Street of 1960s brick bungalows with concrete tile roofs

Roofers in Withington

Stone slate repair, careful re-laying, lead flashings and chimney work in Withington, from the church and manor beside the River Coln to the cottages and later homes around them.

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Withington's roofs, from church tower to Coln bank

Old limestone church and manor roofs — The church, the manor and the mill

St Michael and All Angels, the village church, goes back to the twelfth century and carries a Grade I listing, its Perpendicular clerestory and taller tower being fifteenth-century additions. The Manor House behind the primary school and the Mill Inn are both Grade II listed. Chipping Campden marks the northern edge of Cotswold stone slate roofing and the area near Bath its southern, and Withington sits comfortably between the two. Roofs on buildings like these were built to last, with heavy slates laid on stout timbers, so the work we do is seldom a replacement. It is careful repair that keeps the original stone in place.

Stone cottages with steep slate-covered gables — Cottages and barns along the Coln

Withington is a Cotswold village about seven miles south-east of Cheltenham, with the River Coln running through it. Cottages, farm buildings and outhouses along the valley share a pattern: thick walls, steep gables and stone slates that shrink in size as they climb the slope. The river valley brings damp, so moss collects on shaded slopes and on north-facing pitches, and the timbers under the slates stay wet longer than on a roof on the high wold. The usual faults here are slipped slates where an old peg has rotted, lime torching (the mortar pointed under the slates) that has crumbled, and valleys that have lost their lining. Each one is repairable when it is found in time.

Slate and tile roofs on a mixed village street — Railway years and later houses

Withington had a railway station from 1891 until 1961, and the decades around it brought houses, extensions and outbuildings in other materials, such as Welsh slate and clay tile. The last century added concrete tile, flat roofs on extensions and garages, and reconstituted Cotswold-style slates on some newer builds. A concrete or reconstituted slate looks different from natural stone up close, and guidance on historic buildings treats such substitutes as unsuitable for them. For a post-war house, though, a like-for-like re-cover is straightforward work. We start each survey by working out which era a roof belongs to, because the right repair follows from that. A flat porch roof added in the 1970s and a stone slate gable from the 1600s are different jobs, even when they share a wall.

From Swindon up to the Coln valley

Distance: 27 road miles north-north-west of central Swindon
Council: Cotswold District Council
Landscape: Cotswolds National Landscape
Conservation area: Withington, mapped by Cotswold District Council
Setting: Cotswold village on the River Coln

Withington roof questions

Can you repair Withington's stone slate roofs rather than replace them?

Yes, and it is usually the better course. The slates often outlast their fixings, so refixing the sound ones and replacing the broken ones keeps the roof and its character.

Does Withington's conservation area limit roof work?

Not for matching repairs. Should you plan a new material, or the house is listed, speak to Cotswold District Council first. Whatever the survey turns up, we explain it before work begins.

Why are the smallest slates at the top of a Cotswold roof?

Quarried stone yields small slates in abundance and big ones sparingly. The biggest go along the eaves, where the water is heaviest, and sizes decrease up to the ridge.

How is a Withington stone slate roof built?

Reclaimed Cotswold stone slates sorted by length beside a limestone wall

Roofers on a slate roof along a limestone village street

The short answer

Split oolitic limestone, sorted by size and laid in rows that get steadily shorter from eaves to ridge. Traditional slates hung on oak pegs over battens, on steep pitches. The result is a roof that is heavy, long-lived and unmistakable.

Cotswold District Council's technical guidance, published in April 2000, describes two limestones used for stone slates: Forest Marble and Stonesfield Slate. The guide dates from 2000, so it tells us how roofs were traditionally made, not what stone is available now. It is clear about construction, and its description matches what we meet when we open up a slope.

Why are the biggest slates at the eaves?

Split stone yields lots of short pieces and only a handful of long ones. The longest slates, normally about 600 mm and occasionally 750 mm, are doubled up at the lowest edge of the roof, and these are the cussoms. Followers come next, then ever smaller sizes towards the crest, where the tiniest, the short cocks, measure around fifteen centimetres. Laying them in graded sizes like this is known as diminishing courses.

What holds the slates on: pegs or nails?

In the traditional method a hole is drilled close to the top of each slate to take a cleft oak peg, and the peg is what hangs the slate from its batten. Oak pegs perish well before limestone does, so a slipped slate usually signals a failed peg rather than a failed slate. Nails are sometimes used in their place, but a repair on an old roof should follow the original method wherever it can.

How steep should the roof be?

The simplest traditional form is a straight pitched roof, usually between 47 and 55 degrees. That range describes tradition, not a minimum, and the pitch of your own roof was set by its builders. We never change a pitch in a repair.

