Roofers in Little Coxwell

The council's conservation area map records that the Little Coxwell area was designated on 3 February 1971 and covers about 8.5 hectares. That is a small area, but a conservation area label tends to worry homeowners more than it should.

Q1.1Which roof repairs stay simple?

Section 55 of the 1990 planning act says alterations that do not materially affect a building's outward appearance are not counted as development. A matching repair, with the same tile or slate in the same pattern, falls on that side. Most of what we do on older cottage roofs is exactly this: refixing tiles, renewing a worn valley, repointing a verge, lining a gutter.

Q1.2Which changes deserve a call to the council?

Trading one covering for another, changing the shade or shape of the tiles, adding roof windows or rebuilding a chimney is a different matter. Because a conservation area is designated to protect how a place looks, the council takes an interest in changes visible from the street. The Vale council lists a single Article 4 direction in force, covering a few Thames Street addresses in Abingdon, so the village has none.

Q1.3What if my house is listed?

Where a house is listed, anything that changes its character, a new type of roof covering included, calls for listed building consent. We will not start work on a listed roof until you have confirmed the position.

These questions belong with the planning team at the district council, and we will describe the work in the terms they need, with materials and method set out plainly.

Our roof repairs page shows what matching work involves on tiled and slated roofs, and the same approach applies to the older buildings in the village.

Before a job goes ahead, we put in writing what is coming off, what is going on and the reason, so you and the council work from the same description.

Building control is separate from planning. It checks that building work meets the Building Regulations for structure, fire safety and energy use, and a roof falls under it in particular cases.

Q3.1What are the usual limits?

The Planning Portal sets out when a re-roof or repair does not normally need an application: less than 25 per cent of the total building envelope affected, and less than 50 per cent of the roof. Beyond that, approval is needed, and the work can carry a requirement to improve the roof's insulation.

Q3.2Do weight and fire performance matter?

A new covering that increases the roof's weight by 15 per cent or more needs approval, and so does one that performs significantly differently in a fire. Approved Document A treats a load increase of more than 15 per cent as significant, so the structure gets checked whenever the material changes.

Q3.3Who deals with building control here?

The district council runs building control jointly with South Oxfordshire under the Southvale name, while a registered building control approver offers a private route. Which applies to your job, and who submits the notice, is settled with you at the survey.

Q3.4Is planning a separate question?

These are a separate matter from building control. A job can need one, both, or neither, and we tell you which at the survey.

For larger works, the application is made before the job starts, not afterwards, which is why we raise it early. A tiled roof that needs stripping to the rafters is the usual trigger, since replacing the whole covering and the battens on a large pitch can pass the roof limit by itself. Our roof replacement page explains what that kind of job involves.

On a small village house, a simple conversation at the survey is normally enough to settle the route: we measure the roof against the limits, note the weight of the old and new coverings, and write the answer into the quote. Where building control is involved, the notice is lodged ahead of the first tile coming off, which saves you chasing paperwork later.