Re-roofing in Bexley is about the paperwork before it's about the tiles. If you live inside the Old Bexley conservation area, an Article 4 direction brings a change of roofing material on certain houses under council control. So a new roof usually means the same material as before, put back better. Outside the conservation area there's more choice, but Building Regulations still apply once you re-cover more than half a roof. We're 2.8 miles away in Dartford. We survey for free, check the planning position for your address, and quote in writing with every material named. And if the roof can be saved with repairs, we'll tell you that instead.
A roofer rings you back to arrange a visit.
A new roof on an older house should improve everything you can't see and change nothing you can.
01
We match the profile, colour and laying pattern of the old roof, and reuse sound tiles where it makes sense. In the conservation area that's often what the council would expect anyway, and it's what we'd recommend regardless.
02
Underneath, the roof gets a breathable membrane and proper ventilation at eaves and ridge. Old roofs with neither tend to suffer condensation once the loft is insulated, so we design the two together.
03
A re-roof is the right time to renew every flashing, valley and soaker. Laying new tiles against tired lead is a false economy, and on older Bexley houses there's often a fair amount of lead to replace.
04
The roof counts as a thermal element under Building Regulations, so re-covering should include an insulation upgrade. We plan it so your loft gets warmer without trapping moisture against the timbers.
05
With the roof stripped, every rafter and purlin is exposed. We replace or strengthen anything decayed, and if the new covering would be heavier, we check the structure can carry it before ordering a single tile.
06
We'll say up front if your job needs a word with the council, a building control application, or both. You won't find out halfway through that the roof you've paid for needed approval.
1,000+
Roofs repaired, renewed and rebuilt
10 yrs
Written guarantee on every re-roof
5★
The only rating anyone has left us
£0
For the survey and the written quote
Old Bexley is a conservation area of about 21 hectares with 18 listed buildings. An Article 4 direction covers some of its houses, including Nos 4-14 North Cray Road and Nos 99-115 High Street, and brings a change of roofing material there under the London Borough of Bexley's control. For a re-roof, that's the clause that matters. Replacing old tiles with the same type is one thing. Changing to something different is a planning matter, and approval isn't guaranteed.
Then there are Building Regulations. A building control application isn't normally needed if the work affects under 25% of the building envelope and under half the roof. A full re-roof goes well beyond that. Changing from slate to tile is likely to need approval, as is any covering that adds 15% or more to the roof's weight. We explain which of these apply before you sign anything, and we make sure they're dealt with.
Not every tired roof needs replacing. Our page on roof repairs in Bexley explains the cheaper route when the structure is still sound.
"On Bexley re-roofs we often salvage enough sound old tiles to cover the front slope again, which keeps the house looking the way it always has."
We survey the roof, the loft and the leadwork, then confirm whether your address is in the Old Bexley or Parkhurst conservation area and whether the house is listed. That decides the materials, and sometimes the timetable too.
Each item is priced on its own line, from scaffold hire to the skip. Where a choice of material changes the cost, we show both figures side by side so you can decide with the numbers in front of you.
Where a change of material or a new rooflight is planned, the council needs to be asked first. Separately, the re-roof itself will usually need building control. We set out both so nothing slips through.
Matching tiles, ridges and lead are ordered or reclaimed in advance. Starting with materials already on site means the roof isn't left open while someone hunts for the last few tiles. Reclaimed stock can take a couple of weeks to gather.
Tiles come off by hand, and the sound ones are sorted, cleaned and stacked for reuse. Battens and old felt go in the skip. Then we check every timber and repair whatever needs it. You'll get photos of anything we replace.
Breathable membrane, new treated battens, tiles laid to the original gauge and pattern, lead dressed into every abutment. Ventilation goes in at the eaves and ridge, and the front slope gets the best of the reclaimed tiles.
Before the scaffold is struck we go over every slope with you, or send photos. You get the building control completion paperwork where it applies, a note of the materials used, and your 10-year re-roof guarantee.
10
Years' cover on a new roof
1,000+
Roofing jobs finished
Paperwork in your hand on the last day. Not posted out "in due course".
Re-roof a house in Bexley with us and you get 10 years of cover on the workmanship. It's a written document. It has your address on it, lists what was done, and is dated the day the roof is signed off. If water gets in because something was fitted wrong - a batten, a fixing, a lap, a flashing - a roofer comes back and puts it right. You don't pay for that.
Why are we happy to promise ten years? Because of how the roof goes on. Every tile or slate is mechanically fixed to BS 5534, the current British Standard. Ridges and hips are fixed too, not just sat in mortar. A breathable membrane goes down first. Where a roof meets a wall, a chimney or the house next door, it gets proper lead or a tested dry system. Shortcuts there are what make a guarantee expensive, so we don't take them.
