Aylesham · 12.7 road miles north
Roofers in Aylesham
At the 2021 Census Aylesham parish had 6,407 usual residents, and Dover District Council decides what needs approval on the parish's roofs. Dover counts a like-for-like re-cover as approval work, so we settle the route before any price is written down. The quote that follows the survey is one written total price.
- Who decides approvals
- Dover District Council, which lists like-for-like re-covering
- Conservation areas nearby
- Barfrestone, Frogham and Goodnestone
- Scaffold licence
- Kent County Council, £52 per week for 2026 to 2027
- Time from Folkestone
- About 19 minutes by road, 12.7 road miles
Aylesham roofs sorted by what Dover would ask
What we found
Two tiles slipped above a porch roof
What it fairly needs
Refix both and test the batten behind.
What we found
Covering worn right across one slope
What it fairly needs
Dover's approval route, then the price.
What we found
Roof window leaking round its frame
What it fairly needs
New unit, new flashings, sealed to the felt.
The fair ledger
Aylesham under Dover's rules: re-covers, boundaries and roof windows
Dover District Council's approval list shapes what happens before a ladder goes up in Aylesham. The three entries take a re-cover, the conservation areas round about, and a roof window, with a verdict on each.
Entry 01Re-coverings
Re-tiling an Aylesham house: Dover's approval line comes first
Dover District Council puts a like-for-like re-covering on its list of work that needs approval, and that list governs addresses in Aylesham.
What Dover's list asks of a re-cover
Dover District Council's building control page names the replacement of pitched and flat roof coverings, even if this is just like for like, as work that needs approval. Putting in roof lights is named as well. That is Dover's own position and it covers Aylesham, so a new covering here begins with a question to the council's own building control team, not with a scaffold booking.
The survey gives that question something to stand on. We note the pitch, the battens, the underlay and the rafter ends at the eaves, and we photograph every slope. A repair is a different job from a replacement. Where a repair is sound we price the repair, and where it is unclear whether a particular repair counts as replacing the covering, we put that to the council in writing. You then hold the council's reply alongside the survey findings, and nothing is ordered until the two agree. That order of events costs a little time and removes the risk of a stripped roof that the council later queries.
If a covering is finished, the same notes support the application and the price follows once the route is clear. Our roof replacement service explains how a strip and re-lay is run, and the planning guide covers the separate planning questions.
What a strip and re-lay uncovers
- Tile or slate on top
- Batten it hangs from
- Underlay beneath the battens
- Rafter carrying the lot
Each layer is noted at the survey so the council has facts to read.
What the survey writes down
- The pitch of each slope, and how the covering is fixed to its battens.
- The underlay, where the loft lets us see it, and any sign of old damp.
- Rafter ends and wall plates at the eaves, felt for softness.
- Ridge, hip and verge details, since they are part of the covering too.
- Valleys and the lead or lining that lies in them.
Those notes go to the council with the photographs, so the answer comes back about your roof, not about roofs in general.
Myth: Putting back the same tiles needs no one's approval.
Fact: In Dover District Council's area, replacing roof coverings even if this is just like for like sits on the list of work needing approval.
Entry 02Nearby areas
Barfrestone, Frogham and Goodnestone: conservation areas close to Aylesham
Barfrestone, Frogham and Goodnestone are among the Dover district conservation areas a short way from Aylesham. Whether your own address falls inside one is for Dover District Council to confirm.
Reading the boundaries for your address
Dover District Council keeps the list of conservation areas for its whole district, which has 57 of them. Barfrestone, Frogham, Goodnestone, Ratling and the two Nonington areas all lie a short way from Aylesham, though none covers the village centre, and a village name alone does not tell you which side of a boundary a house sits. The council's planning team can answer that for a given address, so the check starts with them.
A conservation area changes the questions asked about design. Ordinary re-covering is a separate matter, and Dover's like-for-like line applies to it wherever the house stands. Our planning guide for roof work sets out the planning side, so it is not repeated here.
Article 4 is the other thing to ask about. Dover District Council explains that a direction can cover the alteration of a dwelling's roof, on the parts of a home that face a road, a waterway or public open space. Whether one reaches your address is a question for the council. We put it to them before we price, then pass the reply to you as we received it.
How do I find out if my Aylesham house is in a conservation area?
Ask Dover District Council's planning team to confirm the address against its list of conservation areas. We run the same check before quoting and show you what came back, because a neighbour's answer only holds for the neighbour's boundary line, and house numbers on one street can fall either side of it.
57
conservation areas in the Dover district, as Dover District Council counts them
Dover District Council's own count
The order we ask questions in
- Is the address inside a conservation area? Dover District Council answers that.
