Roofers on a slate roof along a limestone village street

Roofers in Lyneham

Tile and slate work, chimney repairs and flat-roof renewals in Lyneham, from the old church end of the village out to the wartime and post-war streets that grew up beside the airfield.

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Lyneham's roofs, from church tower to airfield estate

Old village cottages beside a parish church — The old village around St Michael's

The parish church of St Michael dates largely from the later fourteenth and fifteenth centuries and has an embattled west tower, and the older cottages and farm buildings near it belong to the same long story. Before the airfield arrived, Lyneham was a small farming parish, and the houses of that period are the ones most likely to have steep pitches, timber that has moved over the centuries and coverings that have been patched more than once. On a building of this age we look closely at the rafter feet, the wall plate and the line of the ridge before we price anything, because a covering can only be as sound as the timbers beneath it. Matching the existing material comes first, and where a repair is all the roof needs, that is the quote you receive. Photographs of the timbers go with it, so you can see for yourself why we recommend what we do.

Rows of pitched-roof houses with chimney stacks — RAF-era housing

R.A.F. Station Lyneham opened in 1940, became a full station in 1942, and the housing built to serve it partly obscured the former village. Houses of that era and the decades after share certain habits: simple pitched roofs, shallow eaves, brick chimney stacks and, as the years went on, replacement coverings of concrete tile. By now a familiar set of defects has appeared on many of them. Ridge tiles loosen as the old mortar bedding fails, verges lose their cement, flashings at the chimney crack, and the felt below the tiles ages. Because the pitches are regular and the roofs are plain, a careful repair on one slope can often be made without disturbing the whole roof. Gutters and fascias on these houses get checked on the same visit, since a sagging length of guttering soaks the brickwork below the eaves.

Low flat roof over a brick extension — Extensions, garages and the newer streets

Away from the old centre and the service housing, Lyneham has later estates, with plenty of single-storey additions: porches, garages, lean-to kitchens and flat-roofed extensions that have been bolted onto the older houses over the years. These small roofs often need attention first, because a flat or low-pitched covering has a shorter life than a pitched one and the junction with the house wall is a common place for damp to start. Upstand height, flashing and slope all get checked, so rain leaves by the gutter rather than lying in a pool on the deck. Where the covering has failed but the deck is sound, replacing only the covering is usually the sensible job. If the deck is soft or stained from below, we tell you and price the boards separately, so nothing surprising appears on the final account.

From Swindon to the Corallian ridge

Distance: 11 road miles west-south-west of central Swindon
Council: Wiltshire Council
Council: Wiltshire Council
Setting: An open Corallian ridge village, with the former RAF airfield on the high ground

Lyneham roof questions

Does Lyneham's open ridge setting affect my roof?

Yes. Lyneham sits high with little shelter, so ridges, verges and loose tiles take the wind first, and their fixings are the first thing we check.

Are my RAF-era house's concrete tiles worth keeping?

Often, if the battens and underlay are sound. A repair to ridge, verge and broken tiles can extend the roof's life, and we say plainly when a re-cover is the better route.

Who handles building control in Lyneham?

Wiltshire Council's building control team, or a registered building control approver. Like-for-like repairs usually need nothing, and we explain it when work is notifiable.

How does the ridge-top site change Lyneham roof repairs?

Roofer repointing a stone chimney stack above lead flashing

Weathered brick chimney stack with eroded joints and cracked pot

The short answer

Lyneham stands on the Corallian ridge, and the county history describes the parish as open and largely treeless. With no shelter, wind reaches ridges, verges and the edges of every slope first. That makes fixings, bedding and flashings the points we inspect before anything else on a Lyneham roof.

The Victoria County History places Lyneham on the Corallian ridge, which climbs to about 400 feet here and higher towards Bradenstoke, and it calls the parish open and treeless because of that exposed position. For a roofer the lesson is simple. A house with no hedgerow or hillside beside it receives the weather on every elevation, so the parts of the roof that stand proud are the parts that fail first.

How are ridges and hips fixed?

The ridge is the highest line on the roof. Older ridges were bedded on mortar alone. BS 5534, as revised in 2014, expects mechanical fixings on ridge and hip tiles too, so a mortar-only ridge is out of date even when it still looks tidy. On a roof like this, we often suggest re-bedding with proper fixings or fitting a tested dry-fix ridge and verge system, which clips the tiles down and needs far less maintenance than a mortar joint.

What happens at the verges and gables?

At a gable the roof finishes in a verge, the sloping edge that overhangs the wall below. Cement pointing there cracks and drops away, and once the tiles at the edge are loose the wind can lift them in a gust. We refix the edge tiles, replace the failed bedding and check that the underlay is still lapped at the edge.

Why do exposed chimneys and flashings fail?

Flashing means lead or a similar metal, dressed to throw water clear of a joint such as the base of a chimney. Exposed chimney stacks suffer most, so we look at the pointing, the flaunching around the pots and the lead around the base. On our roof repairs page you can read how a patch gets weighed against something bigger.

