Skylights & rooflights in Enderby
Leicester's edge, and the family houses on it.
Enderby is a village on the south-west edge of Leicester, split by the M1 and crossed by the Fosse Way, with homes of several ages on both sides of the motorway.
- Blaby District Council
- M1 and M69 on the doorstep
- Park and Ride village
Edge-of-city estates, garages and conservatory roofs
Enderby is a village and civil parish in Leicestershire on the south-west outskirts of Leicester, in the Blaby district. The ONS counts about thirteen thousand people in the built-up area it shares with Narborough. The parish includes the neighbourhood of St John’s, which lies east of the village and is separated from it by the M1 motorway. The Fosse Way, the Roman road, runs through the parish, and the B4114 and B582 both cross the village, which sits between Fosse Shopping Park and Narborough.
Its position explains much about the housing. The M1 and the M69 are both close, and a Park and Ride site on the B4114 opposite the Leicestershire police headquarters has run buses into Leicester city centre since 2009. Narborough railway station, on the Birmingham to Peterborough line, is the nearest. People who live here are well placed for work in the city and further afield, and the houses around the village reflect that kind of household.
The local record does not describe individual house styles, so we speak in general terms. A village on the edge of a large city usually combines an older core with later estates of detached and semi-detached family houses, many with garages, driveways and rear gardens. Their roofs are mostly tiled and pitched, with a decent loft, and plenty have been extended at the side or back.
That pattern favours certain rooflights. The pitched roofs take roof windows over the loft and landing. The extensions, which are often flat-roofed or shallow-pitched kitchens and garden rooms, take lanterns and large flat rooflights. And the larger houses leave a dark hall and cloakroom in the middle that a sun tunnel can reach.
North of the village there is a disused freight line known locally as the Whistle Way, a reminder of the quarry that once stood here, and the deserted village of Aldeby lies by the River Soar near St John’s. A bright room that looks to the sky suits almost any house, and the survey finds the place for it.
Garages are worth a thought. A single or double garage attached to the house often has a flat or lean-to roof, and when it is converted into a playroom, an office or a gym, it needs daylight it was never designed to have. A flat rooflight is usually the quickest way to give it that.
At the survey we also look at the porch, the utility and any conservatory. A glazed conservatory roof that overheats in summer and freezes in winter can sometimes be replaced with a better-insulated one, which is a different job and one we are glad to talk through.
Each house is different, even on the same road, and the survey is how we find the detail that matters: the pitch, the span, the covering and the room beneath.
Lantern or flat glass: the extension decides
On an edge-of-city commuter estate, the extension usually decides the rooflight. A flat-roofed kitchen points to a lantern or flat glass, a loft to a roof window, and a deep hall to a sun tunnel. The quote names the unit and the finish for each room.
- Roof lanternsSuits the large rear and side extensions that commuter houses in the village tend to carry.
- Flat roof rooflightsA neat replacement for the small dome or fixed pane on a flat extension roof.
- Roof windowsGives a landing, loft bedroom or study real daylight and a view of the sky.
- Electric & opening rooflightsLets a high or hard-to-reach opening be controlled from a switch, with a rain sensor.
Also fitted here
Near Enderby
- Narborough5 min
- Whetstone6 min
- Huncote7 min
- Blaby7 min
Drive times from Enderby village centre, by road.
Blaby District Council, and any estate covenants
Blaby District Council is Enderby's planning authority. Ordinary houses can generally take a rooflight with no application, but we look up your street for a conservation area and for any council direction that limits permitted rights before we put a price on the work. The council can tell you whether either applies.
On a commuter estate there may also be covenants, or a management company with an interest in the outside of the house, so we ask about those on the first call. Where Building Control needs notifying, we do it. The rooflight planning guide sets out the rules in full.
Estates built in phases can vary house to house, so we look at your own title and roof rather than assuming the neighbour's answer applies to you.
01 Detached houses and loft rooms
Roof space that is already there, waiting for a window.
On the roof
A commuter house of a typical age has a tiled roof over a loft with real headroom in the middle. Whether it is trussed or has traditional rafters, the survey begins there, with a tape measure and a torch, recording spacings, pitch and the depth of insulation.
With trusses, a roof window is chosen to sit in the gap between two frames, or the frames are strengthened to a design before any cut is made. With rafters, one or two can be trimmed and the opening framed in new timber. The quote states which approach applies to your roof, so there is no uncertainty on the day.
We position the window so it works from the room below. Height matters, because a pane set too low is awkward to open and one set too high shows only sky. We chalk the roof and the ceiling with you to agree the spot.
For a larger loft, we might suggest two roof windows or one wide one. A pair on the same slope spreads light evenly, and one on each slope gives cross-ventilation. The tiled flashing is fitted course by course, so the roof looks well finished from the drive.
