Timber frames from three centuries
More than fifty timber-framed buildings of the 15th to 17th centuries were listed in a survey published in 1937.
Roofers in Ruislip
Roofs from timber-framed Manor Farm to the 1900s suburbs
An unusual number of 15th to 17th-century timber-framed buildings survive in Ruislip, and the railway of 1904 brought the suburbs. We survey each roof properly.
Ruislip's timber frames, barns and railway suburbs
Weatherboarded barns at Manor Farm
Manor Farm, a house of 16th-century origin, was given to the people of Ruislip in 1937, with two well-preserved barns.
Railway suburbs after 1904
Ruislip station opened in 1904, with halts at Eastcote in 1906 and Ruislip Manor in 1912.
Map of Ruislip with Denham, Uxbridge, Northolt, Hayes marked around it.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Loads only when you ask for it.
Ruislip, on the Pinn south of the Woods
Ruislip is a suburb in north-west London on the River Pinn, south of Ruislip Woods, and Farnborough lies 28.7 road miles away, south-west of it.
About 28.7 road miles north-east of Farnborough · London Borough of Hillingdon (unitary).
Tiles, flat roofs and gutters in Ruislip
Ruislip, U-values and old frames
Ruislip's roofs: insulation figures, frames and records
What Approved Document L's insulation figures ask of a Ruislip roof repair or loft conversion, how timber-framed survivals and railway suburbs grew, and what the Grade I church and conservation areas mean.
| No. | Chapter | The figure it turns on |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | Insulation figures for roof work: Part L | 0.35 threshold, upgraded to 0.16 |
| 02 | Timber frames, weatherboards and the railway | Station opened in 1904 |
| 03 | Grade I church, Great Barn, two conservation areas | St Martin of Tours, Grade I |
Chapter 01 of 03
Insulation figures for roof work: Part L
| Element | Figure | Where it applies |
|---|---|---|
| New or replacement roof | 0.15 | Table 4.2, existing dwellings |
| Roof windows | 1.4, or Window Energy Rating Band B | Table 4.2, as the window figure |
| Rooflights | 2.2 | Table 4.2 |
| Existing roof, renovated or kept in a loft conversion | 0.35 threshold, upgraded to 0.16 | Table 4.3 |
The London Borough of Hillingdon is the planning authority for Ruislip and runs its own building control service, so Part L, the conservation of fuel and power, is a matter for its team or a registered building control approver. Part L sets insulation figures, called U-values, in watts per square metre per degree, and a lower number means a better-insulated element. A repair rarely triggers it. A re-roof or a conversion can, and the figures then decide how much insulation goes in and how thick the roof build-up becomes.
New roofs, windows and rooflights
Approved Document L's table for work to existing dwellings gives a new or replacement roof a figure of 0.15. Because roof windows count as windows, they must reach 1.4 or Window Energy Rating Band B at least, and rooflights have their own limit of 2.2. A built-on-site upstand should reach 0.35 at most. These are the figures in force until the 2026 edition takes effect on 24 March 2027, when the tables are renumbered.
Renovation and loft conversions
Existing roofs follow a different table. Where a thermal element is renovated, which the regulations say includes replacing a flat roof's waterproof membrane, or where a roof is retained in a loft conversion, the table gives a threshold of 0.35 and an improved figure of 0.16. Where 0.16 cannot be reached for technical or practical reasons, or would take over 15 years to pay back, the roof gets the best figure that fits within that payback, with 0.7 as the usual ceiling.
The figure0.16W/m²Kthe figure a retained roof is upgraded to, from a 0.35 threshold0.16 improved figure0.35 thresholdSource: GOV.UK, Approved Document L Volume 1, Table 4.3
Roof windows and rooflights are outside the definition of a thermal element, which is why they carry figures of their own. On a Ruislip loft job we tell you which table each part falls under and what the building control body will expect to see, so the design is right before the tiles come off, and so that a heavier build-up never surprises the structure beneath it.
A survey comes first. We measure the roof, record the existing insulation where it can be reached from the loft, and photograph it, so that a designer or building control officer works from facts.
Insulation and ventilation go together. Whenever a roof is insulated more heavily, the gap at the eaves must stay open, and we check that as part of the same visit.
Chapter 02 of 03
Timber frames, weatherboards and the railway
Ruislip's frames, farm and railway, in published figures
- 28.7 road milesnorth-east of Farnborough, from the A325
- 50
+ timber-framed buildings listed in a 1937 survey - 1904Ruislip station opened, Harrow to Uxbridge
- 32listed buildings within 900 m of the centre
The Victoria County History of 1971 says an unusual number of 15th, 16th and 17th-century timber-framed buildings survive in the parish, and that more than fifty were listed in a survey published in 1937. Manor Farm, a house of 16th-century origin, was given to the people of Ruislip by King's College, Cambridge in 1937, together with its farm buildings, including two well-preserved weatherboarded barns. Weatherboarding is overlapping horizontal timber cladding, and a barn clad in it has a roof that meets the boards at its eaves and gables.
What frames and boards ask of a roof
A timber frame is not rigid in the way a brick box is. It moves with the seasons, and its roof has to move with it. A flashing chased into a brick wall and sealed hard will crack on a frame, so on old Ruislip buildings we look for flexible details and for signs that a hard repair has failed. Eaves on a weatherboarded barn must also clear the boards so that water drips free of the timber, and we check that gap.
