GB2408996A

GB2408996A - Ladder safety accessory having combined guard rail and stabiliser

Info

Publication number: GB2408996A
Application number: GB0328938A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Andrew Parker Kelley
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2003-12-13
Filing date: 2003-12-13
Publication date: 2005-06-15
Anticipated expiration: 2023-12-13
Also published as: GB2408996C; GB0328938D0; GB2408996B

Abstract

A ladder accessory 20 comprising: means for attaching the accessory to a ladder 14, a stabiliser 54 for engaging a surface against which the ladder leans and a guard rail 56 for protection of a person. These features are interconnected. The accessory 20 may be integral to a ladder 14. The stabiliser 54 may comprise a pair of legs 24 which project on the opposite side of the ladder to the guard rail 56, they preferably have a greater width than the guardrail. The degree by which the legs 24 project may be adjustable and a shelf 42 may be provided there between. Preferably, the guard rail 56 defines a quadrilateral space and has side rails 58 which converge away from the ladder. The legs 24 may be continuations of the side rails 58. A cross-member 28 may attach the accessory to the ladder stiles or project through a hollow rung. The cross-member 28 may have hooks 32 with adjustable spacing which hook onto a rung. The accessory 20 aims to reduce risk of the ladder collapsing and a person falling.

Description

TITLE

Ladders and ladder accessories

DESCRIPTION

This invention relates to ladders and ladder accessories.

Other than structural failure of a ladder itself, there are four main modes by which a simple, conventional, parallel-stiled ladder can collapse in use when standing on firm horizontal ground and leaning against a vertical wall in windless conditions: First, if the ladder is inclined too closely to the vertical and the centre of gravity of the load on the ladder moves too far away from the wall and the ladder, the top of the ladder may fall backwards away from the wall. This will be referred to as "falling backwards. " Second, if the ladder is inclined too far from the vertical, and the load on the ladder moves too close to the top of the ladder, the bottom of the ladder may slide on the ground away from the wall and the top of the ladder may slide down the wall. This will be referred to as "sliding down." Third, if the centre of gravity of the load on the ladder moves too far laterally away from the side of the ladder, the ladder may pivot about an axis extending along the stile on that side of the ladder. This will be referred to as "capsizing." Fourth, if the centre of gravity of the load on the ladder moves too far laterally away from the side of the ladder, the ladder may pivot about a horizontal axis perpendicular to the wall and passing through the bottom of the stile on that side of the ladder. This will be referred to as "slipping sideways." In order to reduce the risk of falling backwards and sliding down, it is normal practice for the ladder to be angled at a gradient of about 4:1 (vertical:horizontal).

The risk of capsizing can be reduced by employing a stabiliser. One known form of stabiliser is described in patent document GB2254098A and is shown in Figure 1 of the drawings of the present specification. The stabiliser 10 comprises a bar 12 having a length that is greater than the width of the ladder 14 and which is detachably attached horizontally to the very top of the ladder 14 so that the bar 12 projects to either side of the top of the ladder 14 and its ends can engage the wall. Although not recognised in GB2254098A, the capsize axes are - 2 therefore moved outwardly so that they extend from the bottoms of the stiles 16 to the ends of the stabiliser bar 12, rather than along the stiles 16 of the ladder 14, and accordingly the centre of gravity of the load on the ladder 14 can move further laterally away from the side of the ladder 14 before capsize occurs. Another known form of stabiliser arrangement is shown in patent document GB2311089A. It is adjustable between a first configuration in which it could act similarly to the stabiliser bar of GB2254098A and a second configuration in which it additionally acts as a "stand-off", that is to say it additionally holds the top of the ladder away from the wall. This is useful if the ladder is being used to climb onto a roof having an cave, especially if the cave has a fragile or unstable edge. However, in either configuration mentioned in GB2311089A, the device is intended to engage with hooks anchored in the wall. A stand- off which also acts as a stabiliser is shown in patent document GB629851 and has been put into production as the Easy-Reach ladder stay and the Abru0 ladder stand-off. Interestingly, in GB629851 and more so in samples of the commercial products that are available to the present inventor, the stabiliser bar has a thick rubber covering that engages the wall but which does not extend completely to the ends of the stabiliser bar, and therefore the stand-off does not provide as great an anti-capsize effect as could readily have been achieved.

