Brick cottages with tiled roofs
The 1923 county history records brick cottages roofed with tiles, among them a few half-timber ones.
Roofers in Bisham
Brick and tile cottages below the wooded chalk hills
Bisham lies by the Thames on the road to Marlow, below wooded chalk hills, around a Templar-founded abbey house. We look closely at each roof, from ridge to gutter.
Bisham's roofs, from the Abbey to the Marlow Road
The Abbey's Templar core
The 13th-century preceptory of the Knights Templars forms the nucleus of the present Bisham Abbey house.
Marlow Road houses
From the later 19th century houses were built along the Marlow Road, stretching the village towards the river.
Map of Bisham with Marlow, Hurley, Little Marlow, Marlow Bottom marked around it.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Loads only when you ask for it.
Bisham, on the road to Marlow
Marlow lies to the north, Hurley to the south-west, Cookham to the east, Maidenhead to the south-east and Little Marlow and Bourne End to the north-east.
About 24.1 road miles north of Farnborough · Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead (unitary).
Bisham, storms and the Abbey
Bisham's roofs: storm claims, the Abbey, Marlow Road
What to do and whom to ask after storm damage to a Bisham roof, how the Templars' abbey, local clay and the Marlow Road shaped the village, and what its conservation area and Grade I listings mean for a repair.
| No. | Chapter | The figure it turns on |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | After a storm: insurers, evidence and the Ombudsman | 32 per cent of 2024 storm claims paid |
| 02 | Templar stone, local clay and the Marlow Road | Brick and tile, by the 1923 record |
| 03 | Two Grade I buildings and the Marlow conservation area | Bisham Abbey and its dovecote, both Grade I |
Chapter 01 of 03
After a storm: insurers, evidence and the Ombudsman
| Matter | Position at Bisham |
|---|---|
| Planning authority | Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead (unitary) |
| Building control | RBWM's own Building Control service |
| Flood map | Flood Zone 2 at the centre point, Environment Agency |
| First step after damage | Tell the insurer, make safe, keep photos and receipts |
| If an insurer refuses | Financial Ombudsman Service, free to use |
Bisham is a Thames-side village in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, a unitary council with its own building control service. On the Environment Agency's map the centre point falls in Flood Zone 2, which describes how water behaves on the ground. When a Bisham roof is damaged in bad weather, the question is a different one: who pays, and what evidence do they want?
The order of events
Insurers expect the same sequence, and it protects you. Tell the insurer first, because policies set conditions on repairs. Then stop the damage growing with a temporary fix and not a final one, and keep photographs and receipts throughout. The Institution of Structural Engineers says photographs are vital for a claim because they give visual evidence of the damage, and our survey adds measurements and a written account of the cause.
Our survey does not decide a claim, and nobody should promise one. Which? reported that only 32 per cent of storm-related claims made in 2024 resulted in a payout. A policy's own storm definition governs, and the Financial Ombudsman Service has said it is unlikely to side with a policyholder whose roof was already in poor condition and known to be so. A survey that records the condition honestly is therefore evidence both ways.
The figure32%of storm-related home claims made in 2024 ended in a payout, according to Which?32% paid outSource: Which?, home insurance and storm claims
Temporary repairs are meant to buy time. A sheet fixed over a damaged slope, a few tiles re-seated, a blocked outlet cleared: each is photographed before and after, with the date, and any material removed is kept until the insurer has seen it. That habit costs minutes and can save a dispute weeks later.
If an insurer says no
The Ombudsman's helpline is 0800 023 4567, and its service is free. If the insurer has sent no final response within eight weeks, you can complain to the Ombudsman, and otherwise you have six months from the date of that final response. Scaffold on a public road needs the highway authority's licence; RBWM's page says permission is obtained from the council, and the scaffolder tells us who files it.
Outbuildings matter after a storm too. MyJobQuote gives a garage roof replacement as between £750 and £3,500, with an average of £1,500, and removing an asbestos roof at around £2,750 with an asbestos survey around £325. Those are typical UK figures. HSE's guidance treats asbestos cement roofs as always fragile, so nobody should stand on one, and a damaged sheet should be left to be dealt with properly.
Chapter 02 of 03
Templar stone, local clay and the Marlow Road
Bisham in dates and figures from the record
- 13th centurythe Templars' preceptory at the Abbey's core
- 1923year of the county history's account
- 1,072residents, ONS Census 2021, Bisham parish
- 24listed buildings within 500 m of the centre
The Victoria County History's 1923 account of Bisham records brick cottages roofed with tiles, with a few half-timber ones, one or two perhaps of the 16th century. It adds that Woolwich and Reading clay lying over the chalk on the high ground was used for brickmaking. The 2021 Census counted 1,072 usual residents in the parish. The village sits on the Thames at the foot of wooded chalk hills, so leaf and debris reach its gutters in quantity.
