We have had problems with leaks around the shower in the bathroom of our attic conversions resulting in nasty water stains on the ceiling below.
We've decided to get a new more suitable shower tray fitted and the walls and floor retiled. We like the sandstone porous tiles as shown in the picture below. The builder suggested going for a gloss finish ceramic tile. The latter being a better solution to prevent any water seaping through and leaking.
The tile shop has suggested that the stone porous tile is fine once appropriatelty sealed.
I don't think it's a good idea. If you want to use a tile like this around a shower area, you're going to need to strip it back and re-seal on a regular basis, a number of times a year. Even then, it is not likely to maintain a 100% watertight seal, and moisture will migrate through the tiles and affect the adhesive and surrounding material.
As above.
You need to strip it all back to the plaster board, check for water damage.
Fix anything that needs fixing and replace the showtray if you wish.
NB - you must get the subsurface sealed (using a Tanking System).
These should be available in tile stores or can be bought in builders providers.