Clarke Roofing win Roof Tiling award

ROOF COVERINGS EXPERTLY REPLACED ON NOVELIST’S HISTORIC HOUSE

The author’s home was originally a timber farmhouse built around 500 years ago, and was later used as a coaching inn. Austen lived in the house for the eight years that preceded her death in 1817.

In 1845 the house was returned to the Chawton Estate and divided into three dwellings for estate workers. It was also used as an estate office and a working men’s club, before becoming a museum in 1949, and it is now Grade I listed. Working closely with the architect and local conservation officers, the contractor opened up the entire structure to carry out structural timber repairs, reforming the central valleys and rebuilding brick corbels to retain drive spike gutter brackets.

The head tiler allowed their apprentices to lay the Keymer tiles and bonnets whilst under supervision to gain experience.