East Sussex · London and the South East
Roof Survey in Polegate
Roof surveys around Polegate, with findings in writing and pictures to back them up. Book a weekday or weekend visit.
- Crumbling chimney pointing or cracked flaunching
- Water stains on rafters and ceiling joists
- Gaps in the roof where coverings have gone
Your questions about roof surveys in Polegate
Is Polegate within the area you cover?
Yes, smaller places are covered as well as towns. We work right across London and South East England. Let us know about access, parking and anything unusual about getting there when booking.
Does a conservation area affect roof work in Polegate?
Start with Historic England’s list for listing and your council for conservation areas. It’s worth checking before planning roof work, as both can affect what’s allowed.
Does a roof survey replace a structural engineer?
No. We report on the roof’s condition, and the Standard and Premium packages include a structural check. It is not a structural engineer’s report and does not include calculations.
Do you give a life expectancy for the roof?
We don’t give a number of years. We describe the condition of each part of the roof and how it is wearing, and we say what needs attention and how urgently.
I live in a flat. Can you survey the roof?
Yes. Shared roofs just need a little more planning. Mention it when you contact us and we will plan the survey around it.
How quickly will I get the report?
The Premium Survey has a same-day report, Standard 24 to 48 hours and Basic within 48 hours. Photos are included.
Does this replace a RICS home survey?
No. It’s a specialist roof survey, not a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 building survey. It focuses on the roof and can sit alongside a RICS survey.
Roof survey in Polegate
Our report is written in plain English, not jargon. Each defect is described with photos and a recommendation, and where it’s relevant we say what’s urgent and what can wait. With the Standard Survey you also get moisture detection and a structural check. Premium adds thermal imaging, a drone inspection where it applies and a same-day report. Each report is emailed to you. If you’re worried about crumbling chimney pointing or cracked flaunching and worn or blocked valleys, we can find out what’s behind it, whatever the roof.
In a smaller place like Polegate, homes range from older cottages to bungalows and newer houses. Coverings range from slate and clay tiles on older homes to concrete tiles on many later ones. On older homes, chimney stacks, valleys and gutters are typically where the work is, and the fixings under the coverings matter too. The fixings under an older roof frequently fail before good slates or tiles do.
Pictures do a lot of the work in our reports, so you can see each defect rather than just read about it. Anything out of sight on the day is listed as such.
- Place
- Polegate (BN26)
- Wider area
- East Sussex
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Reports
- A written report with photos, by email
- Appointments
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Insurance
- PI and public liability insurance
- Phone
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Also near Polegate
More services for Polegate
How the survey changes by roof type
Natural slate
Slate is one of the most durable roof coverings, but its nails often corrode first. We check for slipped, cracked and missing slates.
Clay plain and peg tiles
Handmade and machine-made clay tiles are long-lasting. Slipped, cracked and missing tiles are recorded.
When you need someone else
In fairness, there are limits to any roof survey:
- Confirmation of asbestos in soffits or cement sheets
- How the roof will behave in every kind of weather
- Defects hidden under coverings or inside walls without opening up
Not sure which survey suits your roof? You can phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form and we’ll tell you. What our survey covers.
What this survey covers
- Ridges, hips and valleys
- Natural slate
- Flat roofs
- Clay and concrete tiles
- Lead flashings
- The roof space
- Chimney stacks
Landlord and commercial surveys in Polegate
For blocks of flats, a roof survey helps managing agents and residents’ management companies plan ahead. Recommendations are set out by urgency where it matters.
Shared roofs need a little more planning: access has to be agreed with whoever owns or manages the building. Tell us about it when you book and we’ll plan the visit with that in mind.
What happens on the day
Before we start, tell us why you’ve booked: a purchase, a leak, a storm, new work or simply peace of mind. It helps us focus on what matters most to you. Most visits take between one and two hours for an ordinary house roof, and longer if there are extensions, dormers or several chimneys. Some parts of a survey depend on the weather, so a visit to Polegate is booked with the forecast in mind: drone flights and thermal imaging need the right conditions, while a look from ground level and the loft can go ahead in most weather.
