Building Service · Greater Manchester
Porch Buildersin Salford & Manchester.Brick, glazed and traditional, built to last.
Add a heated, lockable storm-porch that warms the hall, lifts kerb appeal and gives a place to put muddy boots, designed to suit your house style, fixed price, 3–4 week build.
Fixed-price quotes · Free 2D design visualisation · Written workmanship guarantee
Overview
What it is, who it's for and why it matters.
What it is
A porch is a small, weatherproof entrance enclosure attached to your front (or side) door. We build full-brick porches, brick-and-glazed porches, fully-glazed lean-tos and traditional stone-pillared porches, all on new footings, with new pitched or flat roofs and matched detailing.
Who it's for
Homeowners whose front door opens directly into the lounge or hall, families wanting a buffer against winter cold and a place to drop boots, bags and parcels, and anyone improving kerb appeal before sale.
When you need it
Any time of year, porch builds are short, weather-shielded by hoarding and rarely disrupt the rest of the house. Many clients build a porch ahead of putting the house on the market for a sub-£10k uplift in saleability.
Why professional help matters
A porch is the cheapest way to reduce heat loss through the main door, the easiest way to add kerb appeal, and a meaningful security upgrade (parcels behind a lockable outer door). Done well, the porch reads as if the house was built with it.
What goes wrong
The failures we are most often asked to put right.
Cheap porches age badly. These are the failures we see most often across Greater Manchester.
Wrong proportions
An undersized roof pitch, a too-narrow window or a flat-headed door on a Victorian house, proportions are the first thing the eye reads and the first thing cowboys get wrong.
Cold-bridged footings
Strip footings without insulation create a freezing tile floor inside the porch. Done properly, the porch floor is screed-and-insulation over slab, never bare concrete.
Single glazing or thin double glazing
Anything below Argon-filled 24mm double-glazing condensates in winter. Modern porches use 28mm double or triple-glazing to current Part L.
No Building Control where needed
Many porches are exempt, under 30m², thermally separated, sub-3m height. If the porch breaches any of those, Building Control applies. Cowboys ignore this until the surveyor's report finds it.
Our process
A clear, repeatable system, from first visit to final sign-off.
- Step 1
Design visit
Free site visit. We sketch options, photograph the existing facade, and confirm size, roof pitch and material palette to suit the house.
- Step 2
Design & approvals
Drawings, Permitted Development check (porches under 3m² and 3m height are usually PD), Building Control assessment, and material specification.
- Step 3
Fixed-price quote
Line-by-line written quote, fixed for 90 days.
- Step 4
Build phase
Foundations, slab, brickwork to plate height, roof structure, weather-tight, door and glazing installed, plaster, electrics, decoration.
- Step 5
Handover
Snag walk-around, electrical certification, written workmanship guarantee. Site cleared.
Why work with Renovo
Concrete outcomes, not vague promises.
Speed
Typical porch: 3–4 weeks start to finish. Quote-to-handover often inside 8 weeks.
Heat retention
A heated porch with an inner and outer door creates an air-lock against the front door, measurable reduction in winter heat loss.
Security
Lockable outer door, motion-sensor light and parcels safely behind glass and brick, a meaningful uplift over a doorstep.
Storage
Boot bench, coat hooks, shoe storage and a place to drop the wet umbrella, designed in, not added later.
Kerb appeal
Properly proportioned brickwork, leaded glazing or composite door with sidelights, a porch reads as 'mature build', not 'addition'.
Resale
A correctly built porch reliably returns its cost at resale on a Greater Manchester semi or terrace, plus a shorter time-on-market.
Detail & specification
The technical detail, for people who want to know how the work is done.
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Detail & specification
The technical detail, for people who want to know how the work is done.
Read the technical detailHide the technical detail
Porch styles we build
We design every porch to the architectural language of the host house, never a catalogue catch-all.
- Traditional brick porches, pitched slate or tile roof, matched brickwork, leaded or stained-glass top-lights.
- Brick-and-glazed porches, half-height brick plinth, glazed top and door, contemporary or classic.
- Glazed lean-to porches, minimal aluminium framing, full-height structural glass, ideal for 1930s and modern semis.
- Stone-pillared traditional porches, for period properties, with hand-set sandstone or matching reconstituted-stone pillars.
- Storm porches, small, deep porches over the door only, used on listed and conservation properties where larger porches are not permitted.
Materials & specification
Brick is matched to the host house, we source matched bricks from local merchants or imperial reclaim where 1930s sizes are needed. Roofs are pitched in slate or matched tile (we never apron-tile onto a wall, always a properly flashed step-flashing in Code 4 lead). Glazing is 28mm double-glazed or triple-glazed Argon-filled to current Part L. Composite doors (Solidor, Endurance or similar) are specified by default for security and U-value.
Planning, Permitted Development & Building Control
Porches under 3m² floor area, under 3m external height and with the door at least 2m from a public highway are usually Permitted Development. Building Control is exempt for porches under 30m² that are thermally separated from the house and not above a habitable room. We confirm both on the survey and apply for full planning where the porch breaches PD thresholds, sits in a conservation area or applies to a listed building.
Heating and electrics
A small electric panel heater on a timer is the most common heating solution. Where the porch is a true second hallway and needs to be tied into the central heating, we run a new radiator from the existing system. Electrics include lighting (interior and exterior PIR), sockets and a doorbell circuit. NICEIC certificate issued at handover.
Recent work
A look at recent projects across Greater Manchester.
A selection of finished builds. See the full set on the Our Work page.
Areas covered
Porches across Salford, Manchester and Greater Manchester.
FAQ
Straight answers to the questions clients actually ask.
Still got a question? Call us on 07701 078833 or request a callback.
How much does a porch cost in Salford?+
A typical brick porch with composite door and pitched tile roof in Greater Manchester runs £6,500–£11,500 turnkey, including foundations, drainage, electrics, heating and decoration. Fully glazed lean-to porches run £8,500–£14,500. Fixed written quote after free survey.
Do I need planning permission?+
Most porches under 3m² and 3m height are Permitted Development. Listed buildings, Article 4 directions and conservation areas usually need full planning, we check on every project.
How long will it take?+
Typically 3–4 weeks from groundworks to handover. Programme issued with the quote.
Will it match the rest of the house?+
Yes, that is the only acceptable test. We source matched brick from local merchants, pitch the roof to suit the host, and use matching slate or tile. Internally, finishes meet existing skirting and floor levels.
Do I need a porch on a north-facing house?+
Especially on a north-facing house. The buffer effect against driving wind and rain is most useful where the front door receives the least sun.
Will it block light into my hall?+
Only if poorly designed. Most porches use top-lights, glazed inner doors or fully glazed walls to maintain hall daylight. We model this at design stage.
Can the porch be heated?+
Yes, electric panel heater on a timer is most common, or a new radiator from the existing heating system where the porch is a real second hallway.
What guarantees do I get?+
Written workmanship guarantee, plus manufacturer warranties on door (10 years), glazing (10 years), tiles and slate (25+ years) and electrics (1 year). Issued at handover.
Related services
Often combined with porches.
Next step
Add a proper entrance to the house.
Free design visit, sketch options, and a fixed written quote within 7 working days. No deposit to find out.
- Fixed-price written quote, no day-rate surprises.
- Single accountable team, no subcontractor finger-pointing.
- Stage payments tied to milestones, no large upfront deposit.
- Building Control sign-off and written workmanship guarantee.