- Does an Article 4 direction touch the street? Check with Dover District Council.
- Is the house listed? The National Heritage List for England answers that, and a listing brings listed building consent.
- Only then does the price get written.
What goes in with a roof window
Until 24 March 2027, Approved Document L 2021 asks of a roof window either 1.4 W/m²K or Band B on the Window Energy Rating label. The 2.2 figure belongs to rooflights only, so a unit sold for one purpose is not simply swapped for the other. A supplier's data sheet shows which figure a window meets, and we read it before an order is placed.
Beyond the glass, an opening has to be formed in the rafters, and that is structural work. The flashing kit has to suit the covering around it, and the ceiling and insulation below need finishing where the frame breaks through. We look at all of that from the loft before we say whether an existing unit can be saved or has to come out. If the frame is sound and only its surround has failed, the repair is the smaller job and the fairer price, and the written findings spell that out.
A roof window that already leaks may have a flashing fault rather than a failed unit, which is why the survey separates the two. Our roof windows and skylights page sets out the whole job, from the opening to the finish inside the loft.
Entry 03Roof windows
A roof window in an Aylesham loft: approval and an energy figure
Dover District Council's approval list takes in roof lights, and a new roof window has an energy figure to meet as well.
On a roof window
Frame stained inside, glass sound
Renew the flashings
Seal failed between the panes
New unit and flashings
A window wanted where none exists
Council route first
What sets the price of a roof window
- Size and position of the opening
- Rafters to trim and support
- Scaffold or inside access only
- Finishing inside the loft
One written total price
What we look at from the loft
- Staining on the timbers round the frame, and whether it is old or still wet.
- The condition of the sealed unit between the panes.
- How the flashings sit against the covering, above and beside the frame.
- What the rafters can carry if a new opening is wanted.
Photographs of each go in the written notes, and you read them before any verdict is given.
Which of the three entries describes your Aylesham roof?
Pictures or a survey request are both welcome, and you will have the verdict in writing: repair, replace, or hold on while Dover is asked.
From Folkestone to Aylesham by road
12.7 road miles north of Folkestone, about 19 minutes by road. Aylesham is a village, and at the 2021 Census its parish had 6,407 usual residents. A phone photograph is a good way to begin, and the survey comes next, so nothing is priced from a distance. When you send a photograph, include the wider view of the slope as well as the close-up, because it shows how the covering meets the eaves and the ridge.
Aylesham roof questions that Dover's rules raise
Does re-tiling my Aylesham house need approval from Dover District Council?
Dover's building control page names the replacement of roof coverings, even if this is just like for like, as work that needs approval. The Planning Portal's national guide uses a different test, less than 25 per cent of the building envelope and less than 50 per cent of the roof, but Dover's list is the one that speaks for Aylesham addresses. We confirm the route with the council before a re-cover is priced, and we tell you what it said.
Which conservation areas are closest to Aylesham?
Barfrestone, Frogham and Goodnestone lie a short way off, though none covers the centre of Aylesham. Dover District Council can say whether an address is inside one, and whether an Article 4 direction touches it, so we ask before any quote is written. Ordinary re-covering is a separate matter from the questions a conservation area raises, and the planning guide on roof work explains how the two differ. If a neighbour was told something different, the answer may simply belong to a different address.
Who arranges the scaffold licence for a roof job in Aylesham?
The highway authority here is Kent County Council, and Kent County Council says the skip or scaffolding company should submit the application for you. Kent County Council charges £52 per week for 2026 to 2027. We arrange it with our scaffolder. If the scaffold stands wholly on your own land, the survey will show that no highway licence is involved, and then no fee arises at all.
Can I add a roof window to an Aylesham loft?
Dover District Council puts the installing of roof lights on its approval list, so ask before you buy a unit. The opening is cut into the rafters, which is structural work, and the window itself has an energy figure to meet. We look from the loft, note what has to move, and describe the route in writing before one written total price is given. A window that leaks may only need new flashings.
Who inspects re-roofing work in Aylesham?
Dover District Council's own building control team covers Aylesham, and the council's team or a registered building control approver can carry out building control. Which route suits your job depends on what is being done, so we ask Dover first and tell you plainly what it says. The survey photographs and notes give whoever inspects the facts they need to answer, and the written notes stay with you.
What decides whether an Aylesham roof is repaired or re-covered?
The survey does. We look at whether the battens hold a fixing, whether the underlay is intact beneath the tiles, and whether the damage is local or runs across a whole slope. A few slipped tiles or a cracked ridge are repairs. A slope that has worn out is a re-cover, and in Dover's area that brings the council's approval list into the conversation before any figure is written.
An Aylesham roof you would like looked at?
You'll get one written total price.