from the wall gives an honest picture of what a room can support. It also covers practical responses when the space simply is not there: pushing the table to a wall, using a bench on one side, choosing round or extending tables, and selecting slimmer chairs that recover useful centimetres....