There comes a point where a roof isn't worth repairing any more. The tiles may still look all right from Cotton Lane, but underneath the battens have softened, the felt has torn along the eaves and the nails are rusting away. In Stone that point arrives at different times on different streets, because the housing ranges from early post-war to very recent. A new roof is a big spend, so we take time on the survey and show you why we think it's due. Then we price it in writing, line by line. Re-roofing in Stone also means paperwork: covering more than half a roof normally needs building control approval, and the insulation has to come up to standard. We look after both.
A roofer rings you back to arrange a visit.
A re-roof is a once-in-a-generation job for most houses. These are the parts we won't cut corners on.
01
We take the old covering, battens and felt off completely. That lets us see the rafters, wall plates and any damp spots, and deal with them while the roof is open, instead of covering problems with new tiles.
02
Modern breathable membrane lets moisture out of the loft while keeping rain out. Paired with treated battens at the right gauge for your chosen tile, it gives the new covering a sound base for decades.
03
Re-covering more than 50% of a roof, or more than a quarter of the whole building envelope, normally brings Building Regulations into play. We make sure that's dealt with, so you have the paperwork when you sell.
04
A roof counts as a thermal element. When it's re-covered, the insulation should be upgraded too. With the tiles off, it's the cheapest moment you'll ever get to do it. The rooms under the roof will feel the difference in the first cold snap.
05
If a new covering would add 15% or more to the roof's weight, that needs approval and may need structural checks. Heavy concrete tiles on a roof framed for something lighter is a real risk, and we'll flag it before you choose.
06
With scaffold already up, it costs little extra to renew tired fascias, soffits and gutters. On houses near London Road those boards have often had years of grime and overflow, and this is the time to sort them.
1,000+
Roofs repaired, renewed and rebuilt
10 yrs
Written guarantee on every re-roof
5★
The only rating anyone has left us
£0
For the survey and the written quote
Stone didn't grow all at once. Suburban streets spread after the Second World War, and the parish has kept adding homes since, almost doubling in population between 2005 and 2021. So when we quote for a re-roof here, the first job is understanding what we're dealing with. An older house may have been built for one type of covering and re-roofed in something heavier decades ago. A newer one may only need a slope or a detail sorting, not the full thing.
Then there are the roads. If your house fronts London Road, scaffold has to be planned around the pavement and the traffic, and that's part of the price from day one. And because so many Stone homes are semis or terraces, we look carefully at where your roof meets next door's: the party wall line, a shared stack, a joint valley. Getting those right is what stops a new roof leaking at the edge in its first winter.
If you're not sure your roof needs replacing at all, read about roof repairs in Stone first, because a targeted fix may be all it takes.
"On Stone re-roofs, the edge where one semi's roof meets its neighbour's is where we spend the most care, because that's where new roofs most often go wrong."
We look at the roof from above and the timbers from below. Rafter sizes, signs of sagging, old repairs, damp staining. That tells us whether a straight re-cover will do or whether some structural work belongs in the quote.
We talk through tiles or slate that suit your house, your budget and what the rafters can carry. If you're thinking of a change of material, we'll explain what building control will want to see.
Strip-out, membrane, battens, covering, ridge and verge detail, insulation, scaffold, skip and VAT. Each one is listed. You'll also see a price for replacing any rotten timber, in case we find some.
We arrange building control sign-off where it's needed. If the work touches the party wall line or a shared chimney, we suggest you speak with next door before the start date so nobody is caught off guard.
Scaffold goes up with a debris chute or netting. The old covering comes off a section at a time. Each night, whatever is open gets a temporary covering, so a surprise shower doesn't reach your loft.
Membrane, new battens, the tiles or slates, then ridge, hips and verges. Lead flashings are renewed at chimneys and abutments. Insulation is brought up to current standards while everything is exposed.
Scaffold comes down only after we've checked every slope, flashing and gutter. You get photos of each stage, the building control paperwork and your 10-year guarantee in writing. Keep them together. A buyer's surveyor will ask.
10
Years' cover on a new roof
1,000+
Roofing jobs finished
Paperwork in your hand on the last day. Not posted out "in due course".
Re-roof a house in Stone with us and you get 10 years of cover on the workmanship. It's a written document. It has your address on it, lists what was done, and is dated the day the roof is signed off. If water gets in because something was fitted wrong - a batten, a fixing, a lap, a flashing - a roofer comes back and puts it right. You don't pay for that.
Why are we happy to promise ten years? Because of how the roof goes on. Every tile or slate is mechanically fixed to BS 5534, the current British Standard. Ridges and hips are fixed too, not just sat in mortar. A breathable membrane goes down first. Where a roof meets a wall, a chimney or the house next door, it gets proper lead or a tested dry system. Shortcuts there are what make a guarantee expensive, so we don't take them.