Despite what is said in GB2254098A, the geometries of the stabilisers and stand-offs mentioned above do little to reduce the risk of collapse of the ladder by slipping sideways.

However, the provision of rubber feet or pads on the stabiliser or standoff for engaging the wall, as compared to the tops of the ladder stiles directly contacting the wall, does reduce the risk of slipping sideways, together with the risk of slipping down. Such rubber feet or pads or the like do not have any effect on the risk of the ladder falling backwards or capsizing.

When using a ladder, in addition to the risk of ladder collapse, there is of course the risk that the user may lose their balance or footing and fall. In order to reduce that risk and also to provide some psychological comfort to the user, it is known to provide a guard rail that encircles the user, for example around their waist or lower chest. For example, above mentioned document GB2254098A describes a rigid loop 18 that can also be detachably secured to the ladder 14 completely separately from the stabiliser bar 12 and in which the user stands.

Also, GB2093901A shows a rigid U-shaped member that can be detachably secured to the ladder and a chain of adjustable effective length that can be secured between the ends of the U shaped member to complete the loop around the user. - 3

It would appear from the prior art that nobody has given much, if any, thought to the relationship between guard rails, stabilizers and the ladder and its effect on the capsize mode of collapse of a ladder.

In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a ladder accessory comprising: means for attaching the accessory to a ladder; a stabiliser for engaging a surface against which the ladder is to lean; and a guard rail for defining, by itself or with the ladder, a space in which a user of the ladder can stand; wherein the attaching means, stabiliser and guard rail are interconnected.

In accordance with a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a ladder in combination with a ladder accessory of the first aspect of the invention attached to the ladder by the attaching means.

In accordance with a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a ladder having a stabiliser disposed adjacent one end of the ladder for engaging a surface against which the ladder is to lean; and a guard rail disposed adjacent said one end of the ladder for defining, by itself or with the ladder, a space in which a user of the ladder can stand; the guard rail being permanently connected to the ladder and/or to the stabiliser.

Providing the stabiliser and guard rail as a single accessory, or permanently connecting the guard rail to the ladder and/or stabiliser, enables benefits in safety and freedom of movement of the user as compared with the two separate accessories 1O,18 shown in GB2254098A. For example, if the two accessories 1O,18 of GB2254098A were designed so that, in the configuration shown in Figure 1, the ladder 14 would be on the limit of being safe against capsize during normal use, then if the guard hoop 18 were alternatively repositioned by the user further down the ladder 14, the ladder 14 would become unsafe, or if the stabiliser 10 were not employed by the user, the ladder 14 would again become unsafe. The size of the guard hoop 18 could be permanently reduced to restrict lateral movement of the user and improve safety against capsize when in configurations other than those shown in Figure 1, but in that case, the arrangement of GB2254098A would be unduly restrictive when in the configuration of Figure 1. GB2254098A does mention a modification in which the size of the guard hoop is adjustable, but without any guidance as to how to choose a size which is safe. With the present invention, the freedom of the user to choose configurations that are not safe against capsize during normal use is reduced, albeit possibly not completely eliminated.

The stabiliser is preferably arranged for engaging the surface over a horizontal span that is greater than the width of the space.

In use with the ladder inclined at a gradient of 4:1 and as viewed in plan, the space preferably lies within the quadrilateral bounded by the span of the stabiliser and the bottom of the ladder. In order to deter a user of a ladder, particularly an extendable ladder, from configuring the arrangement so as not to satisfy this condition, the ladder or accessory may be provided with a warning label specifying the minimum height for the guard rail/stabiliser.

The stabiliser is preferably arranged to project substantially on the opposite side of the ladder to the space. Thus the stabiliser acts as a stand-off. The amount by which the stabiliser projects is preferably adjustable.

In one embodiment, the stabiliser comprises a pair of legs for projecting generally divergently towards the surface, and the ladder accessory may conveniently include a shelf disposed between the legs.

The guard rail preferably comprises a pair of side portions for projecting generally convergently away from the ladder. In this case, the ladder is preferably disposed between the side portions of the guard rail.

The stabiliser legs are preferably formed as continuations of the side portions.

Especially in the case where the side portions of the guard rail converge and the stabiliser legs diverge and are adjustable, forming the stabiliser legs as continuations of the side portions enables an easily manufactured and effective structure.

The ladder or accessory may further include at least one shelf attached to one of the side portions which may be constructed in such a way as to give when overloaded.

