Roofers on a buff brick estate house with grey tile roofs

Roofers in Hampstead Norreys

Tile, slate and chimney work for the brick cottages of Hampstead Norreys, the flint-walled buildings around St Mary's church and the farm roofs on the downland rise above the Pang Brook.

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Roofs along the Pang Brook

Red brick cottages with plain tiled roofs — Brick cottages with slate and tile

The Victoria County History, written in 1924, describes a village of red brick houses and cottages with slate and tiled roofs. A cottage of that kind typically has a small plain-tiled roof over brick walls, a stack at the gable or on the ridge, and a lean-to scullery at the back. Old clay tiles lose their nibs, slip and let the rain in at the eaves first. Brick verges are another early failure, because the mortar under the tile edge crumbles long before the tiles do. A cottage like this often needs a careful patch, not a new roof, and the survey photographs show which of the two you have.

Old cottage chimney beside a roof edge — Thatched and timber-framed cottages

The same county history records a few timber-framed cottages with thatched roofs. A thatch is its own specialist covering, so our share of the job is whatever surrounds it: the brick stack where the thatch meets masonry, the lead or flashing at that junction, and the tiled or slated extensions, porches and outbuildings that old cottages have gathered over the centuries. A damp patch beside a thatched chimney is often a cracked flaunching, not the thatch itself, and finding out which saves a lot of disturbance. Timber frames also move with the seasons, so a new roof fixed to one needs fixings that allow for that movement.

Tiled church roof beside a flint tower — The church and flint-walled buildings

St Mary the Virgin has a tower of plastered flint with stone dressings, and its roofs are tiled. Flint is a hard, uneven wall to fix a roof against. Where a tiled slope meets a flint gable or a tower, the flashing has to be cut into a joint and pointed, never just stuck to the surface, or water works behind it and runs down the inner face. The flint-and-brick barns and farm buildings on the downland edge raise the same questions, along with older valleys and long lean-to slopes. These junctions usually fail long before the open tiled areas do, and a glance from the lane rarely spots them.

From Swindon to the Berkshire Downs

Distance: 29 road miles east-south-east of central Swindon
Council: West Berkshire Council
Council: West Berkshire Council
Conservation area: Hampstead Norreys has its own conservation area
Landscape: North Wessex Downs National Landscape

Thinking of roof work in Hampstead Norreys?

Can the roof around a thatched cottage chimney be mended here?

Yes. We take the brick stack, its lead flashing and the cement flaunching where thatch meets brick, plus any tiled or slated roof beside it. The thatch itself stays with a thatcher.

Is the village inside a conservation area?

Yes, West Berkshire Council holds a record for a Hampstead Norreys conservation area. A tile swapped for the same tile is routine, but ask the council before you change a roof's appearance.

Do Pang Brook cottages need different tiles from newer houses?

Often they do. Older cottages carry small plain tiles or slate, laid to suit their pitch and weight, and we match size, colour and surface texture so a repair sits quietly among the rest.

What does a brick cottage roof here need as it ages?

Roofer repointing a stone chimney stack above lead flashing

Brick chimney stack with new lead flashing on a clay tile roof

The short answer

Mostly attention to the edges and junctions rather than the covering itself: ridge bedding, verge mortar, chimney flashings and the odd slipped tile. A cottage roof in slate or small clay tiles can often be repaired for years before a full re-cover makes sense.

Hampstead Norreys grew up in red brick with slate and tile on top, according to the Victoria County History, and that combination ages in a pattern. The walls carry on. The covering gives up a piece at a time, and trouble begins around the perimeter, where the roof meets gables, chimneys and gutters, long before the open slope shows any wear.

Should I patch slipped tiles or re-tile the slope?

Three or four cracked tiles near the eaves call for a patch. We lift the courses above, slot in matching tiles and re-fix the rest, so the repair cannot be seen from the lane. Re-tiling becomes the sensible call when battens have rotted, the underlay has perished or tiles are cracking right across the slope, as happens when frost has worked on porous old clay for decades. You receive photographs of your own roof alongside the written quote, which lets you judge the case for yourself.

What do the old brick stacks need?

A stack takes weather on all four faces. Pointing erodes, the cement bed holding each pot splits, and the lead apron at the base peels back a little more each winter. Repointing a stack and renewing its flashing is a small job done on time, and a large one when damp has reached the bedroom ceiling. Our chimney repairs page sets out each stage.

On a cottage this age we also look from inside the loft. Rafters and wall plates that have been damp for years show whether a leak is new or long running, and that changes what we advise. A dark tide mark with soft timber beneath points to a slow fault, so we trace where the water first got in before proposing any repair.

Does the conservation area change roof work in Hampstead Norreys?

