Alrewas rooflights and skylights, fitted and guaranteed
Village cottages and farm conversions.
Alrewas homes, from older village cottages to extended family houses, can have roof windows, lanterns or flat rooflights. The survey is free, and the written quote after it lays the suitable units out together.
- Distance
- About 29 road miles north of central Birmingham
- Planning
- Lichfield District Council
- Housing
- Older village cottages, farmhouses and barn conversions, plus later family houses
- Conservation
- The older parts of a village are often listed or in a conservation area, so we check each address
Questions Alrewas roofs raise before a rooflight goes in
A cottage among the older, more mature houses of Alrewas?
Check the listing and conservation position, then compare slim units for the slope.
A converted barn or outbuilding with exposed timbers?
A roof window set between the existing rafters keeps the timbers in view.
A family house with a new kitchen extension?
A lantern or a pair of flat rooflights, matched to the room and priced together on a single quote.
Village roofs, plainly compared
- Cottage
- Extension
A village house rarely has one kind of roof. The main house may be tiled with a steep pitch, and the kitchen behind it flat-roofed. The two parts want different rooflights.
We compare a roof window for the pitched part with a lantern or flat unit for the extension, each measured against its own roof.
Pitched roof
- Unit
- Roof window
- Fits between
- Existing rafters
- Watch for
- Old timbers and battens
Flat roof
- Unit
- Lantern or flat rooflight
- Fits on
- An insulated kerb
- Watch for
- Age of the covering
The older houses
Alrewas has houses of many ages, and the older ones carry the details of their time: low eaves, deep roofs, thick walls and rafters that are not quite regular. On such a roof the aim is to fit the window to the building and not to force the building to take the window.
We measure between the real rafters, and where the spacing is awkward we show a smaller window that fits, or a larger one with the trimming drawn and priced. The battens and the underlay get a look too at the survey, since an old roof may have none, and cutting an opening is when that has to be dealt with.
- Listed and conservation status checked first
- Real rafter spacing measured, not assumed
- Roof window and extension roof priced separately
Barns, outbuildings and garden rooms
Around a village like Alrewas you will find converted barns, garages turned into studios and garden rooms. They usually have simple roofs and a plain brief: more daylight without losing wall space. A long flat rooflight over a work desk or a row of roof windows along one slope does that well.
In a barn conversion the roof often has exposed timbers that you want to keep in view. A roof window can be set between them, and the quote notes where a timber would be in the way. If the building is a separate outbuilding, we check whether it is within the scope of the Building Regulations before we say what applies, since the answer depends on its size and use.
Often asked at a first visit
Can a rooflight go over an exposed beam?
A window is set between the beams so the timber stays in view. Where a beam falls across the best position, we show the nearest spot that clears it and the daylight difference.
Warmth, glare and the glass behind them
Old cottages lose heat through the roof, and a new window in the slope adds a large area of glass to a room that may be lightly insulated. The roof windows we quote are double or triple glazed and meet the current limit, but the choice of glass still shapes how the room feels. Triple glazing keeps a bedroom warmer in winter and cuts noise from rain, and it costs more and weighs more, which matters for a large unit lifted into a cottage roof.
Glare is the opposite worry. A south-facing slope in summer can make a room bright and warm, so a solar control coating or an outside blind keeps the sun off the glass. A north-facing slope gives a soft, steady light that suits a study or a studio, and needs no coating at all. We ask which way the slope faces and which room you want to light before we recommend glass.
Each option on the quote follows one order: glass, then frame, then the way it opens, then how long it takes to arrive, then price. Maker lead times vary, so each is stated as the maker's typical range. That way you can see what a different pane or finish adds, and choose without needing to read a spec sheet.
For a rear kitchen extension
Lantern
- Light
- High and central
- Look
- Garden room
- Suits
- Wide kitchens
Twin flat rooflights
- Light
- Over two zones
- Look
- Low and clean
- Suits
- Long, narrow kitchens
Lighting a kitchen at the back of the house
Extensions at the back of a village house tend to be the best place for a rooflight, because the walls around them rarely give much light. A kitchen is often the room where the family spends the day, so a long dark centre shows up straight away.
A lantern over a table or island pulls light into the middle, and a pair of flat rooflights can light a work area and a dining area separately. Our page on roof lantern installation covers the shapes, and the answer on a lantern or a flat rooflight compares the pair in more detail.
Approvals, regulations and who handles them
- Planning
- Building Control
| Item | Who | What we do |
|---|---|---|
| Planning | Lichfield District Council | Check the address and prepare drawings if needed |
| Building Regulations | Building Control | Handle the notification where notifiable |
| Unit and fit | You and us | Compare options and fit the one you choose |
The rules for an Alrewas roof
Lichfield District Council decides planning for Alrewas. Under permitted development, rooflight and roof window work of many kinds is allowed without an application, under the conditions listed in our rooflight planning guide. On a listed property, permitted development never takes the place of listed building consent for a rooflight. An Alrewas house can also lose the right if Article 4 rules apply to it, and the planning history of the property may hold a condition that does the same.