Ruislip station opened in 1904 on the line from Harrow to Uxbridge, followed by halts at Eastcote in 1906 and Ruislip Manor in 1912. The former open-field area remained unpopulated, apart from two or three farmhouses, until Northolt aerodrome was built and estates were developed at South Ruislip after 1914. The subsoil is London Clay, with Reading Sand and Clay in places, ground that shrinks and swells with the weather and moves the walls of the houses built on it.
Houses of the railway years are now over a century old. Nothing is inferred about a covering from a house's date. Every slope is photographed and its covering named, so a repair is fitted to the roof as it stands.
Railway and listings
1904the year Ruislip station opened
32listed buildings within 900 m of the centre
Clay soils move, and the junctions of an extension with an old house show it first, so we photograph them in both directions. We look at those joints with particular care, because a gap there is where water enters before it shows inside.
Where a Ruislip roof has a chimney, an old stack on a timber-framed house can lean slightly. We note any lean with a photograph, so a later survey can tell whether it is still moving, and a leaning stack is rebuilt before any new flashing goes on.
Chapter 03 of 03
Grade I church, Great Barn, two conservation areas
| Record | In Ruislip | For roof work |
|---|---|---|
| Conservation areas | Ruislip Village; Ruislip, Manor Way | Matching repairs; ask Hillingdon about changes |
| Grade I listed church in use | Church of St Martin of Tours (NHLE 1285697) | Church of England faculty system |
| Grade II* listed | 9-15 High Street (NHLE 1080204); Great Barn west of Manor Farm Yard (NHLE 1358359) | Listed building consent for work affecting character |
| Grade II listed | 1, 1A and 1B High Street (NHLE 1194387) | The same consent route |
Two conservation areas touch Ruislip in the national dataset, Ruislip Village and Ruislip, Manor Way. Which, if either, includes your house is for Hillingdon's planning team to confirm. In either, matching materials respect the area, whereas swapping the covering is something to discuss with the planners before any choice is made. Our planning permission and roof work guide explains how repair and alteration differ.
Church, High Street and Great Barn
The list has held St Martin of Tours at Grade I since 24 January 1950, and 9 to 15 High Street at Grade II* since the same date. The Great Barn west of Manor Farm Yard is listed Grade II*. The congregation at St Martin's is Anglican, so the faculty system governs its roof and the council has no part in it. Listed building consent is required for the High Street buildings and the barn where work changes their character, so replacing like with like is the simpler route.
A loft that needs an escape route
Owners who plan a loft conversion meet a fire safety question before any other. For a two-storey house, Approved Document B generally expects a protected stairway, but alternatives are allowed, such as sprinklers across open-plan areas. Escape windows count only for storeys within 4.5 metres of the ground. A conversion that adds a floor above that height therefore needs the stair or the alternative, and it is the first question to settle with building control. Our roof windows and skylight installation and repair page covers the windows themselves.
On older Ruislip buildings, dated photographs of ridges, eaves, flashings and chimneys are taken before work and again afterwards. You get them with the written price, and they help when a planner or a building control officer asks what stood there. See pitched roofing for how a tiled slope is repaired or re-covered.
The Great Barn's listing is a reminder that old farm buildings here are protected as well as admired, and a barn conversion, a common ambition, starts with the same listing question before any roof drawing. If you are planning a loft conversion, bring any drawings to the survey. The roof's pitch, its rafters and the height of the ridge decide what a conversion can achieve, and a conversation about them early can save redrawing later. Hillingdon's building control team or a registered approver will want the same facts, and we record them for you.
Ruislip roof questions, from U-values to stairs
My Ruislip timber-framed house has an old tiled roof: do I have to upgrade its insulation?
If the roof is renovated, say by stripping and re-covering it, Approved Document L's Table 4.3 gives a threshold of 0.35 and an improved figure of 0.16. Where 0.16 is not feasible or would not pay back within 15 years, the best feasible figure is used. Your building control body confirms what applies to your frame.
Do roof windows and rooflights have different insulation limits in Ruislip?
Yes. For roof windows the figure is 1.4, or Window Energy Rating Band B, while for rooflights it is 2.2. Both come from Approved Document L's table for new and replacement elements, and neither counts as a thermal element in the regulations' definition. We tell you which applies to the product you choose.
Does a loft conversion on a two-storey Ruislip house need a protected stair?
Usually, yes. Approved Document B calls for a protected stairway where a storey is more than 4.5 metres above ground, and allows alternatives such as sprinkler protection to open-plan areas. Escape windows only count within 4.5 metres of the ground. Building control confirms the route for your house before any design is fixed.
Does roof work on St Martin of Tours in Ruislip need listed building consent?
No. St Martin's is listed Grade I, but with Anglican worship continuing there, the ecclesiastical exemption places its roof in the faculty system. The High Street buildings and the Great Barn follow another route: the London Borough of Hillingdon grants their listed building consent, and we raise it with the council before pricing any roof on them.
Get your free roof quote
Ruislip roof surveys, arranged on request
Send your Ruislip address and any loft or roof plans, and we will agree a day to see the roof.
10-year workmanship guarantee, in writing.