The best roof covering is usually the one that suits your house, your roof pitch and your area. Natural slate gives a thin, neat finish and is common on Victorian homes. Clay tiles, especially handmade plain tiles, suit older and period properties and weather beautifully. Concrete tiles are the practical, lower-cost choice found on most post-war homes. If your home is listed, in a conservation area or covered by a local design scheme, the choice may be made for you.
The three main options
Natural slate
Slate is split from stone into thin sheets and nailed to battens. It gives a flat, crisp roof with a grey or blue-grey colour.
- Looks: traditional and neat, typical of Victorian and Edwardian terraces.
- Weight: fairly light for a natural material, as each slate is thin.
- Pitch: works on a range of pitches, though the overlap needs to increase on shallower roofs.
- Upkeep: good slate is very durable, but the nails holding it rust over time, so slates slip one by one. Quality varies a lot between sources, so the right slate matters.
Clay tiles
Clay tiles come in two main types. Plain tiles are small, flat or slightly curved, and laid with a double overlap. Interlocking clay tiles and pantiles are larger and lock together.
- Looks: warm reds and browns that mellow with age. Handmade plain tiles have an uneven, characterful surface.
- Weight: plain tile roofs are heavy, because so many tiles overlap.
- Pitch: plain tiles need a steep roof. Interlocking clay tiles can go on shallower slopes.
- Upkeep: the tiles often outlast their fixings. On old roofs, the pegs, nails and battens wear out first, so good tiles can often be saved and relaid.
Concrete tiles
Concrete tiles are moulded from sand and cement, usually as large interlocking tiles. They are the most common roof covering on homes built from the 1950s onwards.
- Looks: plain and practical. Some are made to look like slate or clay.
- Weight: heavier than slate, which matters if you plan to swap one for the other.
- Pitch: many interlocking concrete tiles suit lower roof pitches.
- Upkeep: they are tough, but their surface wears with age and they can get brittle. Moss grows readily on them.
Man-made slates and tiles
There are also man-made slates and tiles, made from materials such as fibre cement or resin mixes. They are lighter and more uniform than natural products and can cost less, but they don't weather in the same way. They can be a sensible choice on some extensions and modern homes, but are rarely suitable for listed buildings or conservation areas.
How to choose
The main factors are:
- The style of your house. A roof should look right. Concrete tiles on a Victorian terrace, or slate on an Arts and Crafts house, can look out of place.
- Your roof pitch. Each material has a minimum pitch. A roofer will check the manufacturer's guidance for your slope.
- The roof structure. Heavier coverings need timbers that can take the load.
- Budget. Natural slate and handmade clay generally cost more to supply and fit than concrete. The size and shape of the roof, access and how much timber work is needed also affect cost.
- Local rules. See below.
If you are not yet sure you need a new covering at all, a roof survey will tell you whether repairs would do.
Rules to check before changing material
Planning permission
For most houses outside conservation areas, re-roofing, even in a different material, does not usually need planning permission, as long as the roof shape stays the same. But if your home is in a conservation area, an Article 4 direction may remove that right, and changing the look of the roof may need permission. Listed buildings need listed building consent for most roof work, and swapping materials is unlikely to be allowed. Rules vary, so check with your local council. Our guides to planning permission for roof work and conservation areas and listed buildings explain more.
Building regulations
Building regulations approval is needed if the new covering is significantly heavier than the old one (official guidance uses a 15% increase as the trigger), because the roof structure must be checked. Replacing a large part of the roof covering also brings in building regulations, including improving insulation. A roofer registered with a government-authorised competent person scheme can deal with the building regulations side for you; otherwise you apply to building control. See our guide to building regulations when you re-roof.
In Essex, Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire
All three materials are common across the three counties, often in the same town.
- Handmade clay: The centre of Saffron Walden is full of timber-framed and brick buildings with steep handmade clay plain tile roofs. With 373 listed buildings in the town, many homes need listed building consent for most roof work.
- Victorian slate: In Cambridge, areas such as Romsey, Petersfield and the streets off Mill Road are full of Victorian terraces with slate roofs.
- Concrete tiles: Much of Basildon is 1950s to 1980s housing with concrete interlocking tiles and shallow-pitched roofs.
- Mixed towns: In St Albans, the centre has steep handmade clay plain tile roofs, Fleetville has Victorian slate terraces, and outer areas have clay or concrete tiles.
- Local design schemes: In Letchworth Garden City, many homes are covered by the Heritage Foundation's Scheme of Management, so changing roof materials often needs consent.
- Conservation areas: Chelmsford has 26 conservation areas, where swapping slate for concrete tiles may need planning permission.
How First4Roofcare can help
We fit and repair slate roofs and tiled roofs, and we offer a 10-year guarantee on new roofs. We check planning and conservation rules before we quote. Book a free survey to talk through the options for your home.