None of this means a Lyneham roof is a problem roof. It means the survey should start at the edges and the high points, with a photograph of each point, so what we saw is in front of you when you choose.

Is it worth re-covering a post-war house in Lyneham?

The answer

Sometimes, but not always. A roof from the airfield years often has sound timber under a tired covering, so a repair or a re-cover without structural work can be enough. If the tiles are failing across the whole roof, a full re-cover is the cheaper route over time.

The homes built around RAF Lyneham after 1940 were put up quickly and in numbers, and the roofs that survive are the same age as the houses or have been replaced once since. That gives two very different starting points, and the right job depends on which one you have.

When is a repair enough?

If the battens are sound, the underlay is intact and the tiles are only loose or cracked in places, replacing the broken ones and re-bedding the ridge deals with the fault. The quote names the least work that will put the fault right, with photographs of your roof beside it so you can judge for yourself.

When is a re-cover the better answer?

If you can see daylight at the laps in the loft, the felt is brittle, battens are soft or the tiles are crumbling at the surface, patching becomes a repeat expense. A full strip and re-cover on new battens and underlay removes the cause. Our roof replacement page covers what that involves, including scaffold, waste and the order of work.

Does a heavier tile bring in the regulations?

Concrete tiles are heavy. Where the replacement tiles weigh 15 per cent or more beyond the originals, the Planning Portal says approval is needed, and Approved Document A uses the wording more than 15 per cent. Before any heavier tile is specified, we look at the rafters and wall plates to see whether the structure can carry it, and we tell you what we find. Re-covering also becomes notifiable when it affects 25 per cent or more of the building envelope or 50 per cent or more of the roof. In Lyneham that means Wiltshire Council's building control team, or a registered approver. If your job falls inside the notifiable range, we explain the process and send the notification ourselves.

Whichever route you take, the quote is written, the site is cleared, and the 10-year workmanship guarantee is in writing.

Our view

Repair a sound roof with local faults, and re-cover one that is failing everywhere.

What about Bradenstoke's thatch and stone slate near Lyneham?

Roofers on a slate roof along a limestone village street

Brick end-of-terrace gable beside a limestone house, slate roofs

The short answer

The county history records thatched roofs and stone-slate roofs in the narrow street at neighbouring Bradenstoke, a hamlet with a conservation area of its own. Lyneham village itself does not appear on Wiltshire's list of conservation areas, but any listed building needs consent for changes.

Lyneham's neighbour Bradenstoke is a different kind of place. The county history notes several thatched roofs, and others of stone slate, along its single narrow village street, and the hamlet has its own conservation area. If your house is on that side of the parish, the rules that apply can be different from those in the main village.

Is my Lyneham house in a conservation area?

Lyneham village does not appear among the conservation areas on Wiltshire's data, but Bradenstoke does. A re-roof in matching material does not usually need planning permission, though a conservation area adds caveats where the material or appearance changes. If you are unsure, put the question to Wiltshire Council's planning team before work is priced; we will help you read the reply.

Does listing change the rules?

A listed building's character is protected by consent rules, and the roofing material counts as part of that character. On a listed roof we begin with like for like: matching covering, matching method. A modern substitute has no place on a building designed for stone slate. Our page on Cotswold stone roofing describes how stone is laid in diminishing courses, with big stones low down and small ones high up.

Who approves work on St Michael's?

St Michael and All Angels, in the Diocese of Salisbury, is Lyneham's Anglican parish church. Where a Church of England building is in use for worship, the ecclesiastical exemption applies and changes go through the faculty system instead of the council. That is a job for the parish, not a householder.

For ordinary houses in Lyneham, the position is simpler. Most work is maintenance, needs no permission, and is dealt with by a written quote after a survey.

MythIf a neighbouring hamlet is a conservation area, so is the village next door.

FactEach conservation area has its own boundary, so check the council's map for your own address.

Roofing services in Lyneham

Nearby towns we cover

Questions from the ridge and the old airfield streets

What loosens ridge tiles on Lyneham's higher streets?

Wind does most of the damage. On open high ground every gust pulls at the ridge line, and ageing mortar cracks and lets go. We re-bed with proper clips and screws or use a tested dry-fix kit, so the tiles are held by more than mortar.

Can a former service house be patched rather than re-covered?

Often. Where battens and underlay are sound, swapping cracked tiles, re-bedding the ridge and renewing flashings counts as repair, not re-roofing. We photograph first, show you each fault, and price only what is needed.

Do you work around the village hall end and the church?

Yes, across the whole village and the hamlets close by, Bradenstoke included. Lyneham is comfortably inside the 30 road miles we work within from Swindon, and you can check any other address against the full list of places.

What happens if a flat extension roof in Lyneham is leaking at the wall?

First we trace the entry point, often the upstand or flashing at the joint with the main house. If the covering has failed and the deck underneath is still sound, only the covering is renewed. Our flat roofing page sets out the options.

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