Roofing and Building in Bournemouth
Roofing, plastering and rendering, brickwork and repointing, insulation, driveways and patios, and exterior cleaning across Bournemouth, from Westbourne and the town centre out through Winton and Charminster to Boscombe, Southbourne and Kinson. Free quotes, priced in writing.
The site visit is free and so is the written itemised quote. Thomas Hannen prices every job himself.
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Bournemouth
Our base is in Boscombe, so this is the short run
Bournemouth is not a town we drive out to. It is where we are based. Our base is on Wolverton Road in Boscombe, BH7 6HX, so getting a ladder on your roof to find out what is actually wrong takes a few minutes, not a morning. The look costs you nothing, and so does the written itemised quote that follows it.
Looking for a builder for the whole job? Builders in Bournemouth sets out every trade we take on in Bournemouth, how to choose a builder and how pricing works.
If water is coming into a Bournemouth house or flat right now, ring 07435 839745 rather than using the form, and tell us which room and what sits above it.
The other thing that is different here is the range. Every trade goes on one written itemised quote, so the whole outside of a building is priced in one place instead of four.
That sounds like a sales line until you have lived through the alternative. A roof comes off, the fascias underneath turn out to be soft, the render at the verge needs making good and the gutter has to be rehung to the new roofline. Priced separately, that can mean several quotes, several lots of scaffold and each part waiting on the last. Here it is planned while the scaffold is already standing, and you get one price for it.
It works the same way on a smaller job. A patio that needs a bit of brickwork, a re-skim after a leak has been stopped, a drive laid at the same visit as the front wall gets repointed. One written quote, and one person answerable for it.
If it is only the roof you are after, the detail lives on the roof repairs page for Bournemouth: what a repair involves, what decides the price of a re-roof, and what to do when water is coming in today. This page is for the jobs that need more than one trade.
Flats and maisonettes
Close to half of Bournemouth lives in a flat, and that decides who can order the work
Bournemouth carries a far higher share of flats and maisonettes than the towns around it. Whole streets of Victorian and Edwardian villas were converted, and the post-war blocks added more. It changes the first question we ask on the phone, which is not what is wrong but who owns the outside of the building.
On a flat, almost none of the outside is yours. The roof, the walls, the render, the gutters, the roofline and the communal drive normally belong to the freeholder and are repaired under the lease, with the cost coming back through the service charge. On a long lease it is the lease itself that puts those repairs on the freeholder. On a tenancy of under seven years, Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 does the same by law. So the leaseholder who watched the ceiling stain spread is very often not the person who can instruct anybody to fix it.
There is a second step that catches people out. Where one leaseholder's share of the bill passes the consultation threshold, £250 for a single set of works, the freeholder has to run a formal consultation before the work starts. Section 20 of the same Act is the rule, and the 2003 regulations set out the notices that go with it. A re-roof on a converted villa in Westbourne or a block in Boscombe clears that threshold easily.
None of that is a reason not to ring. We will come out for free, look at the fault properly, photograph it and put it in writing. The itemised quote goes to whoever is actually paying, in a form your managing agent can put in front of the other leaseholders. It is set out that way so an agent or freeholder can use it as it stands. Our page for landlords, letting agents and freeholders goes through the consultation, access and quote side in more detail.
What we do in Bournemouth
Every trade, one written quote
The same trades we offer everywhere, on our own doorstep, on houses and on the flats and blocks that make up so much of the town.
Roofing
Repairs, full re-roofs, flat roofing and leadwork. Three kilometres from the sea is close enough for salt to reach the fixings, so on a re-roof near the Bournemouth cliffs we specify stainless or non-ferrous nails and clips rather than the cheaper galvanised option.
Roof repairs in BournemouthPlastering & Rendering
Skimming and dry lining inside, render and silicone K Render outside. Newer stock in Bournemouth is dry lined on dabs, not solid plastered, so a wall that sounds hollow when you knock it is usually built that way and not broken.
