Scaffolding service
Residential scaffolding for houses, flats and home improvements
Scaffolding for homeowners and the builders, roofers and decorators working on their homes — measured on site, priced in writing and put up on the agreed date.
Free site visit usually within 48 hours · Phone answered 24 hours · 12-week standard hire period
25 years
Curtis in the trade
19 people
Our own team
4.8 from 29
Google rating
12 weeks
Standard hire
Within 48 hours
Free site visit
Recent work
Residential Scaffolding on site
Overview
What residential scaffolding covers, and who it is for
Residential scaffolding is access scaffolding for homes: detached and semi-detached houses, terraces, bungalows, cottages and small blocks of flats. It gives roofers, builders, renderers, painters, window fitters and solar installers a safe, boarded platform to work from, with guardrails and toe boards at every working level.
Most domestic scaffolds are for one of a handful of jobs: a re-roof or roof repair, a chimney or gutter repair, a loft conversion, an extension, rendering or painting the outside of the house, replacing windows and fascias, or fitting solar panels. Each job needs the platform in a different place, so the scaffold is planned around the work, not taken off a shelf.
Sometimes the homeowner books the scaffold. More often the builder or roofer does. Either way, we come out and measure up, check how materials get to the back of the house and where the lorry can stand, and send a written price. Standard hire is 12 weeks, and we adapt the scaffold if the job changes.
What it costs to get wrong
What happens when this is left, rushed or under-specified
On a house, the scaffold is a small part of the total bill, but it decides how safely and how quickly everything else gets done.
Ladders and towers in the wrong place
Working off ladders on a roof or a two-storey elevation is slow and dangerous, and most reputable trades will not do it for anything beyond a quick repair.
A scaffold that does not reach the work
A platform that stops at the eaves when the work is on the chimney, or misses the dormer face, means the trades either stop or improvise.
Damage to the house or the neighbour's
Standards on a conservatory roof or ties through soft brickwork can cause damage that costs more to fix than the job you started with.
Delays from a missing licence
A scaffold on the pavement without a council licence can be stopped. That is a delay to every trade booked behind it.
The mistakes we see most often
- Choosing the cheapest quote without checking it covers the elevations and heights your trades need.
- Not mentioning a conservatory, porch or extension that the scaffold needs to bridge.
- Forgetting to tell the neighbours when the scaffold needs to use or overhang their land.
- Booking the scaffold before the builder or roofer has confirmed their start date.
- Assuming a pavement scaffold does not need a council licence.
Our process
How a job runs, start to finish
The same six steps on every job, whether it is one chimney or a phased commercial programme.
- 01
Call or send the details
Tell us the site address, what the scaffold is for and roughly when you need it. The phone is answered 24 hours a day.
- 02
Free site visit
Curtis, Andrew or one of the team comes out and measures up properly — usually within 48 hours of your enquiry.
- 03
Written quote, no obligation
You get a clear price for your job, based on what we saw on site rather than an average. No charge for the visit or the quote.
- 04
Agreed erect date
We book a date and we work to it. If a licence is needed for the footway, we flag that before the date is set.
- 05
Erected, checked and handed over
The scaffold goes up, gets checked, and your trades get on with the work. Standard hire period is 12 weeks.
- 06
Adaptations and dismantle
Need a lift added or a section moved? Call us. When the job is done we strike it on the agreed day and leave the site clean.
What you get
What you actually get from residential scaffolding done properly
Concrete outcomes, priced from your site and delivered on the dates we agree.
Priced after a site visit
Your quote is based on your house, measured in person, so the price does not change when we arrive.
Built around the work
Lift heights, loading bays and access are set for the job being done, whether that is a chimney, a dormer or a full re-render.
Licences and neighbours flagged early
We tell you at the site visit if a pavement licence is needed or if the scaffold touches a neighbour's property.
Adaptations when the job changes
Need an extra lift, a section moved or the scaffold kept longer? Call us and we arrange it.
In detail
House scaffolding: what to know before you book
Most people only book a scaffold once or twice. These are the questions homeowners ask us most often, and what we look at when we visit.
