Roofers in St Albans

Which St Albans streets have Article 4 directions?

Parts of the city's oldest streets do, and there even small outside changes can need planning permission. The St Albans Conservation Area was designated in 1969, one of the first in the country, and it contains two Article 4 directions: Verulam/Fishpool Street, first made in the mid-1970s, and Sopwell/Albert Street, made in July 1990.

The council's leaflet on living in a conservation area says that where a direction applies, "nearly all types of development and external alterations need planning permission", with the aim of keeping or bringing back historically correct features. The two directions themselves are scanned documents, and which rights they remove (roof coverings, chimneys, roof windows) could not be confirmed for this page. In those streets we ask the council before changing anything on a roof.

One St Albans direction is explicit about roofs. In the Cunningham Avenue Conservation Area, a direction in force since 3 November 2014 removes permitted development for "any other alteration to the roof of a dwelling house", including changing the material, and says artificial slates and concrete tiles are not acceptable replacements for real slate and clay. Like-for-like renewal needs no permission there. The council's list of Article 4 areas also includes a direction for Childwickbury.

Why have so many Victoria Street area roofs lost their slate?

Because owners replaced it with concrete tiles, one house at a time. The council's character statement for the Victoria Street area says of Liverpool Road: "Originally slate, about half of the roofs have unfortunately been replaced with concrete tiles". It records one terrace "all with modern concrete roof tiles", while Lattimore Road keeps most of its slate, and it picks out the Liverpool Road chimneys as a prominent feature.

A change of covering is more than a matter of looks. Planning Portal says approval "is likely to be needed" when a pitched roof's material changes, and a new covering that adds 15% or more to the roof's weight brings building regulations approval in even for work that would otherwise count as a repair.

If your terrace still has slate, we repair it as slate: broken slates replaced, slipped ones refixed, and the chimney flashings checked while we are up there. If concrete has already gone on, we can set out what putting slate back would involve, including the paperwork. Our guide to permission for a new roof goes through the rules.

What are the older roofs of St Albans made of?

Steep plain clay tile in the oldest streets and slate on many Victorian ones. Around Fishpool Street and St Michael's, the character statement says "the roofs are generally of a high pitch" and mostly covered in plain clay tiles, with a few parapets hiding lower slate roofs behind.

In Mount Pleasant, most houses on Kingsbury Avenue have slate roofs and the eastern part is mostly red clay tile. The same statement calls one flat-roofed dormer "a visible and unfortunate addition", which gives a fair idea of how the council views boxy dormers on old roofs.

Many of these buildings are listed. The district has over 800 listed buildings, and the council says small like-for-like repairs do not normally need listed building consent, while dormers and roof lights typically do and replacing larger areas of original fabric may. Unauthorised work to a listed building is a criminal offence, and consent applications carry no fee.

Which roofing jobs suit homes in St Albans?

For St Albans, the work that fits is roof repairs that keep slate and clay tile in place, chimney and flashing repairs on the Victorian stacks, and a full re-roof where a covering is finished, planned around any Article 4 or listing. The city is covered by our Luton roofing team.

From the first call to a dry roof

1. You tell us what you can see

   A drip, a stain, a slate in the garden, a gutter that overflows. Phone 01582 377176 or send the form, and say whether water is coming in now.

2. We look at the roof

   From the ground, from a ladder where that is safe, and from inside the loft. We photograph what we find so you can see it too.

3. You get the options in writing

   What is wrong, what we would do about it and what it will cost, with any scaffolding, permissions and paperwork spelled out.

4. The work, then the proof

   We do the agreed job, show you photos of it finished and explain any certificate that applies to it.

Roofing in St Albans: questions

Can I swap concrete tiles back to slate on a St Albans terrace?

Yes, and on streets like Liverpool Road that returns the roof to what the council records as its original covering. Because the material changes, we check whether building regulations approval is needed and whether the timbers suit the new weight before you commit.

Does a like-for-like roof repair need consent in St Albans?

Usually not: the council says small like-for-like repairs to listed buildings do not normally need consent, and the Cunningham Avenue direction allows like-for-like renewal. In the Fishpool Street and Sopwell Article 4 areas, confirm with the council first.

Is my St Albans house in a conservation area?

Possibly: there are 19 conservation areas in the district, including the city's own, Sopwell, Napsbury, Cunningham Avenue and Childwickbury. Check the council's conservation area pages for your street.

Sources and further reading

• St Albans Conservation Area Character Statement, Intro pages, SADC, rev. 2014 pub. 2016
• Living in a Conservation Area (leaflet PH6(b)), SADC, rev. May 2012
• Cunningham Avenue Article 4 Direction, in effect 3 Nov 2014
• Article 4 Direction areas, SADC
• Area 7c Victoria Street, St Albans CA Character Statement, SADC, 2016
• Building regulations: Re-roofing, Planning Portal, undated (© 2026)
• Building Regulations: Work to an existing roof, Planning Portal, undated (© 2026)
• Area 4c Fishpool Street and St Michael's Village, St Albans CA Character Statement, SADC, 2016
• Area 5c Mount Pleasant, St Albans CA Character Statement, SADC, 2016
• Listed buildings, SADC
• Conservation areas, St Albans City and District Council