Older parts of a village can be listed or in a conservation area, which is why the address is looked up before any unit is suggested. You hear from us what the address turns up, we draw up plans if the council asks for an application, and the decision is the council's.
Regulations, glass and the guarantee
Building work is involved whenever a rooflight goes into a new opening, and swapping a complete unit, glazing and frame included, is notifiable. Putting in only a new sealed glass unit, without the frame, is not. Building Control hears about the work from us whenever it applies, and the certificate is passed on to you at the end.
Part L (2021) limits heat loss through a replacement rooflight in a house that is already built to 2.2 W/m²K, and the window figure applies to a roof window instead, which must not exceed 1.4 W/m²K unless it carries a Band B energy label. The quote states the glass specification of each option, so the energy performance is part of the comparison. Behind the work in Alrewas sits our 10-year workmanship guarantee; the maker's warranty protects the unit itself, while an older unit that has failed is dealt with on our page about misted rooflight replacement.
Replacing an old lantern or flat rooflight
Plenty of extensions carry a lantern or flat rooflight put in many years ago, often a polycarbonate or single-glazed unit that has yellowed, misted or started to let the weather in. Replacement is straightforward when the opening is sound: the old unit comes out, the kerb is checked, and a new glass unit is fitted and sealed.
The kerb decides the cost. If it is sound and level, the new unit sits straight on it. If it has rotted, or the covering around it has failed, that is put right first so the new unit stands on a firm base. We look at the kerb from the roof, and the quote separates the unit from any work around it, so you can see what each part costs.
Rural plots and what they change
Houses on the edges of a village often stand on larger plots with fields or trees beyond. That brings long views, which makes a top-hung window worth considering, and open exposure, which makes a well-flashed unit and a firmly fixed kerb important.
It also brings wildlife. Birds and bats use some roofs, and if you know of a bat roost in your roof, tell us before the survey. Bats and their roosts are protected, and the work would need to be planned around them.
Often asked by a homeowner
What if my roof is old and the rafters are not straight?
We measure between the actual rafters and show the window size that fits. If trimming is needed to take a larger window, the quote names it and the reason, so you see the extra before you agree.
Around Wychnor, Wychnor Bridges and Alrewas
We survey across Alrewas and the hamlets around it, including Wychnor, Wychnor Bridges and Fradley Junction.
The Alrewas questions we get
Is it Lichfield District Council that handles a rooflight application in Alrewas?
Lichfield District Council. Permitted development reaches plenty of rooflights in Alrewas; the conditions to satisfy are laid out in our rooflight planning guide, and the survey includes a check of your address. If an application is needed, we prepare the drawings and the council decides.
Do you reach Alrewas and out to Fradley Junction?
Measured by road, Alrewas is 29 miles from Birmingham city centre heading north, so it falls inside the 30-mile area we cover. The free survey happens in your own house in Alrewas, and the written quote arrives after it.
Can a rooflight be added to a barn conversion?
A roof window can usually be set between the rafters, and the quote shows where the timbers sit. Whether the building is a dwelling or an outbuilding affects which rules apply, so we check that at the survey.
Is a listed cottage out of reach for a roof window?
Not necessarily, though it needs an application and the council decides. We prepare drawings that show a slim unit in a modest position, usually on a rear slope.
Do you replace a lantern that leaks around the frame?
A failed lantern is replaced with a new one made to fit the opening, once the kerb and the surrounding covering have been checked. Taking out and replacing a whole lantern is notifiable work, so we make the Building Control notification for you. See our roof lantern installation page.
Should I choose a roof window that opens?
An opening window lets out the warm air that gathers under a roof, so it suits a bedroom or a study. A fixed one costs less and suits a stairwell. The quote lists both, and our roof window installation page explains the opening types.
Will the work disturb the rest of the house?
We protect the floor and the room below the opening, agree the route through the house, and close the roof at the end of each working day. Lanterns and larger openings take longer than a roof window, and the quote shows the maker's typical range for each unit.
Is a loft conversion with roof windows a good plan for a cottage?
It can be, subject to headroom and a safe stair. On a two-storey house escape goes by a protected stair; the roof windows then provide light and air. We fit them to your plans once the layout is settled.
Is triple glazing worth having in a roof window?
It keeps a bedroom warmer and quieter in rain, at a higher cost and with a heavier unit. The double-glazed units we quote already meet the current limit, so the quote shows both and you decide how much the extra comfort is worth.
Which way should a rooflight face?
North-facing slopes give soft, even light, and south-facing ones give strong light and heat that coatings and blinds can tame. We ask what the room is for before we recommend glass.
Is there a way to weigh one unit against another before I book?
Following the free survey you get a written quote on which every suitable unit is described in the same order: glass first, then frame, then opening, then lead time, then price. Request the free survey at a time that suits you.
Book your free survey
It starts with a free survey and plain advice. No pressure, just clear options for your home.
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