Scaffolders in St Albans | Stobart Scaffolding

Working in St Albans

Scaffolders who know St Albans

St Albans is about 5 miles east of Hemel Hempstead. Streets of Victorian and Edwardian terraces surround the city centre, with conservation areas around the cathedral and St Peter's Street.

Terraced streets usually mean a scaffold on the front pavement with neighbours either side, so we plan the footprint, the licence and pedestrian access before anything goes up.

Fishpool Street, the Hatfield Road and the terraces

Fishpool Street winds downhill towards St Michael's, lined with sixteenth and seventeenth century buildings, many refaced in the eighteenth century, under steep plain clay tiled roofs. It carries steady traffic with cars parked along it and a raised pavement on its north side, so a front scaffold there is planned around moving cars, parked cars and a footway that is not at road level.

Out along the Hatfield Road many of the shops began life as cottages, so scaffolding an upper floor often means keeping a shop below open for business. Beyond the centre, streets of terraced houses put the front wall close to the pavement, with neighbours either side sharing the same stretch of footway.

Jobs we are often asked for

Front elevation scaffolds on terraces
Roof and chimney access
Loft conversions and rear extensions
Commercial premises in the city centre

Commercial and domestic scaffolding in St Albans

From a single terrace front to shops and offices in the city centre, we plan the scaffold around the street, the neighbours and the licence.

More about commercial scaffolding

Licences and parking in St Albans

Most front scaffolds on terraced streets stand on the pavement, which means a licence from Hertfordshire County Council as the highway authority. Many St Albans streets also have paid or permit parking. If the scaffold or its barriers take up a bay with charges or resident permits, the county council asks for permission from the parking authority as well.

That second permission can decide the start date, so we raise it at the survey rather than on the morning the lorry arrives.

On street parking and narrow pavements are common, so we plan deliveries and the licence early.
Conservation areas cover much of the centre.

One conservation area, many character areas

St Albans City and District Council looks after 19 conservation areas. The city's own conservation area is divided into numbered character areas, from Verulamium, the Abbey and Romeland to London Road, Verulam Road, Victoria Street, Prospect Road and Clarence Park, so a house well away from the cathedral can still be inside it.

In some parts the council has made Article 4 directions, which mean changes that would normally need no planning permission do need it there. That rarely affects the scaffold but it can affect the work. On jettied timber framed buildings like those at the top of Fishpool Street, the overhanging upper floor also changes where a scaffold can stand and tie in.

Questions

Scaffolding in St Albans: common questions

Do I need parking bay permission as well as a scaffold licence in St Albans?

Only if the scaffold, its barriers or the delivery lorry need a bay with charges or resident permits. Hertfordshire County Council issues the scaffold licence and asks for the parking authority's permission for those bays. We tell you at the survey if your street needs it.

Is my house in the St Albans conservation area?

It may be even if you live outside the centre. The conservation area takes in character areas such as London Road, Verulam Road, Victoria Street, Prospect Road and Clarence Park as well as the Abbey and Fishpool Street. St Albans City and District Council publishes the maps.

Can a shop on the Hatfield Road stay open while it is scaffolded?

In most cases it can. Above any walkway the scaffold is close boarded with debris netting, so customers pass safely underneath and the door and window stay clear.

Nearby

Scaffolding in St Albans