That is mystery meat without a photo, dear.

Photo will not upload from my phone I guess

It WILL upload. Wait for the photo to clarify........before you hit the green submit button

Whoa. Get an architect in there if you plan to be there long term. This is not an internet question. The stair was installed to save FLOOR space and in this case, may as well be a loft ladder. These were never a good idea for the most part, and not for a major living area. Stairs have code requirements for height and spacing , railings and spindles ....all of it.

You need more help than you're going to get here. Even then, you'd need the actual floor plan for the space, and every single dimension in every possible direction.

Or you move before the baby can walk : )

Sadly moving isn't an option it's required we live here for my husbands

most kids are more cautious than you think. I'd get a doggie fence to put around the base of those stairs until the kid can be trusted to go up and down carefully. you'd be astounded how much it costs to re-engineer stairs, and a whole generation grew up with open staircases and lived to tell the tale...

Sometimes people install a staircase outside the original main house as an addition. Look around, see what you think. You'll need an architect sooner or later- some are very good at thinking outside the box, literally and figuratively.

Practicality aside, it is a beautiful staircase!

Where I live you need to have an exterior staircase to reach the second floor in an emergency if your only interior stairs are a spiral. As for kids they have living and growing up in Europe for a very long time with spiral stairs. I think trying to get a proper staircase in this space will be a real issue but as mentioned you need an architect for sure.A baby gate at the bottom just like any other staircase will be needed.

Thanks everyone! I reached out to an architect who is coming to look at the house next week. We may just need to replace the handrail make that portion more safe. I appreciate the feedback!