- You let us know the address, the type of roof and what’s worrying you.
- A visit is booked for a weekday, Saturday or Sunday.
- Outside, we inspect from the ground, windows and other safe vantage points, and from the roof where safe.
- We then look in the loft for damp, staining and the condition of the underlay.
- You receive the report with photos and recommendations, prioritised by urgency.
Before we arrive
- Check pets are kept safely away
- Have any questions written down, so nothing gets missed
- Buyers: confirm access with the estate agent or seller
Booking a survey
Getting a price is simple: just phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form, tell us about the property and we will explain which survey suits. We confirm the price before anything is booked.
Advice
Polegate homes and their roofs
Polegate is within about 4 miles of the coast, so there is more wind and more salt in the air than further inland. Metal fixings and flashings corrode faster in salt air, while gales work at loose ridges, slates and tiles, while driving rain finds any gap. Older houses across Sussex often have handmade clay tiles, and many have tile-hanging on their upper walls. Horsham stone slab roofs survive on some old Sussex buildings, alongside oast houses and timber-framed Wealden hall houses. Each of these coverings has its own weak points, from fixings and valleys to flashings, chimneys and gutters.
Michelham Priory, about 3.2 miles north-west, is one of the historic houses in the wider area around Polegate. On a period home nearby, the survey separates sound original work from tired later repairs. If you own a rental within reach of Polegate station, knowing the condition of the roof, chimneys and gutters helps you plan work rather than react to complaints. Take a building like Polegate Primary School: long gutter runs and wide roofs on a building that size are worth checking on a regular cycle.
Polegate is about 3 miles south of Hailsham, in East Sussex. If you’re in Polegate, booking works exactly as it does anywhere else: a call or an email, a price, then a date. Polegate is one of the places in East Sussex where we work. Brighton is in our area too.
Roof surveys in BN26 are booked the same way as anywhere else. Local streets include Station Road, High Street and Church Road. Main roads around Polegate include the A27 and A2270, which makes travel easy. Neighbouring places we cover for roof surveys include Wannock (1 mile south-west), Lower Willingdon (1 mile south), Willingdon (1 mile south), Filching (2 miles south-west) and Folkington (2 miles west). We also work in nearby towns like Eastbourne (3 miles south-east), Hastings (14 miles east), Bexhill-on-Sea (10 miles east), Seaford (7 miles south-west), Lewes (11 miles west) and Hailsham (3 miles north).
Near you in Polegate
We work in homes and buildings around Horse & Groom pub and Willingdon Community School. Polegate has its own railway station: Polegate station. Other landmarks nearby include Burlough Castle (3.4 miles west) and Eastbourne District General Hospital (2.5 miles south). Not far away are Combe Hill.
Practical tips
There is plenty you can do without going near the roof. Here’s what helps most:
- Have details of recent roof work to hand
- Keep a record of damp patches and dates
- Let us know about past leaks
- Make sure we can open the loft hatch
File the report with your other home documents. It gives you something to compare against later, and buyers may ask about the roof when you sell.
Don’t block the vents at the eaves. Condensation builds up when air can’t move, which can dampen timbers and insulation over time. Check insulation does not block the airflow at the eaves.
Why act early in Polegate
A roof that has had no attention for years can surprise you. Our report gives you a record of how the roof is today, which makes later changes easy to spot. Homes in smaller places like Polegate can face more weather, so a loose ridge or verge soon lets rain in. Each storm lifts it a little further, and water follows.
Roof survey starts from £150, including VAT. What you pay depends on how big and how high the roof is, access and which survey you book.
What you get with us
- Thermal imaging and drones used where they help
- Insured for professional indemnity and public liability
- A sub-250g drone, flown with a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID
- Plain-English reports with photos
Read our cost guide and what we found on two real jobs.