The short answer
Strip and re-cover means taking the old covering off the roof, checking what lies beneath, and fitting a new covering on the same structure. Re-felt and re-batten means renewing the underlay and the timber battens as part of that job. An overlay leaves the old covering in place and fits a new one on top. The first two let you see the timbers; an overlay does not.
Strip and re-cover, in everyday words
Strip and re-cover is the standard way to renew a pitched roof. The old tiles or slates come off, along with the ridge and any worn flashings. The roof is then bare down to its rafters. The new covering is fitted on the same frame, with fresh materials underneath it.
The phrase tells you what happens to the outer layer, but not what lies under it. That is why a good quote spells out the layers one by one: covering, battens, underlay, ridge, and the lead or other metal at chimneys, walls and valleys. If any of those is missing from the written scope, ask whether it is included or left as it is.
A valley is the trough formed by two slopes running into each other. Where a slope butts against a stack or a gable wall, the joint is closed with flashing, which on older houses is nearly always lead. Both are common causes of leaks, and both are far easier to renew while the roof is stripped than to reach later.
Stripping also gives the roofer a clear view of the timbers. Every rafter, purlin and wall plate can be looked over for rot, beetle or movement, and any repair is priced before new covering goes over them. That inspection is the main reason strip and re-cover is the sound choice on an older roof.
Re-felt and re-batten: the layers you rarely see
Battens are small timber laths nailed over the rafters, and each course of tiles or slates is hooked or nailed to them. Beneath the battens, and directly on the rafters, lies the underlay, whose job is to catch rain or snow that gets past the covering. On a roof that is 50 or 60 years old, both are often tired. Felt can become brittle and torn, and battens can soften where condensation or a slow leak has reached them.
When a quote says re-felt and re-batten, it means the old underlay and battens are taken off and new ones fitted. The new battens are set at the spacing the chosen tile or slate needs, which is called the gauge. A wrong gauge shortens a roof's life, so it should follow the covering manufacturer's instructions.
Some quotes mention re-battening without re-felting, or the other way round. That can be reasonable on a small repair, but on a full renewal the two normally go together. Fitting a new covering on old battens means nails go into timber that may already be weak, and the new roof is only as secure as what it hangs from.
Modern breathable underlays let moisture vapour escape from the loft. A roof that was built without any underlay may need ventilation reconsidered when one is added. We check this at the survey and explain what the roof needs before we put a price on it.
What an overlay is, and where it fits
An overlay, sometimes called a recover, leaves the old covering in place and fits a new one over it. It is used far more often on flat roofs than on pitched ones. A new membrane laid over an old felt roof is a typical example, and it can save the cost of stripping and disposal.
The trade-off is what you cannot see. An overlay seals in whatever is below. If the deck has rotted or the old layers are holding water, the new surface is laid on a problem that stays hidden. On a pitched roof it also adds weight, and the added load matters. Per the Planning Portal, a new covering heavier than the old one by 15 per cent or more needs formal approval and a structural check.
For that reason an overlay suits a roof whose structure and deck are known to be sound, and the surface alone has worn out. If the roof has leaked for years, strip and re-cover is the safer route. We go into the wider picture on our page about overlaying an existing roof.
Ask every roofer who quotes an overlay how the deck and timbers were checked. A quote that cannot answer has not looked beneath the surface.
How the choice affects permission and cost
Re-covering is not always notifiable. The Planning Portal sets two limits: work touching under 25 per cent of the building envelope and under 50 per cent of the roof does not normally need Building Regulations sign-off. Exceed either and approval is required, which can also mean upgrading the roof's insulation. A whole-roof strip will often pass those limits, so your roofer should say at quote stage who is arranging it. If the job is notifiable, the application is something we take on.
On cost, the main drivers are the covering, how large and complex the roof is, access and scaffolding, and the condition of what is found once the roof is open. MyBuilder's 2026 guide reports typical UK roof replacement costs of £5,000 to £12,000, with scaffolding adding about £1,125 and waste disposal between £100 and £1,000. These are national ranges, not Empire prices, and a fixed price in writing comes only after we have seen the roof.
An overlay may look cheaper on paper because it avoids stripping and tipping. Set that against what a hidden fault costs to put right once the new surface is on top.
Questions to put to any quote
Whichever term appears on the paper, a few plain questions will show how complete the quote is.
- What is being removed? The covering only, or covering, battens and underlay together?
- What goes back on? Matched slate or tiles, reclaimed material, or something different in weight and look?
- What happens to the lead? Valleys, flashings and gutters should be listed, not assumed.
- How are the timbers dealt with? Is repair work priced separately, and how will you be told if more is found?
- Who handles consent? Building Regulations, and listed building or conservation area questions if your house has either.
Because we survey free and take pictures of the actual slopes, the scope we quote reflects what is really up there, and the written price can be set beside others line by line. For the order in which a job runs, from scaffold to final tidy, see our roof replacement process page runs through it in order, and the page on replacing one roof slope covers the case where only part of the roof needs renewing.
For the broader question of what a new roof does for a home, see whether a new roof adds value. Back at the hub, our roof replacement service page sets out the whole job.