Tiles, slates and membranes also carry the maker's own warranty. Those vary by product, and your paperwork tells you which ones apply. If a job is too unusual to guarantee in the normal way, you'll hear that at quote stage.
Use the table below as a guide to the main coverings. In Old Bexley, though, the starting point is usually what the house already has, because a change of material needs the council's approval.
| Comparison point | Concrete interlocking tile | Clay plain tile | Natural slate | Fibre cement slate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Typical lifespan | 50 years or more | 60 to 100 years | 80 to 100+ years, depending on source | Around 30 years |
| Weight | Heavy | Heaviest, as each tile is double-lapped | Light | Lightest of the four |
| Relative cost | Lowest | Mid to high, slow to lay | Mid to high, Welsh slate dearest | Low to mid |
| Look | Chunky profile, common on postwar homes | Small, warm-coloured, traditional Kent look | Thin, dark and neat | Uniform slate look, flatter colour |
| Planning and conservation | Fine for most homes, can jar in a conservation area | Often expected on older Kent buildings | The like-for-like choice for slate roofs | May be refused on listed or conservation roofs |
| Best for | Budget re-roofs on postwar and newer houses | Period homes and steeper pitches | Victorian terraces, slate-to-slate jobs | Lighter swap where rafters are marginal |
A smaller terraced house typically costs £8,000 to £14,500 to re-roof, an interwar semi £10,500 to £16,000, and a detached house £14,000 to £24,000 or more. In Bexley, these factors matter most.
Reclaimed tiles can cost more than new ones and need sorting on site. Many conservation-area roofs end up with a mix: reclaimed on show, new on the hidden slopes. We'll price it both ways so you can see the difference before choosing.
Older houses usually have more junctions, valleys and chimney flashings than a modern box. Each one adds lead and labour. A roof with two valleys and three stacks costs noticeably more than a plain gable of the same size.
Once the roof is open, we sometimes find decay at the wall plate or rafter feet, often where a gutter has leaked for years. Likely timber repairs go on the quote as provisional items, priced per unit, so there are no surprises.
If your re-roof needs a planning application because of the Old Bexley Article 4 direction, preparing drawings, samples and photos adds to both the cost and the timetable. A like-for-like re-roof avoids most of that.
To re-roof in the same material, planning permission isn't usually needed. To change material, it's likely, if yours is one of the houses Old Bexley's Article 4 direction covers, because it brings changes of roofing material under the London Borough of Bexley's control. If the house is listed, any change to its character also needs listed building consent. Separately, most full re-roofs need a building control application, since they cover more than half the roof.
Not usually all of them. Rafters on older houses are often perfectly sound in the middle and decayed at the ends, where they sit on damp brickwork. We repair what has failed and leave good timber alone. If the new covering is heavier than the old one, we check the structure before recommending it. Timber that's been dry for a century is usually stronger than people expect.
Roughly one to two weeks on site for most houses, weather permitting. In the conservation area, allow extra time beforehand for sourcing reclaimed tiles and for any approvals. Hand-dressing lead also takes longer than fitting modern trims. The roof is covered securely every evening, so the house stays dry throughout. We'll give you a start date only once materials are confirmed.
Outside a conservation area, a rooflight is usually permitted development if it projects no more than 150 mm beyond the roof plane, sits below the highest part of the roof, and any on a side slope is obscure-glazed and either fixed shut or more than 1.7 m above the floor. Inside the Old Bexley conservation area, ask the council first anyway.
Sound tiles are cleaned and reused on your roof wherever they fit, usually on the most visible slopes. Broken ones, old battens and felt go in a skip for disposal. If you'd like to keep a few spare tiles for future repairs, tell us and we'll stack them somewhere dry. A dozen spare matched tiles can save a lot of hunting later.
Tudor house on Bourne Road, built around 1537 for Sir John Champneys, a former Lord Mayor of London. Its gardens run down to the River Cray and include topiary clipped into heraldic beasts.
Learn more about Hall Place & Gardens on Google Maps
Medieval parish church on Manor Road in Old Bexley, recognisable from its octagonal shingled spire. A timber lychgate leads into the churchyard from the road.
Learn more about St Mary the Virgin, Bexley on Google Maps
Over 200 acres of parkland at Bexleyheath, about two miles from Bexley village, with a 12-acre lake at its centre. Danson House, a Palladian villa by Sir Robert Taylor, was built in the 1760s for Sir John Boyd.
Learn more about Danson Park on Google MapsEvery review left for us so far has been five stars. We're adding them here as they come in.
Reviews only tell you so much anyway. When a roofer comes out to Bexley, ask to see photos of a recent job on a house like yours. A good roofer will have plenty and won't mind you asking.
Call 01322 946667 for a free survey. We'll check the conservation and building control position for your address and give you a written price, line by line.
