What the job costs in Whitstable
Compact sliding
Motorised sliding unit for a stair or hatch opening
Standard sliding
Larger opening onto a roof terrace
Large sliding
Big spans, lifting gear and longer installs
Guide ranges for supply & fit. 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?
Distance is rarely the deciding factor. A roof in Herne Bay, 5 miles from Whitstable, gets the same survey, the same written quote and the same fitting process as one in CT5, CT6 and CT2. What changes the price is the job itself: size of unit, roof type, access and lifting. Canterbury, around 6 miles out, is treated the same way.
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.
Included in the work
- Controls, sensors and any safety stop set up and tested
- Lifting plan for the unit, often with gear booked for the day
- Cable routed to the motor, ready for the electrician's final connection, quoted as a separate line
- Planning for a roof terrace — We flag early whether planning may be needed for the work around the rooflight.
- What the glass slides over — We check the area the glass will cover when open before deciding where the unit goes.
How a fitting day runs
On the day, you need to be in at the start and at the end. In between, the fitters get on with it. They will want the room below cleared where possible, a parking spot if you have one, and somewhere to set the unit down safely. After checking the opening and the upstand or flashing, they fix a sliding rooflight, seal it and finish the inside. Packaging and any old unit leave with them unless the quote says otherwise.
Do you need permission in Whitstable?
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.
What to send for a quick quote
What we cannot see, we have to guess, and guesses make quotes wider. So the more you send, the tighter the price. Useful: shots from the roof or garden, shots from the room underneath, a rough width and length, the roof finish, any access problems, and the product page if you have already ordered. Add the property postcode around CT5 and we will come back with a quote or a survey date.
Common questions in Whitstable
Do you cover Whitstable?
Yes. Fitters travel to addresses in Whitstable and the surrounding districts, including CT5. We do not run an office there; the survey and the fitting happen at your property. A few island and remote postcodes are covered by arrangement; if yours is one, we confirm travel and dates before quoting.
Can you fit a rooflight in winter or when it is raining?
Yes, within limits. Cold is less of a problem than wet, because membranes, primers and sealants need a dry surface to bond. We plan fitting days around the forecast and may move a date if heavy rain is due. If the roof has to be opened up, it is not left overnight without a temporary weather seal, so the room below stays dry while the work is finished.
What is included in the price?
The written quote lists it line by line. Typically that covers fitting labour, fixings, sealants, membrane or flashing materials, any upstand work, internal finishing if agreed, and taking away the waste. For supply and fit, the unit itself is included too. Scaffold, lifting gear and any third-party fees, where needed, are shown separately so you can see what each part of the job costs.
Get in touch with the details of your Whitstable property and we will explain what the job involves and what it costs.
