Brick and limestone cottages around a small village green

Roofers in Ferndale

Leaks, re-covering, stacks and flat extensions all get covered in Ferndale, from the long terraces of Ferndale Road to the houses that went up after the 1942 bombing.

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Ferndale's roofs, terrace by terrace

A long brick terrace with pitched roofs — The Ferndale Road terraces

Ferndale Road runs from Gorse Hill to Cheney Manor and is about 630 houses, mostly unbroken terraces. It was once Gypsy Lane, and the building contractor Edwin Bradley began putting up houses along it in 1902. A terrace that long is close to a single roof shared between households: one continuous ridge, party walls rising through the roof space, and chimney stacks that often straddle two houses. Roofs of that age in this part of England were commonly covered in slate or clay tile, and which one you have is the first thing a survey establishes. The usual faults sit at the joints: ridge bedding, lead around the stacks and the gable ends at each end of a run. Gutters on a terrace carry a long slope's water at once, so a sagging length is worth checking at the same visit.

A newer house set into an older terrace — The houses built after 1942

On 17 August 1942 the town's worst bombing killed 19 people on Ferndale Road. The replacement houses built afterwards look more modern and in a different style from the terraces around them. For the roof, that difference counts twice. The covering, the pitch and the way the roof meets its neighbours will not match the older houses either side, so the line between old and new is where water finds its way in. A repair there needs flashings cut to suit both roofs, not a standard kit. A newer house also tends to have a different eaves detail and lighter timbers, which changes how we reach it, where we fix and what the finished repair looks like from the street. Some of these houses have porches or small bay roofs of their own, and those need the same attention as the main slope.

Rear extension with a flat roof — Back additions and extensions

Behind a terrace of this period you often find a rear outrigger, a lower roof running at right angles to the main one, and beyond it a single-storey kitchen or bathroom addition. Those lower roofs take the run-off from the slope above, so the valley where they meet is a frequent source of a stained kitchen ceiling. Later flat-roofed extensions add another covering to look after, usually felt, EPDM or GRP. EPDM is a synthetic rubber membrane and GRP is glass-reinforced plastic; both depend on sound falls and well-finished edges. Ferndale's back yards are tight, so we plan ladder and scaffold access before a job is priced. A narrow plot also limits where materials can be stacked, which is why a tidy site matters here.

Where Ferndale sits

Distance: 1 road miles north-west of central Swindon
Council: Swindon Borough Council
Council: Swindon Borough Council, for planning and building control
Conservation area: None listed for Ferndale; Rodbourne Cheney has its own nearby

Roof questions for Ferndale Road

Is Ferndale Road in a conservation area?

Swindon Borough Council's list of 27 conservation areas has no entry for Ferndale. Rodbourne Cheney has one nearby, so confirm a specific address with the council before assuming either way.

Can one house on a long terrace be fixed without its neighbours?

Usually yes. Each house has its own roof, and the care goes into the joins with the roofs either side, where flashings and ridge tiles meet the party wall.

Do the houses rebuilt after 1942 need different roof care?

Often, yes. Their covering, pitch and eaves differ from the older terraces beside them, so each repair is matched to the house in front of us.

What goes wrong on a Ferndale Road terrace roof?

Lead-lined valley gutter between two slate roof slopes

Weathered brick chimney stack with eroded joints and cracked pot

The short answer

On a long terrace the faults gather at the joints: loose or cracked ridge tiles, tired lead where a stack meets the slope, slipped slates beside the party walls, and valleys at the back where an extension joins the main roof. Few of these call for a whole new roof.

The Ferndale Road terraces went up in runs along a former lane around the turn of the twentieth century. That gives the roofs a family likeness, and it means a fault on one house is a fair guide to what is waiting on the next.

Why do the ridges and gable ends work loose?

The crest of the roof carries ridge tiles, and the sloping edge at each gable end is the verge. On roofs of this age the ridge tiles were bedded on mortar, which cracks as the roof flexes through the seasons. Since the 2014 edition of BS 5534, ridge tiles on a roof like this get a mechanical fixing as well as their bed. Loose ones are usually a quick job, and our ridge, verge and dry-fix page sets out the options.

Why does the lead around each stack fail?

Lead flashing is the folded strip that keeps water out where a slope meets a wall or a stack. Along a terrace the stacks sit on the party walls, so the lead around each one is hit by weather from both sides. Lifted or cracked lead is among the first things we look for, and a new apron or stepped flashing is often all the stack needs. See chimney repairs for the wider picture.

Why do the rear valleys leak?

Where an extension meets the main roof, a valley carries the water from two slopes down to the gutter. Leaves clog it, the lining wears, and water backs up beneath the tiles. We clear it, test the lining and tell you whether a patch will do or the valley needs relining. Our survey photographs let you see the same valley we did.

Gutters are checked during the same survey. On a terrace the rainwater from a long slope arrives all at once, and a sagging run or a blocked outlet sends it down the wall and into the brickwork instead. Fixing the gutter first can save a roof repair later, and we will tell you when that is the case. Our roof repairs page covers how we decide between a small repair and anything bigger.

Can I re-roof my Ferndale house without the neighbours?

