Scaffolding is one of those costs people don't want to pay and don't quite understand — so let me be plain about when you need it, when you don't, what it costs, and why a quote that leaves it out isn't the bargain it looks.
When you do need scaffolding
A full re-roof always needs scaffolding — there's no safe or proper way to strip and rebuild a roof off ladders. Chimney work on a two-storey stack almost always needs it, because you're working at height on an awkward structure with materials to handle. Anything structural — replacing rafters, dealing with a sagging roofline — needs it. And any job where you're going to be up on the roof for more than a quick look needs proper access, both for safety and because you can't do good work perched on a ladder.
If a firm offers to re-roof your house off ladders, they're either cutting corners on safety or they're not planning to do the job properly. Neither is acceptable.
When you don't
Plenty of smaller repairs don't need scaffolding. A slipped tile or a cracked slate replaced from a ladder, a flashing dressed at a low chimney, a section of guttering cleared or re-fixed — these are routinely done from ladders or a tower, and quoting scaffolding for them would be charging you for something you don't need. Ridge tile repointing on a low, accessible roof can sometimes be done from a tower. The test is the height, the duration, and the nature of the work — not a blanket rule either way.
What it costs
Scaffolding for a typical semi re-roof runs roughly £600 to £1,200, depending on access, height, and whether it's a straightforward lift or has to bridge something awkward like a conservatory. A tall chimney stack can push the scaffold cost higher because of the height and the need to build a working platform at stack level. It's a real, meaningful part of a re-roof price — often 10% or more of the total — and it should be shown as its own line, not buried or hidden.
Why the cheapest quote often hides it
Here's the trick that catches people. You get two quotes: one's £500 cheaper, so you go with it. Then the scaffold arrives, or doesn't, and the "scaffolding extra" gets added on after — at a price you can't negotiate because the job's already started. The cheaper quote was cheaper because it left the scaffold out, not because the work was better value. By the time it's added, you've paid more than the honest quote that included it from the start.
A honest quote includes scaffolding from the beginning, broken out so you can see it. If a quote doesn't mention scaffolding on a job that clearly needs it, ask directly: is scaffold included? If the answer is vague, the price is vague.
The honest version
I include scaffolding in every quote where it's needed, from the start, as its own line. And I don't include it where it isn't needed, because charging you for scaffolding on a slipped-tile repair would be taking the mickey. The right amount of scaffolding is the amount the job actually requires — no more, no less — priced honestly and shown clearly.
If you've been quoted for roof work across Chesterfield, Clay Cross or the villages and you're not sure whether the scaffold's included, ring 07949 348947. I'll tell you straight whether your job needs it and what it costs, in writing, before anything starts.