Trade roots dating back to 1984
From 1984 to today.
A trade background documented back to 1984, decades of recorded projects, and a specialist roofing firm in the Weald today. This is how it started, how it's changed, and what hasn't.
Our roots
A trade background documented back to 1984.
13 September
1984
Where the documented story begins.
Our surviving records stretch back more than four decades. Among them is Philip Allan's approved bricklaying apprenticeship certificate, issued in September 1984 under the authority of the National Joint Council for the Building Industry.
Those early trade foundations were followed by decades of documented building, roofing, brickwork, refurbishment and maintenance projects across Surrey and the surrounding areas.
40+ years of documented trade history
The certificate records an approved apprenticeship in the craft of bricklaying. It is shown as evidence of the trade background behind the business, not as a roofing qualification or the company's founding date.
The training record
The certificates behind the trade.
Spring 1982
Certificate in Communication Skills, Level One
City and Guilds of London Institute
Awarded Spring 1982, Written: Distinction; Course Work Assessment: Credit.
Certificate 1 of 5Spring 1982
Certificate in Numeracy, Level One
City and Guilds of London Institute
Awarded Spring 1982, Written: Distinction.
Certificate 2 of 5May/June 1983
Craft Certificate in Brickwork
City and Guilds of London Institute
Awarded May/June 1983, Written, Assignments and Course Work Assessment: Credit.
Certificate 3 of 5May/June 1984
Advanced Craft Certificate in Brickwork
City and Guilds of London Institute
Awarded May/June 1984, Site Procedures, Technology and Practice; Brickwork Technology and Practice; Course Work Assessment: Credit.
Certificate 4 of 520 March 1985
Award of Merit
South East London College, Department of Construction
Departmental Award for outstanding achievement whilst a student on the CGLI Advanced Craft Certificate in Brickwork, session 1983–84. Dated 20 March 1985.
Certificate 5 of 5
These are brickwork and general college certificates held by Philip Allan. They record training completed in the 1980s and are shown as evidence of the trade background behind the business, not as roofing qualifications, and not as current accreditations.
Family-run
Knowledge handed down, not looked up.
Placeholder, the founding story. Who started the business, where, and why. The first jobs around Tenterden. What roofing looked like in the early years: the materials, the methods, the vans.
Placeholder, how the business grew through word of mouth across Biddenden, Rolvenden and the surrounding villages, and how the next generation came into it.
Placeholder, what the business is today: who runs it, the size of the team, and the deliberate choice to stay local rather than grow into something less personal.
Please supply the real history, family details and dates. Nothing here should be published until confirmed.
The archive
A portfolio built long before websites.
For decades, every completed job was written up on a typed Project Profile, location, property, the work done, anything unusual about it, and filed with a set of photographs in the company portfolio.
That folder still exists. The prints have faded a little, which is exactly what you'd expect of photographs taken that long ago. We're scanning it and putting it online as it was kept, so you can see for yourself what forty years of work looks like.
From 1984 to today
A timeline made of records, not milestones.
1984
The trade foundations
Approved apprenticeship in the craft of bricklaying, documented September 1984.
Original trade certificate, 1984 - Holder
- Philip Allan
- Craft
- Bricklaying
- Issued
- 13 September 1984, under the authority of the National Joint Council for the Building Industry by the National Joint Apprenticeship Board.
The early years
Building & roofing
Original project books document extensions, tiled roofs, chimneys, brickwork, refurbishment and structural works.
Commercial experience
Industrial Croydon
Surviving records document industrial roofing, general maintenance, drainage, blockwork and ongoing maintenance works.
Commercial experience, from the original archive
Decades of projects
Croydon, Coulsdon and beyond
Every job was photographed and written up on a typed Project Profile. The folder survives, and it is being put online exactly as it was kept.
Today
Specialist roofing
That breadth of experience is now concentrated into a specialist roofing service for Tenterden, Biddenden, Rolvenden and the Weald, chimneys, leadwork and brickwork alongside.
Four decades of trade history. One specialist roofing company today.
Get a Free QuoteWhat's changed
Materials and methods.
Breathable membranes replaced bitumen felt. GRP and EPDM replaced three-layer felt on flat roofs. Dry-fix ridge and verge systems arrived. Scaffolding rules tightened. We've adopted what's genuinely better and left alone what wasn't.
What hasn't
The skills that still matter.
Hanging a peg tile. Dressing lead by hand. Reading an old roof to understand why it was built the way it was. Knowing which mortar an old brick needs. These don't come from a manual, and they're the reason the roofs we worked on decades ago are still doing their job.
Then & now
Built then. Still standing today.
Then · 1984
Replacement of Deteriorating Chimneys
Coulsdon, Surrey · Detached residence
Why people choose us
Nothing you'd have to take on trust.
01
Forty-odd years in the trade
We started when many of today's roofing products didn't exist. We've watched materials come and go and kept what works.
02
Family-run
You'll deal with the people whose name is on the van, from the first visit to the last tile. Knowledge here has been passed down, not read off a training slide.
03
Local knowledge
We know the buildings around Tenterden, Biddenden and Rolvenden, what they're made of, how they fail, and what they need.
04
Traditional skills, modern materials
Hand-dressed lead and peg tiles on one job; GRP and breathable membranes on the next. We use what's right for the roof.
05
Honest advice
If a repair will do, we'll say so. If the roof has had its day, we'll show you why. No pressure either way.
06
Properly surveyed
We look before we quote, on the roof, in the loft, and we put what we find in writing.
07
Work that lasts
Some of the roofs we worked on decades ago are still keeping Kent homes dry. That's the standard we still work to.
08
Respect for your property
Tidy sites, protected gardens, and everything cleared away when we leave.
Free, no-obligation quotation
Need something looked at?
Whether it's a leaking roof, an ageing flat roof, a damaged chimney, failing leadwork or a brick wall that needs rebuilding, speak directly to an experienced local contractor.
Just straightforward advice from people who know the trade.