Hertfordshire
Windows for Watford homes, made to suit the street.
Victorian terraces in the west, Edwardian houses in Nascot, 1930s streets across Cassiobury. Watford wants a different window in almost every direction, and we survey for that.
Watford is a town of distinct residential pockets that happen to share a postcode, and windows are where the difference shows. The Victorian terraces around the town centre and out through West Watford want slim sightlines and modest frames. Nascot, with its Victorian and Edwardian houses, sits inside a conservation area and carries Article 4 directions on top. The Cassiobury streets, laid out in the 1930s on former estate land, are a different job again — wider bays, squarer reveals, no planning constraint to work around. We fit uPVC, aluminium and composite windows and doors, along with conservatories, roof lights and lanterns, porches and secondary glazing, and the useful part of a Watford survey is working out which the house actually wants. Double glazing specified for the wrong pocket of the town is the commonest thing we are asked to look at.
Which Watford homes do we fit windows for?
Across the whole town, and Watford's stock separates fairly cleanly by area. Closest to the centre and the station are the Victorian terraces — tall narrow openings, deep reveals, bays rarely quite square, and original timber sashes slim enough that a bulky replacement frame changes the entire elevation. West Watford runs the same way. These are houses where the difference between a flush sash and a standard casement is visible from the pavement.
Nascot is the town's most window-sensitive area. Its Victorian and Edwardian houses sit within one of Watford's ten conservation areas, and the council maintains separate Article 4 directions for the Nascot residential and Nascot commercial areas, so replacement work there needs checking before it is specified.
Cassiobury is the other side of the coin. Those suburban streets were laid out in the early 1930s on former Cassiobury estate land, the house itself having been demolished in 1927. They are inter-war rather than Victorian: bigger, squarer, often with generous bays. Grove Mill Lane, on the northern edge, is a conservation area in its own right, and Oxhey and Watford Heath hold two more. North Watford and the newer developments near the ring road are the most straightforward work in the town.
Do you need permission to replace windows in a Watford conservation area?
It depends on the area, and in Nascot and on Estcourt Road you should assume yes until the council confirms otherwise. Watford Borough Council has ten conservation areas: Civic Core, Estcourt, Grove Mill Lane, High Street and King Street, Macdonell Gardens, Nascot, Oxhey, St Mary's, The Square and Watford Heath. Living in one means extra planning controls apply, and the council is clear that work normally treated as permitted development can need permission.
The council also runs an Article 4 directions finder, which lets you check a specific property. Nascot residential, Nascot commercial and Estcourt Road all appear on it. Where a direction applies, the usual permitted development rights are removed and you may need permission before work starts — so check your street before ordering anything, rather than afterwards.
Watford's guidance also points homeowners towards repairing and upgrading existing windows, draught-proofing, and secondary glazing as alternatives to replacement. We fit secondary glazing and will say plainly if it is the better answer. Where replacement is right on a period street, we specify timber-effect uPVC in a flush sash design, with woodgrain foil and properly proportioned bars.
How far is Watford from us?
About nine miles south of Hemel Hempstead down the A41, which is twenty-five minutes or so outside the rush. Close enough that a survey, a second visit to check a detail and the fitting itself are all easy to arrange, and that coming back to a job later is a short drive. We cover the whole borough, including Oxhey, Bushey and Croxley Green. We have no showroom, deliberately — we would rather stand in front of your window than a display one.
Questions, answered.
Can you match the original sash profile on a Victorian terrace in Watford?
Closely, yes, and on a West Watford or town-centre terrace the flush sash decides it. A timber-effect uPVC flush sash finishes level with the frame instead of standing proud of it, which is what makes most replacements obvious from the street. With a woodgrain foil and correctly proportioned bars, the elevation reads properly.
I live in Nascot. What should I check before replacing my windows?
Check the council's Article 4 directions finder for your specific address. Nascot is a conservation area, and the council holds separate Article 4 directions for the Nascot residential and Nascot commercial areas. These remove permitted development rights and can mean permission is needed for work that would be automatic elsewhere.
Do you carry out home design visits in Watford?
Yes, free of charge. We come to the house, measure each opening individually rather than working from one and assuming the rest, look at the elevation from the pavement as well as from inside, and talk through what suits the property. An itemised written quote follows. No call centre, no hard sell.
What does the ten-year guarantee cover?
It is a written ten-year guarantee on the installation, honoured directly by Dukes rather than passed to a third-party insurer. If something needs looking at, you call 01442 600 101 and we come out. Watford is twenty-five minutes from us, which is the point — a guarantee is worth what the return journey costs the company giving it.
Would secondary glazing work better than replacement on a period Watford house?
Often, and Watford Borough Council itself points homeowners towards it for conservation areas and listed buildings. Secondary glazing fits behind the existing window, leaves the outside of the house untouched, and helps with both draughts and traffic noise — which matters near the ring road. We will say so at the survey.
Do you cover Bushey, Croxley Green and Oxhey too?
Yes. Our catchment covers Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire and North London, so the whole Watford area sits comfortably inside it — Bushey, Croxley Green, Oxhey and Watford Heath included. Call 01442 600 101 and we will get back to you within two business hours, Monday to Saturday, 8am to 7pm.
Is there an offer on at the moment?
Yes. Right now there is £500 off your first installation of £5,000 or more — the full terms are on our special offer page.
Book a home visit.
Book a home visit and we'll talk through your project at your house — no call centre, no hard sell. We call back within two business hours, and you'll get an itemised written quote.