Keeper's Cottage, Ashdown Forest

The catslide roof is a South East vernacular feature: a single roof plane that sweeps much lower on one side, often to cover a lean-to scullery or outbuilding at the rear. The Keeper's Cottage is a classic example, and the long-straw thatch on its back slope had reached the end of its useful life after 28 years — slightly beyond the expected lifespan, a testament to the quality of the original work.

We worked with Sam Bettinson, a Kent-based master thatcher who has laid long-straw on over 60 South East buildings. The original ridge was retained where possible; the main slope was entirely re-laid in long-straw bound with hazel spars. Eaves and verges were finished with a lime harl on the adjacent gables — a hot-mixed lime with a tight surface that deflects wind-driven rain back out of the junction.

The internal chimney breast had a diagonal crack running the full height of the cottage — a classic sign of lateral movement in the adjacent timber frame. We added a stainless-steel helical bar tie across the crack, concealed behind a new lime plaster finish. Reversible, invisible, and effective.