Skylights & Rooflights in KirkbymoorsideDaylight for moorland-edge homes, stone terraces and farm conversions

Kirkbymoorside is about 27.7 road miles north of York, towards the northern edge of the area we cover, with the moors rising to the north of the town.

The centre is a market town of stone houses and cottages, many with clay pantile roofs, grouped around the market place and the streets that lead off it. Behind them are newer estates with tiled roofs, and beyond the edge of town are farmsteads and converted buildings. Because the moor is so close, roofs here feel the weather in a way those on the Vale floor do not.

That shapes how we plan the work. We look at where the wind meets the roof, how the roof is fixed and what lies under the covering, as well as where the light is wanted.

A roof close to open moorland meets harder wind and rain than one in a sheltered street, and the details below the glass are what keep it dry.

The flashing is the part that does the work. We choose a kit made for your covering, whether pantile, stone slate or concrete tile, and fit it so water is carried down and over the tiles beneath. Under the frame, the membrane is lapped and taped, and the insulation collar is fitted tight so the reveal stays warm. All of this is photographed before it is hidden, and the pictures are yours.

Moorland rain tends to arrive sideways, so the position of the window on the slope matters too. Lower down, it takes more water running off the roof above it, and a short back-gutter or extra lapped flashing at the head gives that water somewhere to go. We explain which applies at the survey.

Wind also tests the fixings. On an older roof the battens may be thin or tired, so we look at them at the survey and, where needed, add timber around the opening so the window sits on something solid. A tight frame in a gale is a quiet frame, and in an upstairs bedroom that counts.

Most Kirkbymoorside addresses fall under North Yorkshire Council, which replaced Ryedale District Council in April 2023.

A house can generally take a rooflight under permitted development if the glass meets the conditions in the planning permission page for skylights. Flats and maisonettes need an application, listed buildings need listed building consent, and parts of the old centre may sit in a conservation area where extra controls could apply on one street and not the next. The council confirms all of this.

The North York Moors National Park starts nearby, so a house on the outskirts, or in one of the hamlets around, may sit inside it. In that case the National Park Authority becomes the planning authority, and the rules and the level of scrutiny shift. We ask for your full address at the start for that reason.

On the edge of the moor, the address decides which authority you ask, so the postcode comes before the product.

From a survey in Kirkbymoorside

Farm buildings turned into homes are the Kirkbymoorside jobs where a rooflight changes a room the most.

Walls in an old barn are thick and the original openings are small, so the middle of a converted floor plan can be dark whatever the time of day. Rooflights over that middle are the cleanest fix. They bring in light from above without upsetting the elevation, which is often something the building's original conversion permission cared about.

If your building has a planning history from its conversion, find that decision notice. It may have conditions on roof openings that override the usual house rules. We help you read what it says before any order is placed, and if a condition stands in the way, the council can tell you whether a fresh application is the next step.

Heating matters in these buildings as well. Large open rooms with tall ceilings lose warmth upwards, so the glazing needs to keep its heat well, and we choose units that meet the Part L limits for existing homes. A cold, draughty skylight would undo much of the comfort the conversion was meant to provide, and it would show up as condensation on the glass in winter.

Inside, the exposed timbers and stone that make these houses attractive also mean the opening has to be positioned with care. We mark it with tape from below and look at it from the room before any cutting.

The rear extension is where Kirkbymoorside families most often ask about glass in the roof.

A flat rooflight is the plainest way to light the middle of a new kitchen, and a lantern is the grander one, with height and glazing on four sides. Most lanterns stand taller than 150mm, so on an existing roof an application or a council confirmation is the sensible first step, while a lantern in a new extension goes through with the extension. Our roof lantern installation and flat roof rooflights pages set out both.

Rear roofs are often reached from the garden, and the lane behind a terrace can be narrow, so access for ladders and deliveries is something we settle with you in advance. We also check how far the extension roof can be seen from the neighbours' windows, which can affect where on the roof the glass sits.

The kitchen is often the room the family wants to keep using, so we plan the work to leave a corner of it available where we can.

Old stone houses have small windows and deep walls, and the inner rooms upstairs tend to get no daylight at all.

Where there is no roof slope to put a window in, a sun tunnel takes light from a small dome on the roof and sends it down a reflective tube to a ceiling diffuser. It suits a landing, a hall or an inner bathroom, and the work inside the house is light and quick. For a room you spend longer in, a proper roof window is usually the better answer. Details are on our sun tunnel installation page.

We plan the work around the household, because the family is usually at home while the roof is open.

You get a written plan for each day. Dust sheets cover the stairs and floors, furniture in the work area is wrapped, and a screen closes off the room. When the day ends the roof is sealed, the room is swept and the waste goes with us. One team looks after the job from beginning to end.

At handover we walk you through the finished rooflight, give you the makers' warranties and our 10-year workmanship guarantee, and hand over the Building Control paperwork if the work was notifiable.

The survey costs nothing and we come to the house, since we have no premises.

We look at the roof, the room and the likely planning position, then send a written quote with the costs set out line by line. If you are comparing places around, we also cover Helmsley, Pickering and Malton.

Outbuildings need a little extra thought on the visit. If the light is meant for a barn conversion, a garage or a workshop, tell us what the building is used for now, whether it is heated, and whether the roof is boarded underneath. Those answers decide how the insulation and the upstand are built, and they affect whether the council needs to be asked anything first.