What the job costs in Kensington
Small opening
Up to about 1000 × 1000 mm with actuator, rain sensor and switch or remote
Medium opening
Larger units, wall switch and remote
Large opening
Big or heavy units, extra actuators
Guide ranges for supply & fit; the electrician's final connection is quoted separately. Your price is fixed in a written quote after we have seen photos or surveyed. Scaffold, access towers or a crane are priced separately if the job needs them, and building control fees, where a job needs them, are shown as their own line.
Is your address covered?
Jobs across W8, SW5 and SW7 are part of our normal cover for Kensington. We are not an office on the high street. Our fitting teams come out to the property from wherever they are working that week. Neighbouring places such as Bayswater and Notting Hill are covered on the same terms, so a house on the edge of town is no harder to book than one in the centre.
Buying your own, or letting us supply
Which works out better, buying your own or letting us supply? It depends on what you value. Buying your own gives you control of the product and what you pay for it. Letting us supply puts the whole job, unit and fitting, under one written quote. On a customer-supplied unit we still measure it against the opening, look at the upstand, and inspect the condition it arrived in. Warranty on the product sits with whoever sold it, while the fitting carries our own guarantee.
What we do on the day
- Cable route and controls set up ready for the electrician's final connection, quoted as a separate line
- Wall switch, remote receiver or control box fixed in place
- Opening and closing tested, with controls explained at handover
- Cable length and size — We check the cable run against the maker's limits before planning where the controls go.
- Rain sensor position — We place the rain sensor where rain will reach it quickly and debris will not cover it.
From arrival to clean-up
Protection comes before tools. Floors, furniture and stairs get covered, and the ceiling below the opening is sheeted to catch dust. Up top, the fitters confirm the opening is square and the upstand or flashing suits what the maker specifies. Fixing follows, then weather-sealing into the membrane, felt or tiles. Only once the roof is tight do they turn to the internal reveal. Time on site for an electric opening rooflight: one day, plus the electrician's connection, weather permitting.
Planning, building control and Kensington
England's rules in short: permitted development usually covers a rooflight on a house roof provided it doesn't stick out more than 0.15 m or rise above the ridge, though a listed building always needs consent and some streets have Article 4 directions. Building regulations apply to new openings, and replacements go through building control; as we are not registered with a competent person scheme, we use a building notice and show the fee on the quote. The energy limit for rooflights in existing homes is 2.2 W/m²K, and the 2026 Approved Document L, in force from 24 March 2027, keeps that figure.
Help us quote accurately
Start with your phone. Take a picture of the roof where the unit goes or already sits, then one from inside looking up. Measure what you can, even roughly. Tell us what the roof is covered with and how a fitter would reach it: ladder, garden access or scaffold. Bought it already? Send the link or spec. Add your full postcode, for example in W8, and we can price it.
Common questions in Kensington
Do you offer trade rates for builders and roofers?
We carry out subcontract fitting for builders, roofers, extension companies and commercial contractors. Pricing is per job or per schedule of units, agreed in writing before we start. We can work to your programme, fit on your upstand or build our own, and leave the opening ready for the next trade. Send drawings or a unit schedule and we will come back with a trade quote.
Can you replace an old dome without redoing the whole roof?
Usually, yes. If the existing kerb is sound, level and tall enough, a new unit can often sit on it with a fresh seal to the roof covering. If the kerb is rotten or too low, we rebuild it and patch the covering around it rather than stripping the whole roof. This is checked at the survey and included in the written quote, so you know the full scope first.
Do I need planning permission for a rooflight in Kensington?
Often not. Many rooflights fall under permitted development, provided they do not project beyond the national limit and meet the other conditions that apply in England. Conservation areas, listed buildings and some flats are different and may need consent. Because the rules depend on the property, we confirm what is likely to apply at your address and point you to the planning authority where an application is needed.
For a free, no-obligation quote in Kensington, use the form or call us with the details of your roof.