The answer

Yes. Every house on a terrace has its own roof, so you can repair or re-cover yours alone. The planning goes into the edges, where your slope meets your neighbour's, because flashings and the line of the ridge have to be dealt with on both sides of the party wall.

People partway along a lengthy terrace often assume roof work needs a street meeting. It does not, but it does call for a word with the two next doors, and for a roofer who has thought about the join before the first tile comes off.

Where exactly does my roof end?

A party wall rises between two houses and usually stands a little proud of the slope, so each roof butts against it. The seal is made with lead flashing or soakers, which are small folded pieces of lead that sit under each course of tiles or slates and turn up the wall. When we re-cover one house, we renew those joins on our side, and tell you if the neighbour's side is so worn that it threatens your new work.

Will a new roof match the rest of the run?

A freshly covered house beside an older neighbour will look different for a few years, in colour and in how crisp the ridge line is. That is not a fault, but it is worth discussing before you commit. For slate we can often source a close match, and for repairs we match as nearly as the material allows.

What if the stack is shared?

If a stack straddles the party wall, taking it down is a bigger matter. Taking down a chimney breast always requires Building Regulations approval, and removing a chimney from a party wall means giving the neighbour notice under the party wall rules. Tell us early and we will explain what applies to your stack before anything is priced.

Scaffolding is the practical point on a street like this. Front elevations face the pavement and the rear yards are narrow, so the access plan decides how much of the job is hand-carried and how much can be lifted. We look at both sides of the house on the survey, note where a tower or a full lift is needed, and allow for that access in the written quote total.

MythRe-roofing one house on a terrace means agreeing the work with the whole street.

FactYour roof is your own; only the join at the party wall and any shared chimney stack involve the next-door neighbours.

Who approves roof work in Ferndale?

Chimney stack taken down below roof level during removal

Brick garage with a new brown concrete tile pitched roof

The short answer

Ferndale lies in Swindon Borough, so notifiable roof work is handled by Swindon Borough Council's own building control or by a private registered approver. Planning rarely arises with a like-for-like repair, and no conservation area covers Ferndale itself.

Most roof repairs in Ferndale are maintenance and need no application at all. The questions begin when a job grows beyond a repair.

When does building control apply?

The Planning Portal says an application is not normally needed if less than 25 per cent of the total building envelope and less than 50 per cent of the roof is affected. Cross either limit, or alter the structure, and approval is needed. A thermal upgrade can follow too, because Part L of the Building Regulations may require the whole roof to reach a set insulation level once more than half of it is renovated.

Can I swap slate for a heavier tile?

The Planning Portal also says a new covering that makes the roof 15 per cent or more heavier needs approval. That matters on a terrace where someone fancies swapping slate for concrete tile, because the rafters were sized for the lighter material. We check the timbers first. Swindon Borough Council runs its own building control; where a job is notifiable, we handle that paperwork.

Do planning rules or Article 4 apply?

Re-roofing in matching materials does not usually need planning permission. Swindon's Article 4 directions cover only Bishopstone and the Railway Village, so none touches Ferndale. For a particular address, the council's planning team gives the final word. Our pitched roofing page walks through the common routes, and a written quote spells out which one your job takes.

Asbestos is the other thing worth keeping in mind on older streets. HSE advice is to assume asbestos may be present in any building built or refurbished before 2000, and it can turn up in places such as soffits or old garage and outbuilding roofs. If a survey finds something suspicious, we stop and tell you, and removal follows the proper route for the material instead of being rushed into the job. A house on Ferndale Road dating from the early twentieth century is unlikely to have been entirely untouched since, and later repairs sometimes brought in materials the original builders never used.

Planning Portal tests for a re-covered roof

Test	Limit
Building envelope affected	Less than 25 per cent
Roof affected	Less than 50 per cent
Weight of new covering	Under 15 per cent heavier

Roofing services in Ferndale

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Questions from the Ferndale Road streets

Why do some houses on Ferndale Road look newer than the terraces around them?

The road was bombed on 17 August 1942, and the houses built afterwards to replace those lost look more modern and in a different style from the terraces. Their roofs usually differ too, in covering, pitch and eaves, so a repair is planned around the house itself, not around its neighbours. We say on the survey which kind of roof you have and what that means for the work.

Does the chimney stack on my terrace belong to my house alone?

Often it does not. On a long terrace a stack tends to sit on the party wall and serve two houses, so lead and pointing repairs touch both. We check whose stack it is during the survey, and if you want one taken down we explain the Building Regulations and party wall steps before any price is given. Pointing round the base of a shared stack is a common small repair, and it is often worth doing while the lead is being looked at.

How do you survey a mid-terrace roof with a tight back yard?

From the loft hatch inside, from a ladder at front and back, and from a scaffold tower or platform where the angle demands one. You receive survey photographs of your own roof along with the written quote, which lets you judge the advice for yourself.

What happens after the work on a Ferndale roof is finished?

Our crew leaves the site clear and carries the waste off, and the work carries a 10-year workmanship guarantee in writing. To arrange a survey, ring 01793 626096, or reach us by WhatsApp or through the form on this page.

Ask us about your roof

Tell us what’s happening and we’ll call you back.

Photos of what we find
A written quote
10-year workmanship guarantee

Or call 01793 626096