Can you change roof tiles in a conservation area?

Section 55 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 leaves out of development any works whose effect on a building's external look is not material. That is why renewing old tiles with identical ones, of the same colour and laid in the same bond, normally needs no planning permission, even in a conservation area. The difficulty lies in the words like for like, which councils read strictly.

A different material, colour or profile alters how the roof appears from the street and may need permission. Conservation areas exist to protect appearance, so councils watch roofs closely, since a roof is the largest single surface people see from the road. Class C permitted development, which covers other roof alterations, is not removed by a conservation area on its own, but an Article 4 direction can take rights away. When the position is unclear, write to the planning team and wait for a reply before you order a single pallet.

Arun's conservation area guidance is specific about roofs. The Steyne and Waterloo Square dates as a conservation area from August 1979, with an extension in July 1994, and the guidance there looks for natural slate or plain clay to return wherever modern substitutes have been used. Aldwick Road, designated in July 1994, is described with slate commonly swapped for concrete interlocking tiles, which the council says detract from the buildings and the street scene.

Craigweil House in Aldwick, designated in April 2009, records plain clay tiled roofs. Its Article 4 direction concerns the enclosure of verges and hard surfacing of front gardens, not the roof. Arun counts 29 conservation areas in its district, so confirm the status of your own street with the council, and ask whether any special controls apply to the road you live on. Our page on plain clay tile roofs covers the material those areas tend to favour, and why it is worth keeping.

A listed building is a different case from one that is merely in a conservation area. The Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 forbids changes that would harm a listed building's architectural or historic character unless the works are authorised. For the Downs, the National Park Authority says ordinary upkeep and small repairs made with matching material, in place, need no listed building consent. A new covering is a bigger step, so talk to the conservation officer first.

Article 4 directions can also bite on roofs, and each council has its own. Portsmouth's directions for Old Portsmouth and several Southsea streets take in renewing the roof cladding on the elevation that faces the street, and Havant's Langstone direction covers roof alterations where the house fronts the highway. Chichester's directions are for the council to confirm. If your house sits in any of these, ask before a single tile comes off.

It depends where the house stands. Inside the South Downs National Park, the Authority itself decides planning in its Arun, Horsham, Adur and Worthing parts. For Park land inside the Chichester and East Hampshire districts, the district council takes the applications and acts for the Authority. Building control, wherever you are in the Park, remains a district council job.

Chichester Harbour National Landscape, which carried an older name until 2023, shares with conservation areas the loss of some national rights, with dormers the usual example. For a re-tile, the safe step is to ask your own council or the Authority, depending on the address. For Bognor, that means Arun District Council's planning team. At the survey we explain which consent applies, and that explanation goes into the paperwork beside the price.

Start by matching what the roof has now. If it is natural slate, renew it with slate; if plain clay, use plain clay in a close colour, and look for salvaged tiles on the front slope. Keep the ridge and hip details, the verges and the eaves as they were, because those lines are what people read from the pavement. A neat match on the main slopes can be spoiled by a plain modern ridge. Our guide on matching old roof tiles shows how that is done in practice.

Should you want a different material, apply first and wait for the decision. A refusal after the old covering has been stripped leaves you with a bare roof and a decision to wait for. Weigh the covering too, because a heavier one can need Building Regulations approval, which our answer on heavier roof tiles and the Regulations covers. For repairs alone, see the conservation area roof repairs page, or the pitched roofing hub for the full range of work.