Scaffolding for a re-roof or roof repair
For roof work, the working platform needs to sit just below the eaves, with a guardrail and boards extended above the eaves to stop people and materials falling off the roof edge. Roofers usually need a loading bay for tiles and battens.
If the roof is coming off for more than a few days, a temporary roof keeps the weather out of the house. Our temporary roof cost guide explains when it is worth it.
Scaffolding for a chimney
A chimney scaffold needs a platform at stack level, not just at the eaves. On some houses that means a scaffold up the gable; on others it means a platform built up off the roof slope from a scaffold below. We look at the stack position at the site visit and price the right option.
Scaffolding for loft conversions and extensions
Loft conversions usually need a rear scaffold, sometimes wrapping a side, with access at the new dormer or gable wall as it is built. Extensions need the scaffold to rise with the walls. Tell us how your builder plans to sequence the work, and we will plan the scaffold and any adaptations into the price.
Over conservatories, porches and extensions
A conservatory, porch or single-storey extension often sits right where the scaffold needs to go. Their roofs are not built to take scaffold loads, so we bridge over them with beams or build up from the ground either side.
How much house scaffolding costs
The price depends on how many elevations need scaffolding, the height of the house, how materials reach the site, any bridging or temporary roof, and how long you need it. Our scaffolding hire costs guide explains each factor. For your house, we give a fixed written price after a free visit.
Licences, neighbours and access
If the scaffold stands on the public pavement, the local council's highways team must issue a licence before it goes up. We check this at the site visit. If the scaffold needs to stand on or overhang a neighbour's land, you need their agreement; a council licence does not cover private land.
Materials and methods we use
- Tube and fitting scaffolding, built to suit the shape of the house
- Timber or steel scaffold boards with toe boards
- Guardrails and brick guards at working levels
- Aluminium beams for bridging conservatories and porches
- Loading bays for roof tiles and building materials
- Debris netting and monaflex sheeting where needed
Domestic work
- Re-roofs and roof repairs
- Chimney repairs and repointing
- Loft conversions and dormers
- Single and two-storey extensions
- Rendering, painting and cladding
- Window, fascia and gutter replacement
- Solar panel installations
Commercial work
- Small blocks of flats and maisonettes
- Managed residential buildings
- Housing association maintenance
- Flats above shops
FAQs
Residential Scaffolding: common questions
Cost, timescales, hire periods and how the job actually runs.
How much does it cost to scaffold a house?+
It depends on the size and height of the house, how many sides need scaffolding, access for materials, any bridging or temporary roof, and the hire period. We give a fixed written price after a free site visit. Our scaffolding hire costs guide explains what affects the price.
How long does it take to put up scaffolding on a house?+
Most domestic scaffolds go up in a day. Larger houses, full wraps or temporary roofs can take longer. We confirm the timing in your quote.
How long can I keep the scaffold?+
Our standard hire period is 12 weeks. If your job runs over, we can extend the hire.
Do I need permission for scaffolding on my house?+
You do not need planning permission for a scaffold. If it stands on the public pavement, the council must issue a licence, which we check and arrange. If it uses a neighbour's land, you need their agreement.
Can you scaffold over my conservatory?+
Yes. We bridge over conservatories, porches and low extensions so nothing rests on their roofs.
Do you inspect the scaffold?+
Yes. The scaffold is checked and handed over before your trades use it, and inspected at regular intervals while it is up.
Can I book the scaffold myself, or should my builder?+
Either works. If you book it, you know exactly what the scaffold costs, and your trades can price their own work separately.
Planning work on your house? Tell us the address and what the job is, and we will come out, measure up and send you a written price.
Related services
Temporary Roofs
Read moreSolar Panel Installation Scaffolding
Read moreScaffolding Erection and Hire
Read moreEdge Protection
Read moreWhere we deliver this service
Residential Scaffolding is available across Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, London, Surrey, Oxfordshire, Hertfordshire and Middlesex from Seven Hills Farm, Seven Hills Road, Iver, SL0 0PA. You can also see every service we offer, read about ATC Scaffolding or send us the details of your job.
Next step
Get a price for scaffolding your house
Free site visit, usually within 48 hours, and a written quote with no obligation.
Phone answered 24 hours · Free quotes · 12-week standard hire period