Plastering & renderingBricklaying & Repointing
Garden walls, piers, chimney rebuilds and repointing. The Victorian and Edwardian villas near the centre of Bournemouth are solid wall, built of soft brick and pointed in lime, and they want a lime mix back rather than a hard cement one that traps the damp inside.
Brickwork & repointingInsulation
Loft rolls, Celotex boards and TLX multi-foil for lofts and loft conversions. The moment to do it on an inter-war Moordown semi is while the roof is already open for a re-tile, because the access is there and you are not paying for it twice.
Insulation servicesDriveways & Patios
Block paving, resin-bound, tarmac and porcelain patios. Bournemouth sits on sand, which drains well and moves easily, so the sub-base depth and the edge restraint decide whether a drive stays flat far more than the surface you can see does.
Driveways & patiosExterior Cleaning
Roof, wall and driveway cleaning with a biocide treatment afterwards. Sea air keeps surfaces damp between showers and north-facing slopes never dry out properly, so growth comes back fast and the treatment matters more than the wash.
Exterior cleaningThe housing
How Bournemouth was built, and the streets that went up all at once
Bournemouth grew in stages: Victorian and Edwardian villas near the centre and in Boscombe, then inter-war suburbs inland, then the long post-war stretch and the 1980s. That is why the jobs here arrive in waves. A roof covering has a working life, and a street that was built in one go reaches the end of it in one go too.
On the inter-war semis and bungalows through Moordown, Charminster and Ensbury Park, the roofs fail at the ridge, at the nail hole and behind the gutter. Mortar-bedded ridges crack and start to wash out. Clay plain tiles go brittle at the nail hole. Timber fascias and soffits soften behind a gutter nobody has cleared in years.
The post-war and 1980s stock brings a different list. Concrete interlocking tiles that have gone porous and hold moss on the shaded slope, sarking felt that has perished at the eaves so the water runs behind the gutter instead of into it, and flat roofs over porches, garages and dormers still on their original felt.
Parts of the town are protected, too. There are conservation areas and listed buildings scattered through Bournemouth, and in both cases what a repair is allowed to look like changes. BCP Council publishes every conservation area across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and a guide to listed buildings, and both are worth a look before you settle on a material. We will quote the like-for-like option either way.
Worth a look
What keeps coming back on Bournemouth buildings
None of these mean you need a new roof. They are the faults that turn up again and again on this mix of housing, and every one of them is cheaper caught early.
- Ridge or hip mortar cracked and washing out after a wet, windy spell
- Concrete interlocking tiles gone porous and holding moss on the shaded slope
- Sarking felt perished at the eaves, so rainwater runs behind the gutter
- Fascias and soffits soft behind a gutter that has not been cleared in years
- Blistered or split felt on a porch, garage or dormer flat roof
- Sand and cement render cracked and hollow on a south-west elevation
Reviews
What customers said
One roof and one patio, both written by the customer after the job. The roof review is about a team that turned up when promised and explained each step, and the patio review about the finished look.
… The team were friendly, professional, and always turned up when they said they would. They took the time to explain everything, so I knew exactly what was happening throughout. …
Really happy with our new patio from Bournemouth Roofing & Building. It looks beautiful and we couldn't be more pleased with how it's turned out. Tom and Lloyd were both lovely, really knowledgeable and kept us updated throughout, which was reassuring. ……
Straight answers
Straight answers for Bournemouth homeowners
Do I need planning permission to replace my roof in Bournemouth?
Not for a like-for-like re-roof on an ordinary house. Renewing the covering in a similar material and keeping the same shape counts as repair and maintenance. Listing, conservation areas, flat ownership and a change of roof shape all alter that in Bournemouth. If the house is listed, any change that affects its character needs listed building consent, and a change of tile is exactly that.