In one embodiment, the attaching means further includes a cross-member arranged for engaging stiles of the ladder opposite the space. In another embodiment, the attaching means further includes a cross-member arranged for projecting through a hollow rung of the ladder.

Either embodiment reduces the loading, in a direction out of the plane of the ladder, placed on the rung of a ladder as compared with the prior art arrangement shown in Figure 1. The attaching means may, however, include a pair of members arranged for hooking onto a rung of the ladder, the spacing between the members being adjustable.

A specific embodiment of the present invention will now be described, purely by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a view of the top of a ladder and two ladder accessories, as is known from patent document GB2254098A; Figure 2 is a view of a ladder accessory embodying the present invention; Figure 3 is a view of the ladder accessory of Figure 2 attached near to the top of a ladder; Figure 4 is an exploded view of the ladder accessory of Figure 2; Figure 5 is a view of a tray that may be used with the ladder accessory of Figure 2; Figure 6 is a view of a pair of the trays of Figure 5 fitted to the ladder accessory; Figures 7A-7C are a schematic side view, front view and plan view, respectively, of the ladder and accessory of Figure 3 standing on the ground and leaning against a wall; and Figures 8A-8C are similar to Figures 7A-7C, respectively, but with the ladder shortened.

Referring to Figures 2 to 4, the ladder accessory 20 comprises a tubular member 22 having the general shape of a blunt V, with the half-angle between the limbs of the V shape being about 14 degrees (tans id). A straight tubular member 24 is telescopically fitted into each end of the V-shaped member 22 and is secured in any of a number of positions by a pin 25 or the like so that the amount by which each straight member 24 projects from the end of the V shaped member 22 is adjustable. The free end of each straight member 24 is provided with a rubber foot 26. A tubular cross-member 28 extends across the V-shaped member 22 and is secured to the sides of the V-shaped member 22 by welding, screws or the like, but preferably by a gusset member 30 that will be described later. A pair of hook members 32 are clamped to the cross-member 28 in such a way that the spacing between the hook members 32 can be adjusted. The reach of the hook members 32 may also be adjustable. A member 34 having the general shape of a U with a straight base 36 is pivotally attached at its ends 38 to the sides of the V-shaped member 22 nearer to the base of the V-shaped member 22 than the cross-member 28. A pair of straps 40 are secured to and slidable along the base 36 of the U-shaped member 34. The gusset member 30 is of pressed sheet or moulded plastics material and spans and is secured to the V-shaped member 22. The gusset member 30 has a central depressed portion to - 6 form a tray 42 and various holes 44 near the ends of the tray 42. The ends of the gusset member are folded over the outer sides of V-shaped member 22 and have holes 46 to receive the ends of the cross-member 28 which are belled over. The pins 25 pass through the gusset member 30 into the ends of the V-shaped member 22 and the straight members 24. The gusset member 30 is therefore held fast with the V-shaped member 22. A further pair of adjustable length straps 48 extend between the ends of the gusset member 30 and the base 36 of the U-shaped member 34.

Referring in particular to Figure 3, when fitting the accessory 20 to a ladder 14, the top of the ladder 14 is threaded into the accessory so that the ladder 14 is between the base 36 of the U-shaped member 34 and the cross-member 28. The hook members 32 are hooked onto one of the rungs 50 of the ladder 14 adjacent the top of the ladder 14, and the spacing between the hook members 32 is adjusted if necessary so that they are a snug fit between the stiles 52 of the ladder 14. The lengths of the straps 48 are adjusted so that, with the rear edges of the stiles 52 abutting the cross-member 28, with the front edges of the stiles 52 abutting the base 36 of the U-shaped-member 34 and with the straps 48 taut, the general plane of the ladder 14 is inclined at an angle A of about 76 degrees to the general plane of the V-shaped member 22. The other straps 40 are then secured to one of the rungs 50 of the ladder 14 below the base 36 of the U shaped member 34, adjusted so that they are immediately adjacent the stiles 52 and parallel, and tightened. The accessory 20 is thus held fast on the ladder 14.