Insulation in the loft needs care. We keep it continuous up to the window frame, leave the ventilation path above it clear, and make sure there is no gap that could let cold air collect and cause condensation on the new glass.
Hip-ended roofs and gable ends give different slopes to choose from, and the quietest slope from the street is usually the right one for the window.
In the room
Inside the loft, the shaft that links ceiling to roof is framed, insulated and lined with plasterboard, then skimmed. Where the depth allows, the sides are splayed outward, so light spreads into the room instead of dropping to a patch on the floor.
Controls come in a range. A manual handle suits a bedroom, and an electric motor with a rain sensor suits a window on a high slope or above a stair. We explain how each works and fit the option you choose.
A loft bedroom gains from a blackout blind, and a study from a blind that cuts glare on the screen. We fit the brackets while the reveal is still bare, so they sit in the right place.
We leave the room clean, with plaster ready for paint and the floor free of dust.
If you plan a fuller conversion later, the window we fit today can be placed to suit it. We talk through where the stairs, the bed and the desk might go, and choose a position that will not need changing.
Fresh air matters in a loft in summer, when warm air gathers under the roof. An opening roof window, left ajar, draws that heat out, and a blind on the outside or inside limits how much sun comes in.
The short version
A loft with a window is a room; a loft without one stays a cupboard for the suitcases.
A commuter house earns its keep in the evening, and daylight helps it do that.
02 Extensions that outgrew their roof
The kitchen-diner with a dome and a good deal of dark.
On the roof
Houses on the edge of a city are often extended more than once: a garage turned into a utility, a kitchen pushed into the garden, a side return filled in. The result is a collection of flat or shallow roofs, each with its own age, covering and fall.
We assess each one separately. The deck, the joists, the gutter and the junction with the main house all affect the choice. A flat glass rooflight suits a narrow addition, and a lantern suits a wide room with a flat ceiling. Where roofs of different ages meet, the kerb is built to carry both coverings in a single, sealed upstand.
Old domes crack and discolour with age, and they let in weather around the base. We replace them completely, with a new kerb, not a new lid on an old base, so the leak path is gone.
On a south-facing extension, solar-control glass keeps the room comfortable in summer. On a north-facing one, clear glass with a warm edge keeps the light bright without losing heat.
Roofs of an older garage or porch can need strengthening before they carry glass. We check what the roof is made of, and if a joist needs doubling or a deck needs replacing, we say so and price it in the same document.
When the old unit is lifted off, we check the timber beneath for any sign of damp and replace what has softened, so the new kerb stands on sound wood.
In the room
The kitchen-diner is where the family lives, and its ceiling is the surface with most influence on how it feels. We form the opening, line the shaft and plaster a splay that throws light along the table and across the worktop.
A lantern also adds volume. The glazed ridge lifts the eye, and even a modest room feels taller. We agree the proportions with you, so the lantern fits the room and does not overwhelm it.
Ceiling lights, extraction and speakers often belong in the same plan. We coordinate with your electrician so cables are positioned before the plaster is applied.
Once the work is complete, the surfaces are cleaned and the glass is polished, leaving a room ready for use.
A converted garage often has a ceiling at the lowest height in the house, so the splay does a lot of work. A deeper, wider opening spreads light across the whole ceiling, and the room feels higher than it measures.
Fresh paint, a new light fitting and a rooflight are often all a converted garage needs to feel like a proper room.
We finish with a walk-round, switching the controls on and off, and checking that each edge of the reveal is straight.
The short version
When an extension outgrows its roof, the replacement is a chance to give the room the light it was missing.
Lanterns, switches and the M1: Enderby questions
Which is better for a flat-roofed extension, a lantern or a flat rooflight?
A lantern adds height and architectural interest and suits a wide room. A flat rooflight is lower and simpler and suits a narrow or compact addition. We compare the two at the survey with outlines marked on your roof, then quote whichever you choose in a fixed written price. We also check how the kerb will drain.
Can an electric rooflight be controlled from a switch?
Yes. An electric opening rooflight is wired to a wall switch or a remote, and a rain sensor can close it automatically when the weather turns. We discuss the cable route during the survey and make good the ceiling or wall after the wiring, as part of the same visit. We explain how it works before we leave.
Do you work on the Enderby side of the M1 as well as St John's?
Enderby is a little over thirty minutes away, with the M1 and M69 close by. Enderby is a little over half an hour from central Coventry by road, with the M1 and M69 close by. Drop us your postcode through the form or on WhatsApp, and we will offer a survey time and follow up with a fixed written quote. Sending a photograph of the roof speeds things up.
We survey before we price.
Then we finish the room.
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