Roof Lanterns

Where a Roof Lantern Works Best

Orangeries

An orangery is defined by its solid perimeter roof and central lantern. The brickwork gives you privacy and warmth, the lantern gives you the sky. It is why an orangery feels like part of the house in a way a fully glazed conservatory never quite does.

See our orangeries

Kitchen Extensions

Deep kitchen extensions have a natural dark spot in the middle, furthest from both the garden doors and the original windows. A lantern positioned over the island or the dining table fixes that. The 25 degree pitch on the Ultrasky is specifically chosen to refract light down into the room rather than just letting it in.

See our kitchen extensions

Flat Roof Extensions

A flat roof extension gives you excellent insulation and clean modern lines, but on its own it can feel enclosed. One or two lanterns in the deck transform it. The Ultraframe flat roof system takes rooflights up to 5.7m by 3m and can be specified with one aperture, two, or none.

Replacing a Tired Conservatory Roof

If your existing conservatory is too hot in summer and too cold in winter, one route is a solid or tiled replacement roof with a lantern set into it. You keep a bright, open feel overhead while gaining the insulation of a proper roof. It is a middle ground between a full glass roof and going completely solid.

See our conservatory roof replacement options

The Ultrasky Lantern

We fit the Ultrasky Lantern from Ultraframe. What sets it apart is the ridge. It is a thermally broken aluminium body and it is strong enough that the system needs around 25% fewer glazing bars than a conventional roof lantern of the same size.

Fewer bars means three things. More glass, so more daylight. Cleaner sightlines, so the lantern looks like a piece of architecture rather than a frame full of struts. And fewer cold bridges, which matters in kitchens where condensation is otherwise difficult to control.

Key Specification

• Fixed 25 degree pitch on all four sides, chosen to optimise light refraction into the room below
• Thermally broken aluminium ridge for strength and to eliminate cold spots
• 25% fewer glazing bars than conventional lanterns, and extra bars can be added if you prefer the traditional look
• Low profile eaves rail with no gutter, for a slimmer external profile
• 24mm oversailing double glazed units
• Glass U-values as low as 1.0 W/m²K, with typical whole-lantern performance around 1.4 W/m²K
• Stormshield weatherproofing: radius ends, weather seals and waterproof compression trims
• 10 year guarantee

Roof Lantern or Lantern Conservatory?

The word "lantern" gets used for two quite different things, and it is worth knowing which one you are looking at before you start getting quotes.

A Modern Roof Lantern

A single glazed structure set into a flat or solid roof, usually over a kitchen island, a dining table or the centre of an orangery. Clean lines, minimal framework, and the room around it fully insulated. This is what most people mean today and it is what we install most often.

A Lantern Conservatory

The original Victorian style, where the whole conservatory roof is built on two tiers separated by a row of upright windows, giving a stepped or "wedding cake" profile. It suits large period properties where a plain conservatory would look underscaled next to the house, and the second tier of windows adds useful ventilation on south-facing rooms where condensation might otherwise be a problem. You will see the style at Kew Gardens and on plenty of stately homes.

Both are achievable. If you have a period property in one of the Berkshire or Oxfordshire villages and you want something with genuine architectural presence, the two-tier design is worth discussing. For most modern extensions, a single Ultrasky lantern in a flat or solid roof gives you more light for less money.

Roof Lantern, Glass Roof or Flat Skylight?

If you are not sure which suits your room, book a free home visit. We will look at the orientation, the depth of the space and where the light currently falls before recommending anything.

How Much Does a Roof Lantern Cost?

A roof lantern is priced on its size, the glazing specification and how it is built into the roof around it. A modest lantern in an existing flat roof is a very different job from a large twin-lantern orangery roof built from scratch.

What Moves the Price

• Size. The single biggest factor. Cost rises with both the glazed area and the structural span.
• One lantern or two. Twin apertures cost more than a single lantern of equivalent total area.
• Glazing specification. Self-cleaning and solar control glass add cost and are usually worth it on a south-facing roof.
• Finish. Standard white is the baseline. Anthracite and satin black carry a premium.
• What it sits in. Retrofitting into an existing flat roof is straightforward. Building a new insulated roof deck or orangery structure around it is a larger project.
• Internal finishing. Plastering the reveal, and any spotlights built into the surrounding deck.

We survey before quoting, so the figure you receive is the figure you pay. The home visit and the written quotation are free with no obligation.

Do I Need Planning Permission for a Roof Lantern?

Adding a roof lantern to an existing flat roof is usually permitted development and rarely needs planning permission. Building regulations approval is a separate matter and will normally apply, because you are altering a roof structure and forming a new opening.

Situations that need more care:

• Conservation areas and Article 4 directions, which apply across parts of Windsor, Ascot, Henley and several Berkshire and Oxfordshire villages. A lantern visible from the street may need consent.
• Listed buildings, where listed building consent is required for almost any external alteration.
• New extensions, where the lantern forms part of a wider project and is covered by the approvals for that build.

We will tell you at survey stage what your project needs and deal with the local authority on your behalf. We work regularly with West Berkshire Council, Reading Borough Council, the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, Wokingham Borough Council, Bracknell Forest Council and the Vale of White Horse District Council.

Our Process

1. Free home survey. We look at the room, the roof structure and the orientation, and talk through size and position.
2. Written quotation. Itemised, covering the lantern, the glazing, the finishes and any work to the surrounding roof.
3. Technical survey and drawings. A qualified surveyor produces detailed drawings and the lantern is engineered for the loading at your postcode.
4. Manufacture. Made to your exact measurements with pre-cut components.
5. Installation. Our own installers form the kerb, weather the membrane into it and fit the lantern. No subcontractors.
6. Completion. We clear the site and register your 10 year guarantee.

Why Oakley Green?

• Authorised Ultraframe installer, assessed and approved to fit Ultrasky lanterns and the full Ultraframe roof range
• Family run and based in Thatcham, at Thatcham Garden Centre on Bath Road
• 4.8 stars on Google and Trustpilot from customers across Reading, Newbury and wider Berkshire
• Our own installation teams, not subcontractors
• 10 year guarantee on products and workmanship
• See one in person at our Thatcham showroom, open seven days a week

Roof Lanterns Across Berkshire and Oxfordshire

We install roof lanterns from our Thatcham base across Newbury, Reading, Maidenhead, Windsor, Ascot, Virginia Water, Henley-on-Thames, Marlow, Wokingham, Bracknell, Oxford and Winchester.

Book your free home survey or call 01635 877 959.