The weight is worth planning for. A square of stone slate roof is far heavier than the same area of clay tile, so rafters, wall plates and the access for a scaffold all need thought before a single slate comes off. Stone also arrives in pallets that have to be lifted and sorted, which adds to the time on site as well as the cost. All of this is heavy work in heavy material. Our Cotswold stone roofing page explains how a full re-lay is organised.

Is a Withington stone slate roof worth saving?

The answer

Repaired while the slates are sound, re-laid once the fixings and battens have failed across a whole slope. Stone slates often outlast their pegs, so good value lies in saving the stone and replacing what holds it up. The survey shows which case applies.

There is a point at which patching stops being sensible. On a stone roof that point arrives later than most owners expect, and the reason is the stone itself. A slate that has been on the roof for centuries can carry on for centuries more if its fixings are renewed.

Can reclaimed slate be used on my roof?

Only with thought. The guide reproduces English Heritage policy, which wants new-cut stone slates used ahead of second-hand ones, and salvaged slates reserved for their original building. Lifting slates from somebody else's roof to patch yours can strip that building bare. Our stone is bought new or properly salvaged, and you are told its origin.

What is a swept valley, and can it be mended?

A swept valley is where two slopes meet in a gentle curve, formed with specially cut slates rather than a straight metal channel. The guide calls cheaper mitred or open lead valleys unsatisfactory where a proper swept valley belongs, so a failed valley deserves repair in its original style, with lead roofing used only where the building calls for it.

Does moss damage the stone?

Moss holds water and adds weight, but stone slate is tough. Neglect underneath does more harm. The council's guide says an annual scrape could double a roof's working life. It also reports that, when old roofs come off, around half the slates have usually perished. Light, regular attention counts for more than one big job, and our roof repairs page shows what that looks like.

If a slope does need stripping, we photograph it first, label the courses and set the sound stones aside for re-laying in the same order. Between the slates and the rafters, the battens, the lime torching and any old underlay are checked and renewed while the roof is open, which is the one chance to put the timbers right for the next lifetime of the roof.

Our view

Save the stone, replace its supports, and put every slate back where it came from.

Who signs off roof work in Withington?

Long flat roof on a 1960s brick building being re-covered

Industrial units with grey metal roofs beyond a roof under repair

The short answer

Cotswold District Council deals with planning and with building control. Withington is a conservation area inside the Cotswolds National Landscape, and the church and two other buildings are listed. Matching repairs rarely need consent; changes of material and listed work do.

Withington lies in Cotswold District, so the council is the first call for planning, conservation and Building Regulations. The council's conservation area maps include Withington, and you can check the boundary for your own house on the council's conservation area maps.

What does the National Landscape change?

The Cotswolds took the name National Landscape on 22 November 2023, though in law the designation remains an AONB. The National Landscape body offers advice, and the council takes the planning decision. For a repair on a stone roof that distinction rarely matters, but it is worth knowing who answers your question.

Which roof jobs need approval?

Building control stays out of a re-cover that affects under 25 per cent of the total building envelope and under 50 per cent of the roof. Bigger jobs need approval, and better insulation can follow. Putting stone onto a structure designed for something lighter, a covering 15 per cent or more heavier, is checked as well. The district runs its own building control team, and filing the notification for a notifiable job is our responsibility.

How do the listed buildings and Article 4 fit in?

Grade I covers the church; the Manor House and Mill Inn are Grade II. A roof covering counts as part of a listed building's character, so listed building consent is needed for changes to it. Withington does not appear in the council's list of Article 3 and 4 directions, so no extra local restriction applies on top of the conservation area.

If you tell us the address, we can look at the roof and say which of these routes applies. For a house near the church or the Mill Inn, we also check the roofline from the road, because what the council sees from the lane is often what it cares about.

MythThe Cotswolds National Landscape body can refuse a roof application.

FactIt advises. The district council makes the planning decision.

Roofing services in Withington

Nearby towns we cover

Questions from beside the Coln

Why do some slates on a Withington roof keep slipping out of place?

Usually the oak peg or the batten has rotted, not the slate. Rain has found its way past a failing peg and the slate hangs loose. Refixing it, and renewing the peg and batten behind it, normally cures the problem without touching the neighbouring slates. If several slates are going on one slope, the whole run of pegs is probably tired, and you will see that in the photographs.

Can you match natural stone slate for a small extension?

Yes. Natural stone slate can be sourced new to match the surrounding roof, and we choose the size and tone so that it blends in. Substitutes can look quite different from stone up close, which is why the council's guidance advises against them on historic buildings.

Is lime torching under my stone slates a problem?

It is a feature, not a fault. Torching is lime mortar pointed under the slates inside the roof space, and it helps hold them. When it crumbles it can be renewed in lime, and we look at it whenever we are inside the roof.

Does the ten year guarantee cover re-laid old stone?

Our workmanship is guaranteed for ten years, in writing, and re-laying is workmanship. The guarantee is not insurance, and it cannot promise how long a century-old slate will last once it has been refixed.

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