Skylights & Rooflights in BramhopeRoof glazing for the larger detached houses on Wharfedale's edge

Bramhope lies on the road between Leeds and Otley, and much of its housing was built for families wanting space.

The village has detached houses on generous plots, many from the later twentieth century, along with bungalows, some older stone properties and buildings that began life as part of a farm. Roofs tend to be larger than on a terrace or semi, with more pitches, more valleys and sometimes a garage or conservatory attached.

Because the plots are generous, there is usually space around the house for access, which makes the practical side of a job easier. A tower or ladder can stand clear of the walls, materials can be kept tidy on a drive, and the rooms below are less likely to be disturbed by deliveries. That variety suits rooflight work well. A bigger roof gives more places to put glass, but also more decisions about where it looks right and where the structure allows it. A house here is often lived in by a family that has already extended once, so we also look at what has been done to the roof before.

Bramhope falls within Leeds City Council, which is the body that confirms any planning question about a roof.

The ordinary rules apply here as anywhere. Most houses can take a rooflight as permitted development when it passes the checks described in the skylight planning permission guide. Flats are the exception, as are listed buildings, and a conservation area might carry an Article 4 direction on certain streets. Older properties in the village are the ones most likely to raise one of those points.

Roofs in the village also differ in what they are covered with. Concrete tiles are common on the newer estates, slate and stone slate on older properties, and flat roofing on extensions. Each needs its own flashing kit, so the first job at a survey is to identify the covering and look at its condition before anything is ordered.

Converted farm buildings deserve extra attention. A conversion may have had its permitted development rights taken away as a condition of the original consent, so we suggest checking the decision notice before choosing a window. That check takes a few minutes and avoids an awkward letter later.

With a barn conversion, the paperwork from the original consent can matter more than the roof itself.

From a survey in Bramhope

A wide roof can take several windows, and the work is in placing them so the room feels balanced.

On a detached house with a large rear slope, a row of two or three roof windows can light a long loft room evenly. We mark the positions from inside the room first, looking at where furniture, a desk or a bed will go, and then check them against the rafters and the line of the roof outside. A window that looks right from the garden is not always the one that lights the room best, so we weigh both.

If you are replacing an existing window with a like-for-like one, our VELUX window installation page explains how to read the size code on the frame.

A chalet bungalow has the most to gain from a roof window, and the escape rules are friendlier there than in a taller house.

In a bungalow the upper rooms sit low, so a roof window can double as the way out, provided the opening is positioned within the height that Approved Document B sets. We compare the sill and the clear opening with that guidance at the survey. It is a point where details matter, since a window set too far up the slope can fail the test even when the size is right.

Where there is a chalet-style upper floor, the roof usually has a short vertical wall and a sloping ceiling, so headroom is limited near the eaves. A window placed higher up the slope gives more light but a worse view when seated, while a lower one does the reverse. We talk through where the bed, desk or seating will go and set the height to suit.

Many of these houses also have a flat-roofed addition behind, which is the natural home for a lantern or a large flat rooflight. If that roof is the original covering, we will say whether it should be renewed around the new opening.

Bramhope's larger plots have made room for generous extensions, and a lantern lifts the middle of one.

A roof lantern rises from an insulated upstand, normally built at least 150mm tall, and it floods the room with light from above as well as from the sides. The height of that rise is also why an existing extension will usually call for an application, or the council's confirmation, before the lantern goes in. A lantern planned as part of a brand-new extension is considered with that building, so the timing is simpler.

Which way the room faces counts for as much as the size of the lantern. A lantern over a room that faces south can bring in more warmth than expected, so we talk through glass with a solar-control coating and a blind or two, and set them against how the room is used. On a north-facing garden room the same lantern may be the best source of light all day.

The roof lantern installation page describes the glass options, the frame materials and what goes on underneath.

Large houses collect rooms that have no outside wall, and daylight can still reach them from above.

A big detached house often has a long landing, an en suite or a dressing room tucked into the middle of the plan. These rooms rely on electric light all day. A sun tunnel can carry daylight down from the roof through the loft space, which suits a room that is passed through or used for a few minutes. Where there is a roof slope directly above, a small roof window gives the room a view as well.

The sun tunnel installation page explains the sizes and how they are fitted.

A larger house can hide a job well, but we still treat the rooms around it as ones you are using.

You will know what each day involves before it begins, including which rooms we need and when the roof is open. We cover floors, stairs and furniture, shield the work area as far as the layout allows, and close the roof to the weather before leaving each evening. The concealed work, meaning trimmers, upstands, flashings, membranes and insulation, is built with care and photographed, and the photos are given to you at handover. One team carries out the whole job, and the waste goes with us.

Bramhope is about 29.6 road miles west of York, and a visit costs nothing.

Someone visits the house, goes up into the loft and out onto the roof, and explains what is possible. A written quote follows, itemised so you can see each part. Where Building Control is needed, the notification is something we arrange.

On larger detached houses with long or multiple roof slopes, it helps to say which slope you would prefer to use and whether a long gravel drive or gated entrance affects deliveries. We can then plan where the glazing is lifted onto the roof and how the work area is kept clear of cars and garden features.

Nearby, we also work in Pool in Wharfedale, Horsforth and Pannal. A short message through the form is enough to start.