Window condition survey
Every opening recorded, graded and written up so a contractor can price it and an officer can rely on it.
- Scope
- Any number of openings
- Programme
- Confirmed with the fee
- Suitable for
- Listed building consent
What is a window condition survey?
A window condition survey is an independent, photographed record of every window, door and shutter you ask us to look at. Each opening is numbered, its condition is recorded part by part, its urgency is graded, and we give a clear recommendation to repair, part-renew or replace with the reasons set out, so that a contractor can price from the report and a conservation officer can rely on it.
What is included
- A numbered register of every opening, by block, floor and elevation
- Condition photographs of each one
- An urgency grade: urgent, recommended or monitor
- Findings on the frame, sashes, sill, glazing bars, cords, weights, ironmongery and glazing
- A repair, part-renew or replace recommendation, with reasons
- Glazing specification and sightline notes where replacement is recommended
- A summary schedule and totals for pricing
- Planning-ready wording where the report supports a consent application
Each opening in turn, with photographs, a description of its condition and a recommendation.
When an on-site survey is the right choice
As a general threshold, a property with more than about fifteen openings is better served in person than remotely. Beyond that number the pattern of decay stops being visible in individual photographs and starts to be a matter of how the building has weathered as a whole.
An on-site survey is also the right choice where scaffolding, upper floors or internal shutters put parts of the building out of reach of a camera, and where an application concerns a listed building and the authority will expect evidence gathered at close range.
What you receive
The report sets out each opening in turn, with photographs, a description of its condition and a recommendation. Where fabric is original it is identified as such. Where earlier repairs have failed, the report says so and explains why.
The document is written to be read by a conservation officer. It does not argue a case on your behalf. It records what is there and what can reasonably be done, and leaves the decision where it belongs, with the local planning authority.
What happens after the report?
Most clients pass the report straight to their architect, contractor or project manager, who use the register and the summary schedule to scope and price the work, and where consent is needed the same report goes into the application. If questions come back from a conservation officer or a contractor once they have read it, we are on hand to answer them, and if you would like a quote for the work we have recommended, we can arrange one through the right business in the group, but only if you ask us to.
Common questions
How long does a window condition survey take?
It depends on the size of the job, the number of openings, how easy they are to reach and whether the building is occupied. Every instruction is different, so we confirm the programme in writing along with the fee before anything begins.
Do you survey occupied buildings?
Yes, we regularly survey occupied blocks and estates of several hundred windows, working around residents and staff, and access arrangements are agreed with you before the visit.
Can the report be used for tender?
Yes. The report is written so that a contractor can price from it, with a numbered register of every opening, a summary schedule and totals for pricing.
Do you cover buildings outside London?
Yes, we carry out on-site surveys across the UK from London, with travel quoted per job, and recent work includes Liverpool, Harrogate and Belfast.
Can you survey at height?
Yes. Where openings cannot be reached safely from inside or from ground level, we survey them by other means, including drone survey and moisture metering, and the method is agreed before the visit and recorded in the report.
Is the fee fixed before you start?
Yes. Every instruction is quoted individually on the size of the building, its listing status, access and location, and nothing begins until the fee is agreed in writing.
Discuss a major project
Estates, managing agents and contractors. We reply within one working day.
Discuss a major project- Practice
- Heritage Window Consultants Ltd
- Address
- London N1
- Enquiries
- 020 7164 6305