Before use, the members 24 are telescopically adjusted in the ends of the V-shaped member 22 to provide a required stand-off of the top of the ladder 14 from the surface (e.g. wall) against which it will be leant. The ladder 14 is then placed in position, with the feet 26 engaging the wall and with the ladder inclined at an angle of about 14 degrees to the vertical so that the general plane of the V-shaped member 22 is horizontal. The user can then climb up the ladder 14 into the V-shaped member 22. The feet 26, the members 24 and the portions of the V shaped member 22 on the other side of the ladder 14 to the user act as a standoff. Because the spacing of the feet 26 is greater than the spacing of the stiles 52 of the ladder 14, the feet 26, the members 24 and the portions of the V-shaped member 22 on the wall side of the ladder 14 also act as a stabiliser 54 to reduce the risk of capsize. Because the feet 26 are of rubber and will have a high coefficient of friction with the types of surfaces against which the ladder 14 will normally be leaned, they reduce the risk of ladder collapse by slipping sideways and sliding down. The portion of the V-shaped member 22 on the user side of the ladder 14 acts as a guard rail 56 to help the user retain their balance. The side portions 58 of the guard rail 56 limit lateral movement of the user on the ladder 14 and thus reduce the risk of collapse by capsizing and slipping sideways. The rear portion 60 of the guard rail 56 also limits movement of the user away from the ladder 14 and thus reduces the risk of collapse by falling backwards. To many users, the guard rail 56 will also provide some psychological comfort even if the user does not actually touch the guard rail 56. During use, the tray 42 may be used for supporting tools, pots of paint, nails and screws and the like, and tools such as screwdrivers and paint brushes may also be placed in the holes 44 at the ends of the gusset member 30.

It should be noted that many modifications and developments may be made to the ladder accessory described above.

The ends of the cross-member 28 are preferably free to rotate in the holes 46 in the gusset member 30 and not be directly fixed to the V- shaped member 22 so that, with the hook members 32 securely clamped to the cross-member 28 and with the cross-member 28 abutting the rear of the ladder stiles 52, the V-shaped member 22 can be adjusted in angle before the straps 40,48 are tightened, and even so that, when not in use, the accessory 20 can be hinged generally flat against the ladder 14 after the straps 40 have been completely loosened, or hinged flat after the accessory 20 has been removed from the ladder 14. Clips may be provided for holding the accessory 14 in that configuration to assist easy handling.

In the case where the ladder 14 has tubular rungs 50 with open ends, rather than employing a cross-member 28 that bears against the rear of the stiles 14, a cross-member may be employed that passes through one of the rungs 50, and in this case, the hook members 32 may be omitted, but some means is preferably provided to prevent lateral movement of the cross-member 28 relative to the ladder 14.

Rather than being provided as an accessory 20, the stabiliser 54 and guard rail 56 may be provided as an integral part of the ladder 14, or permanently attached to the ladder 14 without any means to provide ready removal from the ladder 14.

As shown in Figures 5 and 6, the accessory 20 may be provided with one or two side trays 62. Each side tray 62 has a peripheral flange 64 formed with cut-aways 66 so that the side tray 62 can be clipped onto the side portions 58 of the guard rail 56 so that the bulk of the tray 62 is outside the guard rail 56. Being outside the guard rail 56, the side trays 62 are intended to take only light loads, such as small tools, nails and screws and are preferably designed to deform or give if overloaded. The presence of the side trays 62 also provides some psychological benefit by obliterating a significant part of the view downwards.

Different shapes and configurations of stabiliser 54 and guard rail 56 may be employed.

For example, the legs of the stabiliser 54 may be parallel and their free ends may be joined by a rubber-covered bar for abutting the wall. The cross-member 28 may be omitted, and instead the accessory 22 may be clamped on either side to the stiles 52 of the ladder 14.

