Sash window repairs and restoration in Westminster
We restore, repair and draught-proof timber sash windows in Westminster and in Smith Square, Vincent Square and the streets around Millbank. The housing is early-Georgian terraces, Victorian and Edwardian mansion blocks and some of London's earliest charitable housing. Much of it is listed, and nearly all of it lies within conservation areas.
Westminster's windows
The streets south of the Abbey hold some of the most complete early-Georgian housing in London. In Smith Square, Lord North Street and Cowley Street the houses date from the 1720s, with tall sashes, heavy glazing bars and, in places, old glass. Around Vincent Square the terraces are later and plainer. Between them stand Victorian and Edwardian mansion blocks with big two-over-two sashes, and the Peabody and other charitable estates, whose large plain sashes were built to light every room. Age is the issue here: boxes that have moved, pulleys worn smooth, and a century or two of paint. Many early houses keep their panelled shutters too.
What matters most in Westminster
Age is what sets Westminster apart. The houses south of the Abbey around Smith Square date from the 1720s, and their tall sashes with heavy glazing bars have had a century or two to settle. Boxes have moved, pulleys are worn smooth, and restoration is about easing all of that back into working order without losing the old timber or, where it survives, the old glass.
Those same centuries leave thick layers of paint that lock sashes and blur mouldings, so painting here starts by taking the build-up back before anything new goes on. The mansion blocks and charitable estates, with their big plain sashes, need the same care on a larger scale. Many of the early houses also keep panelled shutters, and overhauling them is a natural part of the job.
What we do in Westminster
Conservation in Westminster
The streets south of the Abbey fall within several conservation areas, including Westminster Abbey and Parliament Square, and many of the houses are listed. Our guide to conservation areas and Article 4 directions explains how it works. Check your own address on Westminster City Council's conservation area and Article 4 map, and we will go through what your windows need at the survey. Where an application does need drawings, we can prepare them. That is separate work and we quote for it.
Common questions
Do you work on listed houses in Smith Square and Lord North Street?01
Yes. Most of the work on early-Georgian sashes is repair: new cords, spliced timber, freed sashes and old glass reset. That rarely needs consent. Where an application needs drawings, we can prepare them. That is separate work and we quote for it. We keep old glass wherever it is sound and reset it in fresh putty.
Can you take on a whole mansion block or estate?02
Yes. We survey every window and quote in phases, so a managing agent or housing provider can plan the programme. Sash window work is done from inside wherever possible, room by room, with the painting done while each sash is out. Charitable estates often have long runs of identical sashes, which suits a phased programme. Where windows need more than repair, we set out the options and the consent each would need.
Do you cover all of Westminster?03
Yes: Smith Square, Lord North Street, Vincent Square, Millbank, Horseferry Road and the streets around St James's Park and Victoria Street. Pimlico, Victoria and St James's have their own pages. A free digital survey from your photographs is the usual first step.
Book a survey
Send us photographs of your windows and we'll tell you what needs doing and what doesn't, with a written quotation. The digital survey is free.
Free digital survey with written quotation