A preceptory and an abbey house
The 13th-century preceptory of the Knights Templars forms the nucleus of the present Bisham Abbey house, which means the building carries roofs and junctions of many centuries. On a building like that we do not look for one covering. We record each roof separately, with the pitch and its junctions with the older walls, and then explain what each part needs. The loft is inspected for damp as well as for daylight, because an old roof can fail from the inside through condensation as easily as from the outside through a slipped tile.
The Marlow Road houses
RBWM's Bisham Village Conservation Area Statement says houses were built along the Marlow Road, north of the old village, from the later 19th century into the 20th, stretching the settlement towards the river and Marlow bridge. A house from those decades is now old enough for its original flashings, valley linings and gutter joints to be reaching the end of their working lives, even where the tiles themselves are sound.
Those tiles may well be clay, but we never assume. HomeBuilding gives clay tile 60-80 years as a typical life, which is a range and no promise, so the survey checks the individual tiles, the battens and the underlay. Our pitched roofing page sets out the repair choices, and our gutters, soffits and fascias page covers the roofline that leaves take the brunt of.
Old and new
13th centurythe Templars' preceptory at the Abbey's core
1923year of the county history's account of the village
Gutters choked with leaves overflow behind the fascia, and the water reaches rafter feet. Clearing them is cheap protection. Which? gives a typical UK range of £75-£350, excluding VAT, for clearing all the gutters at the front and back of a property, and we check the falls and outlets as we clear them.
Chapter 03 of 03
Two Grade I buildings and the Marlow conservation area
| Designation | At Bisham | For roof work |
|---|---|---|
| Conservation area | Bisham Village; Marlow area within about 0.75 km | Changes to the look checked with RBWM |
| Grade I listed | Bisham Abbey (NHLE 1303584) | Listed building consent |
| Grade I listed | Dovecote south-west of the Abbey (NHLE 1319381) | Listed building consent |
| Grade II* listed | Bisham War Memorial (NHLE 1117603) | Listed building consent |
| Article 4 entries | Temple riverside sites and Pound Meadow | Tents, gates and walls; confirm your address |
RBWM has a Bisham Village Conservation Area Statement, and the national dataset also places the Marlow conservation area within about 0.75 km of the centre. Which of them, if either, covers your house is settled by the council's own map, and anything that would alter the look of a roof goes to its planners first. RBWM's Article 4 list names entries around Temple, on the riverbank and Pound Meadow, described as covering tents, gates, fences and walls, and none is described as a roof direction. Our planning permission for roof work guide explains what to ask.
Bisham Abbey and its dovecote
Historic England lists Bisham Abbey at Grade I, the highest tier, dating the listing to 25 March 1955. The dovecote about 68 metres south-west of the Abbey is also Grade I, and Bisham War Memorial is Grade II*. The list counts 24 listed buildings within 500 m of the centre. Works that would alter the character of any listed building need the council's listed building consent, separate from Building Regulations, and a Grade I record is checked with particular care.
A listed roof is repaired to match. We record tile sizes, ridge and hip details, lead and verges before a plan is made, and the photographs go with any consent application. If a roof has more than one covering from different centuries, each is described separately, so the officer can see what is old, what is replaced and what is proposed.
Where a Grade I building and its dovecote stand close together, scaffold access and protection of the ground matter as much as the roof itself. A scaffold is designed so that it does not load or mark the fabric, and the position of the poles is agreed with the conservation officer wherever consent is involved. Photographs are taken in good daylight, so the record shows true colours and surfaces.
On older roofs with lead, the code matters. Royston's brochure puts soakers, flashings, dormers and pitched valley gutters at Code 4, with parapet and box gutters taking Code 5 or more. Our lead roofing and lead work page covers how each part is renewed. Chimneys on old houses get the same care, and the stack and its flashings are inspected together.
Storms, claims and the Abbey: Bisham roof questions
How does a Bisham survey help with a damaged roof?
It records what is there before anything is lifted: the covering, the pitch, the gutters and the cause of the water entry, with dated photographs and measurements. That gives you a clear account to show an insurer, whatever the outcome of a claim, and a firm basis for the permanent repair that follows afterwards.
Can I complain if an insurer turns down a Bisham roof claim?
Yes. The Financial Ombudsman Service is free to use, and its helpline is 0800 023 4567. Where the insurer is silent for eight weeks you may complain, and otherwise you have six months from its final response. Keep every letter, because the dates matter, and the Ombudsman's own pages explain each step of a complaint in plain terms.
Do I need consent to repair a roof near Bisham Abbey's Grade I buildings?
Works that would alter the character of a listed building need listed building consent from RBWM, and Grade I is the highest grade. Bisham Abbey and the dovecote south-west of it are both Grade I. A nearby house that is not listed follows the ordinary planning and building control routes.
Does the Marlow conservation area reach Bisham houses?
The national dataset places the Marlow conservation area within about 0.75 km of Bisham's centre, and RBWM also has a Bisham Village Conservation Area Statement. The council's map decides whether your house is inside one, so ask RBWM, and send our survey pictures with the question, so officers see the roof before they reply.
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