An analysis of the ladder 14 and accessory 20 described above will now be made with reference to the schematic drawings of Figures 7A to 8C, which show an extendable ladder 14 standing on firm horizontal ground 68 with an inclination of 4:1 and with the accessory 20 attached and with the stabiliser 54 leaning against a vertical wall 70. On the assumption that the ladder 14 and accessory 20 have zero weight and that the load on the ladder 14 has zero volume, the condition for the arrangement to be safe against capsize is that, as viewed in plan (Figures 7C and 8C), the load is disposed within the triangle formed by the span 72 of the stabiliser 54 against the wall 70 and the lines 74 extending through the ends of the stabiliser 54 and the bottoms of the stiles 52 of the ladder 14. Furthermore, the condition for the arrangement to be safe against falling backwards is that the load is disposed nearer the wall 70 than the vertical plane 76 containing the bottoms of the stiles 52. Therefore, for both conditions to be satisfied, as viewed in plan, the load needs to be disposed within the quadrilateral defined by the span 72 of the stabiliser 54, the lines 74 extending through the ends of the stabiliser 54 and the bottoms of the stiles 52, and the line 76 joining the bottoms of the stiles 52. Figures 7A to 7C show the ladder 14 extended, and Figures 8A to 8C show the ladder 14 shortened but with the accessory 20 the same distance below the top of the ladder 14. By comparing Figures 7C and 8C, it will be noted that area of the "safe" quadrilateral 72,74, 74,76 is smaller in Figure 8C than Figure 7C. If the height 78 of the accessory 20 above the ground 68 as shown in Figures 8A to 8C is taken to be the minimum safe working height for the accessory 20, then the guard rail 56 of the accessory 20 can be sized and shaped so that, as viewed in plan it follows the lines 74,74,76 when the accessory 20 is set at the minimum safe working height 78. Then, provided that, as viewed in plan, the load stays within the guard rail 56, the ladder 14 will be safe against capsize and falling backwards whether the accessory 20 is set at the minimum safe working height or higher. As can be seen in Figure 7C, when the guard rail 56 is above the minimum safe working height, the guard rail 56 lies within the safe quadrilateral 72,74,74,76.

Desirably, a label is placed on the accessory 20 warning the user to set it at or above the safe working height, to set the ladder at a gradient of 4:1 and to ensure that the stabiliser 54 does engage the vertical surface over its whole span 72.

It is appreciated that the above analysis assumes that the ladder 14 and accessory 20 have zero weight and that the load on the ladder 14 has zero volume. In reality, the centre of gravity of the ladder 14 and accessory 20 will, as viewed in plan, lie within the safe quadrilateral 72,74,74,76 and therefore the weight of the ladder 14 and accessory 20 will act to resist capsize and falling backwards and provide a safety margin. In most cases, the bulk of the load on the ladder 14 will be the weight of the user, who will stand within the guard rail 56, s with the guard rail 56 at waist or lower chest level. With the user standing generally upright, the centre of gravity of the user will, as viewed in plan, therefore be disposed well within the guard rail 56 (and thus within the safe quadrilateral 72,74,74,76) even if the user is leaning against the guard rail 56. If need be, the minimum safe working height may be increased to take account of heavy users who may lean as far as they can over the guard rail 56. Of course, it is impossible to design a ladder accessory such as has been described above that would be safe in all circumstances, and if a user wishes to cantilever a bucket of lead on a pole from the guard rail, then on their own head be it.

In the embodiment of the invention described above, the means of attachment to the ladder avoids any dependency on rung spacing. The height of the guard rail relative to the ladder rungs can be adjusted, enabling it to conform to BS1139: Part 3: (1994) paragraph 7.5.2.2 - height of handrail on working platforms. The accessory will not load any rung with more than the user's weight (plus the small loading caused by the tension in the fixing straps and the weight of the accessory itself). The accessory transmits to the wall all side loadings applied to the guard rail by the user, and thus (unlike the arrangement of GB2254098A) it will not induce twist in the ladder.

It should be noted that the embodiment of the invention has been described above purely by way of example and that many other modifications and developments may be made thereto within the scope of the present invention. - 10