If it sits in one of the conservation areas, changing the look of the roof, such as swapping clay for concrete, can need permission, and some streets also have an article 4 direction that removes permitted development rights. Flats have no householder permitted development rights, which matters in a town with so many converted villas. And adding a dormer or raising the ridge brings planning in anyway. Check the council's list of conservation areas, and read our guide to whether you need planning permission to replace a roof. We confirm which applies at the free visit, before work starts.
Why is the mortar on my ridge tiles cracking and falling out?
Because sand and cement mortar is the first part of a roof that wind, rain and frost break down. On the inter-war semis and bungalows through Moordown, Charminster and Ensbury Park, the ridge and hip tiles are bedded in mortar. After enough wet, windy spells the bed cracks, water gets into the crack and frost opens it wider. Loose ridge tiles, lumps of mortar in the gutter and on the drive, and daylight under the ridge from inside the loft are the signs. Left alone, a gale eventually lifts a tile off, and then water gets in along the top of the roof. The fix is either rebedding the ridge properly in fresh mortar or changing to a dry-fix system, where the tiles are screwed down onto a ventilated roll with no mortar to wash out. On an exposed roof near the cliffs, dry-fix is usually the better answer. Our roof repairs page for Bournemouth covers ridge repairs in more detail.
Should I get the moss taken off my roof?
Yes if it is thick, sitting in the tile laps or washing into the gutters, but have the roof looked at before it is cleaned. On the concrete interlocking tiles common across Bournemouth, a heavy moss layer holds water against the tile, keeps the shaded north slope damp, and washes into the gutters every time it rains, where it blocks the outlets. How it comes off matters more than whether. A pressure washer driven across the laps pushes water up under the tiles and strips the surface off a tile that is already worn. A soft wash with a biocide treatment afterwards lifts the growth without doing that, and slows it coming back, which matters near the sea where surfaces stay damp between showers. If the tiles underneath have gone porous, cleaning is only cosmetic, and it is better to know that first. Roof cleans are on our exterior cleaning page, and the gutters are cleared as part of the job.
Is it worth insulating the loft when I re-roof?
Yes, and a re-roof is the easiest moment you will get to do it. With the scaffold up and the covering off, the roof space is open. Boards between the rafters or a thicker layer at ceiling level can go in without anyone squeezing through a loft hatch, and you are not paying for access twice. On an inter-war Moordown semi, what is in the loft now may be whatever went in decades ago. Renewing a large part of a roof can also bring in the building regulations requirement to upgrade the insulation, so it may not be optional anyway. What matters is keeping the air moving. Insulation pushed hard into the eaves blocks the ventilation, and the loft starts to sweat the following winter. We plan the membrane, the insulation and the ventilation together, and all three go on one written quote. See our loft insulation page, and insulation services for rooms in the roof.
Free quote
How do you get a free quote in Bournemouth?
Send the form or ring 07435 839745. Thomas Hannen comes out to Bournemouth, looks at the job and puts an itemised price in writing, and neither the visit nor the written quote costs anything.
Our base is at 80a Wolverton Road, Boscombe, Bournemouth BH7 6HX. Scheduled work runs Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.
Planning at a glance
Do you need planning permission in Bournemouth?
Most repairs in Bournemouth need no application at all. What decides whether a change to the outside of your house does is who the council is, whether a conservation area or a listing applies, and whether the place sits in a protected landscape.
| Question | In Bournemouth |
|---|---|
| Who decides | BCP Council is the planning authority for Bournemouth. BCP Council's heritage pages set out what it controls. |
| Conservation area | Yes, a conservation area covers part of Bournemouth. Check whether your street is inside it. |
| Listed buildings | Yes, there are listed buildings in and around Bournemouth. If yours is one, work can need listed building consent. |
| Protected landscape | No National Park or National Landscape covers Bournemouth. |
Questions
Bournemouth questions
Half the homes in Bournemouth are flats. Can I order work on mine?