The answer

Seldom where the materials stay the same. A tile swapped for the same tile, or a slate for the same slate, is routine upkeep. Switching to another covering, or tackling a listed home, deserves a call to West Berkshire Council before a price is agreed.

West Berkshire Council keeps a record for a Hampstead Norreys conservation area. Living in one does not freeze your roof in time. It means the planners watch for changes to the street scene, and a few jobs need a conversation first.

Can I put back the same tiles without an application?

Planning law treats works that leave the outside of a building looking the same as maintenance, so a roof re-covered in the same tile or slate generally goes ahead with no application. Two things can alter that: a listed house, where listed building consent covers anything touching its character, and an Article 4 direction withdrawing everyday rights. The council can tell you whether either applies, so put your address to the council before you pick a different tile.

Does a big re-roof bring Building Regulations into play?

Sometimes. The Planning Portal sets the line at 25 per cent of the total building envelope and 50 per cent of the roof: work inside those two limits and a building control application is not normally needed, while going beyond them brings approval, and perhaps extra insulation. Building Control Solutions, the service West Berkshire shares with Wokingham, handles applications here, and we sort out the notification whenever the job requires one.

What about the church and the older houses next to it?

St Mary's carries medieval fabric, and several older houses stand close by. For anything listed we begin by asking whether the original material can stay, and any departure from it is talked through with you, and with the council, before a tile is lifted. Its conservation team can confirm which buildings are listed, and we will read the answer alongside you.

MythA house in a conservation area cannot have so much as a tile replaced without an application.

FactUpkeep in the same materials rarely does; the council's interest is in alterations that make the roof look different.

How does the downland rise affect roofs at Hampstead Norreys?

Close-up of clay ridge tiles meeting a brick gable end

Blocked gutter full of leaves overflowing down a brick wall

The short answer

The parish climbs from about 270 feet by the Pang Brook to over 500 feet in the north-west, so roofs higher up take more wind. Ridges, verges and gable ends feel it first, which is why their fixings matter more here than the age of the tiles.

The county history puts the parish on both sides of the Pang Brook, rising from about 270 feet to over 500 feet in the north-west, on chalky soil that is often capped with clay. You do not need a survey to see what that means for a roof: the higher the house sits, the less shelter it has from the west.

Why do ridge and verge fixings matter on higher ground?

Ridge tiles, hip tiles and verge edges sit at the exposed rim of the roof, where wind gets under first. Under BS 5534:2014 a ridge or hip tile is held by mechanical fixings as well as bedding, because mortar on its own cannot be relied upon. On an older cottage the original bedding is often mortar only, so re-bedding a ridge with stainless clips and screws, or moving to a dry-fix ridge system tested to BS 8612, is a sensible upgrade. Our page on ridge, verge and dry-fix work explains the choices.

Do the clay and chalk under the village matter to the roof?

They matter to the walls more than to the covering. Ground that swells and shrinks with the seasons can shift old brickwork a little, and a hairline split in a gable wall or stack opens a path for water exactly where roof meets wall. When we find a stepped crack beside a stack, we tell you whether it looks old and settled or fresh, and whether a builder should look at the masonry before the roof is touched.

Gutters and downpipes deserve a look as well, since water spilling down a brick wall does as much harm as a missing tile. Outbuildings on the higher lanes, with lighter sheeting or older felt, are worth the same check, because a shed roof lifting in a gale can damage the cottage beside it.

Our view

On higher ground, fix the edges of the roof properly and the middle usually looks after itself.

Roofing services in Hampstead Norreys

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Questions from the Pang Brook village

Which parts of a thatched Hampstead Norreys cottage can you work on?

The masonry and metalwork around it: the chimney stack, the flashing and flaunching where thatch meets brick, and any tiled or slated roof on an extension, porch or outbuilding. The thatch itself is a different trade, and we will tell you plainly when a problem belongs to it rather than to us, so you ring the right person first time.

Are the barns and farm roofs near Hampstead Norreys within your area?

Yes. Barns, stables and lean-tos in the village and on the farms along the downland edge are all reachable from Swindon. The job is usually a mix of tile or sheet repairs, valley and flashing details, and gutters, and the survey photographs show the condition before the written quote reaches you.

Why would a roof leak beside a flint wall?

Flint is hard and uneven, so a flashing stuck to its surface rarely lasts. Water gets behind it and runs down the inside of the wall. A proper repair cuts the lead into a joint in the wall and points it in, then checks the tiles and gutter above so the same fault does not come back next winter.

How can I tell whether my house is inside the conservation area?

Ask West Berkshire Council's planning team, or look for the conservation area map on its website. If your house is listed as well, say so when you enquire, because listing changes what the council will expect. We can read the council's reply with you before any roof work is priced.

Ask us about your roof

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

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A written quote
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