Tiles, slates and membranes also carry the maker's own warranty. Those vary by product, and your paperwork tells you which ones apply. If a job is too unusual to guarantee in the normal way, you'll hear that at quote stage.
The table compares the main coverings we fit. For Stone's post-war semis and terraces, weight and how the new roof will meet next door's are usually the deciding factors, so read it with those two things in mind.
| Comparison point | Concrete interlocking tile | Clay plain tile | Natural slate | Fibre cement slate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Typical lifespan | 50 years or more | 60 to 100 years | 80 to 100+ years, depending on source | Around 30 years |
| Weight | Heavy | Heaviest, as each tile is double-lapped | Light | Lightest of the four |
| Relative cost | Lowest | Mid to high, slow to lay | Mid to high, Welsh slate dearest | Low to mid |
| Look | Chunky profile, common on postwar homes | Small, warm-coloured, traditional Kent look | Thin, dark and neat | Uniform slate look, flatter colour |
| Planning and conservation | Fine for most homes, can jar in a conservation area | Often expected on older Kent buildings | The like-for-like choice for slate roofs | May be refused on listed or conservation roofs |
| Best for | Budget re-roofs on postwar and newer houses | Period homes and steeper pitches | Victorian terraces, slate-to-slate jobs | Lighter swap where rafters are marginal |
These ranges reflect the houses we typically quote for in Stone. Your price is fixed in writing after the survey.
A mid-terrace re-roof usually costs £8,000-14,500. A typical semi falls around £10,500-16,000. Detached houses start near £14,000 and can pass £24,000 when there are hips, valleys and dormers to work around. Every extra slope adds time, and every valley needs lining, so a complicated roof costs more than its floor area suggests.
Concrete tiles are usually the cheapest to buy and fit. Clay and natural slate cost more. A change of material may need building control approval and, if it adds 15% or more to the weight, structural checks as well. We'll price two or three options side by side so you can compare.
Soft battens are expected and already in the price. Rotten rafter ends or wall plates aren't, and on some older Stone houses they're there. We price that repair separately in the quote so you know the worst case before we start.
A house on a quiet close is straightforward to scaffold. One fronting London Road needs more planning, sometimes a licence for the pavement, and that's reflected in the access cost. Rear-only scaffold, where it's possible, keeps the figure down. Re-roofing alongside a neighbour can also halve the scaffold bill for both of you.
Planning permission, usually not. Dartford Borough Council handles planning for Stone, and a re-roof that keeps the house looking much the same doesn't normally need an application. Building Regulations are different. If more than half the roof is re-covered, if the material changes, or if the new roof is 15% heavier, building control needs to be involved. We sort that as part of the job.
Both come into our choices. Being close to the A282 and the open ground by the river, Stone gets strong gusts; the QEII Bridge has shut several times in recent storms. We fix every tile and ridge to suit an exposed site rather than a sheltered one. Traffic grime is mostly a gutter issue, so we often renew fascias and gutters while the scaffold is up.
A terrace or semi usually takes about one to two weeks once scaffold is up, weather permitting. A large detached house with hips and dormers takes longer. The roof stays covered overnight throughout, so you can stay at home while we work. We'll give you a realistic start and finish date on the quote, and tell you early if the weather pushes it back.
Yes. A re-covered roof is treated as a renovated thermal element, so the insulation should be brought up to current standards. We'll include it in the quote and explain which option suits your loft, whether you use it for storage or as a room. Upgrading with the tiles off avoids squeezing insulation in from below later, which is slower and usually less effective.
We finish your side neatly at the party wall line so both roofs stay weathertight. If a shared chimney or valley is in poor shape, we'll tell you and suggest you talk to next door. Sometimes neighbours choose to re-roof together, which can save both households on scaffold. Either way, nothing on their side gets touched without their agreement.
Grade I listed church rebuilt between about 1251 and 1271, with stone carving often linked to the masons of Westminster Abbey. Its tower was once lit as a beacon for shipping, which earned it the name the Lantern of Kent.
Learn more about St Mary the Virgin, Stone on Google Maps
Dartford Borough Council park off Dawes Close in Stone, with open grass, a children's play area and outdoor gym equipment. From the higher ground there are views north towards the Thames.
Learn more about Worcester Park on Google Maps
Playing field between London Road and Hayes Road, edged by lines of mature trees. The Stone Pavilion, a hall used for local clubs and functions, stands beside it.
Learn more about Stone Recreation Ground on Google MapsEvery review left for us so far has been five stars. We're adding them here as they come in.
Reviews only tell you so much anyway. When a roofer comes out to Stone, ask to see photos of a recent job on a house like yours. A good roofer will have plenty and won't mind you asking.
Book a free survey. We'll check the timbers, explain your options and send a written quote, so you can plan the spend properly.