Claims

C L AI M S

(The reference numerals in the claims are not intended to limit the protection sought or granted) 1. A ladder accessory (20) comprising: means (28,32,34,40) for attaching the accessory to a ladder (14); a stabiliser (54) for engaging a surface against which the ladder is to lean; and a guard rail (56) for defining, by itself or with the ladder, a space in which a user of the ladder can stand; wherein the attaching means, stabiliser and guard rail are interconnected.
2. A ladder in combination with a ladder accessory as claimed in claim 1 attached to the ladder by the attaching means.
3. A ladder (14) having a stabiliser (54) disposed adjacent one end of the ladder for engaging a surface against which the ladder is to lean; and a guard rail (56) disposed adjacent said one end of the ladder for defining, by itself or with the ladder, a space in which a user of the ladder can stand; the guard rail being permanently connected to the ladder and/or to the stabiliser.
4. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the stabiliser is arranged for engaging the surface over a horizontal span (72) that is greater than the width of the space.
5. A ladder as claimed in claim 4, wherein, with the ladder inclined at a gradient of 4:1 and as viewed in plan, the space lies within the quadrilateral bounded by the span of the stabiliser and the bottom of the ladder.
6. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the stabiliser is arranged to project substantially on the opposite side of the ladder to the space.
7. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 6, wherein the amount by which the stabiliser projects is adjustable.
8. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 3 or 4, wherein the stabiliser comprises a pair of legs (24) for projecting generally divergently towards the surface.
9. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 8, further including a shelf (42) 2s disposed between the legs. - 11
10. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the guard rail comprises a pair of side portions (58) for projecting generally convergently away from the ladder.
11. A ladder as claimed in claim 10, wherein the ladder is disposed between the side portions of the guard rail.
12. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 10 or 11 when directly or indirectly dependent on claim 8 or 9, wherein the legs are formed as continuations of the side portions.
13. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in any of claims 10 to 12, and further including at least one shelf attached to one of the side portions in such a way as to give when overloaded.
14. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 1 or 2 or any of claims 4 to 13 when directly or indirectly dependent on claim 1, wherein the attaching means includes a cross member (28) arranged for engaging stiles (52) of the ladder opposite the space.
15. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 1 or 2 or any of claims 4 to 13 when directly or indirectly dependent on claim 1, wherein the attaching means includes a cross- member arranged for projecting through a hollow rung of the ladder.
16. A ladder or ladder accessory, substantially as described with reference to Figures 2 to 8C of the drawings.

16. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 1, 2, 14 or 15 or any of claims 4 to 13 when directly or indirectly dependent on claim 1, wherein the attaching means includes a pair of members (32) arranged for hooking onto a rung (50) of the ladder, the spacing between the members being adjustable.

17. A ladder or ladder accessory, substantially as described with reference to Figures 2 to 8C of the drawings.

Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows

(The reference numerals in the claims are not intended to limit the protection sought or granted) 1. A ladder accessory (20) comprising: means (28,32,34,40) for attaching the accessory to a ladder (14); a stabiliser (54) for engaging a surface against which the ladder is to lean; and a guard rail (56) for defining, by itself or with the ladder, a space in which a user of the ladder can stand; wherein the attaching means, stabiliser and guard rail are interconnected; and the guard rail has side portions that are generally convergent in a direction away from the ladder.

2. A ladder in combination with a ladder accessory as claimed in claim 1 attached to the ladder by the attaching means.

3. A ladder (14) having a stabiliser (54) disposed adjacent one end of the ladder for engaging a surface against which the ladder is to lean; and a guard rail (56) disposed adjacent said one end of the ladder for defining, by itself or with the ladder, a space in which a user of the ladder can stand; the guard rail being permanently connected to the ladder and/or to the stabiliser, and the guard rail has side portions that are generally convergent in a direction away from the ladder.

4. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the stabiliser is arranged for engaging the surface over a horizontal span (72) that is greater than the width of the space.

5. A ladder as claimed in claim 4, wherein, with the ladder inclined at a gradient of 4:1 and as viewed in plan, the space lies within the quadrilateral bounded by the span of the . . ..

stanlllser and the Dollom or the lamer.

6. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the stabiliser is arranged to project substantially on the opposite side of the ladder to the space.

7. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 6, wherein the amount by which the stabiliser projects is adjustable.

8. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the stabiliser 2s comprises a pair of legs (24) for projecting generally divergently towards the surface.

- l3

9. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 8, further including a shelf (42) disposed between the legs.

10. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 8 or 9, wherein the legs are formed as continuations of the side portions.

11. A ladder as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the ladder is disposed between the side portions of the guard rail.

12. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in any preceding claim, and further including at least one shelf attached to one of the side portions in such a way as to give when overloaded.

13. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 1 or 2 or any of claims 4 to 12 when directly or indirectly dependent on claim 1, wherein the attaching means includes a cross member (28) arranged for engaging stiles (52) of the ladder opposite the space.

14. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 1 or 2 or any of claims 4 to 12 when directly or indirectly dependent on claim 1, wherein the attaching means includes a cross member arranged for projecting through a hollow rung of the ladder.

15. A ladder or ladder accessory as claimed in claim 1, 2, 13 or 14 or any of claims 4 to 12 when directly or indirectly dependent on claim 1, wherein the attaching means includes a pair of members (32) arranged for hooking onto a rung (50) of the ladder, the spacing between the members being adjustable.