Golborne skylights and rooflights, from slate terrace lofts to town centre streets

A loft room under a slate roof makes a good bedroom, and the window in it is the part you will think about most. A child will not think about it at all, which is why you need to.

Opening that suits a child

A roof window set low in the slope is within a child's reach, so look for a design with a restrictor that limits how far it opens until an adult releases it. Electric and solar models can be set up so that nothing opens unless you press the button. Our answer on child-safe opening rooflights goes through what makers offer.

A blind that works at bedtime

Children wake with the light, so a blackout blind earns its keep in a bedroom. It should run in side channels so no gap shows at the edge, and it should move without a tug-of-war. A remote beats a cord on a window you cannot reach from the bed. Controls and blinds are shown at handover, so everyone in the house knows how they work. Teenagers adopt the remote quickly, and so do grandparents, as long as someone has shown them where it lives.

Light for homework

If the room doubles as a place to do homework, think about the desk. Bright overhead light across a screen is tiring, and a pleated or roller blind that diffuses the light helps. Ask for one that stops short of the full blackout, so the room can be dark when you want sleep and soft when you want homework.

Where the bed goes

Think about the slope before you buy a bed. A window over the pillow is pleasant to look up through, but a bunk bed below one needs the handle on the other side of the room. Tell us the furniture you plan, and we will place the window to suit it. A wardrobe pushed against the low side of the slope will block a window set there, so the plan on paper matters more than the plan in your head.

Escape from the new floor

A loft bedroom needs a safe escape route from the new storey. The detail is in the Building Regulations guide, and we plan around it from the start.

According to the national planning map, the conservation areas of Golborne include Golborne Town Centre and Park Road. Being inside one does not stop you adding a rooflight, but the address needs checking with Wigan Council, and we do that before we quote. The planning guide explains what changes the position.

Listed houses and farmhouses

Historic England lists buildings in Golborne, among them the Church of St Thomas, Town Farmhouse and Ashton Road Farmhouse, all Grade II. If your house is on the list, adding or altering a rooflight almost always needs listed building consent, and that is the first step to take. The listed building rooflight page has the detail.

What to tell us

Mention the street when you book. If a neighbour has had a rooflight fitted in a similar house, say so, because it helps us see what the council has accepted nearby, though it never decides your own case.

A good fit for an older roof

A conservation rooflight sits low in the roof, with a slim bar across the glass, and looks right on an older slate roof. It is not required everywhere, so it is a choice to weigh at the survey rather than a rule. Modern ones are usually double glazed, and some makers offer opening and blind options for them, so living with one need be no harder than living with any other.