Usually not on your own, and that is not a brush-off. On a flat or a maisonette the roof, the outside walls, the render, the gutters and the communal drive are almost always the freeholder's responsibility, repaired under the lease and paid for out of the service charge.
So the person who instructs the work is the freeholder or the managing agent, not the leaseholder who spotted the stain on the ceiling. Ring us anyway. We will come and look for free, put the fault in writing with photographs, and address the quote to whoever is actually paying so you have something to hand your agent.
You are based in Boscombe. Does that make any difference to me?
It makes the site visit easy. Our base is on Wolverton Road in Boscombe, BH7 6HX, inside Bournemouth, not an hour up the road. Getting a ladder on your roof to find out what is wrong is a short trip, and it costs you nothing. It also keeps the trip short when a job has a second stage. Scheduled work runs Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. For anything urgent, ring rather than use the form, and if we cannot pick up we ring you back as soon as we can.
Can you take on a job that crosses trades?
Yes. We cover roofing, plastering and rendering, brickwork and repointing, insulation, driveways and patios, and exterior cleaning. That matters most on the jobs that cross trades. A re-roof that needs new fascias, a render patch where the scaffold already is, and a gutter run rehung while the roofline is open can all go on one written quote. That saves you comparing separate prices for parts of the same job.
Which parts of Bournemouth do you cover?
All of it: Boscombe, Pokesdown, Springbourne and Southbourne on the east side, the town centre, Westbourne and Alum Chine to the west, and inland through Winton, Charminster, Moordown, Throop, Muscliff, Strouden Park, Littledown, Wallisdown, Talbot Village, Ensbury Park, Redhill, Kinson and Bear Cross. That is broadly the BH1 to BH11 postcodes, all under BCP Council. Tell us the postcode when you ring and we will confirm it straight away so you are not left guessing.
Trade by trade
Each trade, written for Bournemouth
The same local evidence, read through each trade in turn. Exposure decides a roof, sandy ground decides a driveway, and the age of the housing decides insulation.
- Roof repairs in Bournemouth
- Flat roofing in Bournemouth
- Bricklaying and repointing in Bournemouth
- Repointing in Bournemouth
- Driveways and patios in Bournemouth
- Resin driveways in Bournemouth
- Tarmac driveways in Bournemouth
- Block paving in Bournemouth
- Patios in Bournemouth
- Plastering and rendering in Bournemouth
- Rendering in Bournemouth
- Insulation in Bournemouth
- Loft insulation in Bournemouth
- Wall insulation in Bournemouth
- Exterior cleaning in Bournemouth
- Roof cleaning in Bournemouth
- Gutter cleaning in Bournemouth
- Gutter repairs in Bournemouth
- Kitchen fitting in Bournemouth
- Fascias, soffits and guttering in Bournemouth
Who you are dealing with
A local firm you can check
Bournemouth is home ground: our base is in Boscombe. We cover the whole town, from Boscombe, Pokesdown and Southbourne across to the town centre, Westbourne and Alum Chine, and inland through Winton, Charminster, Moordown, Throop, Muscliff, Strouden Park, Littledown, Wallisdown, Talbot Village, Ensbury Park, Redhill, Kinson and Bear Cross. That is broadly the BH1 to BH11 postcodes, all under BCP Council.
You are dealing with Bournemouth Roofing & Building, the trading name of Bournemouth Roofing & Building Ltd, registered in England and Wales, company number 15471719. That takes a minute to check. Thomas Hannen owns the firm and he prices every Bournemouth job himself, so the person who quotes it is the person answerable for it. One written itemised quote covers every trade on the job.
There is a verified customer's 10 out of 10 on our Checkatrade profile. The site visit is free and so is the written itemised quote. Scheduled work runs Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. For anything urgent, ring rather than use the form, and if we cannot pick up we ring you back as soon as we can.
Free quote
Get a price for your Bournemouth property
Send a couple of photos or book a visit. We will look at the whole outside of the building, tell you what needs doing now and what can wait, then put a clear written quote in front of you.