The short answer
Only when the scaffold obstructs the highway. Section 169 of the Highways Act 1980 needs the highway authority's licence in that case. Under Somerset Council's rules the permit goes to an accredited contractor, who then applies. Scaffold on your own drive, clear of the road and pavement, is a different matter.
Whether a roof job needs scaffolding at all comes first. Whether that scaffold needs a licence depends on where it stands.
Will my roof need scaffolding at all?
Sometimes it does not, and the question is worth raising before you pay for it. Scaffold gives a safe working platform, edge protection and somewhere to put materials, and some jobs do not need all of that.
Which jobs usually do?
A full re-roof, stack work, new roof windows and gable or verge work generally call for scaffold or an access tower, because of the height and the time spent at the edge. One slipped tile near the eaves can usually be reached with a ladder, and our answer on roof tile repair without scaffolding explains how that goes.
What does scaffold cost?
HomeBuilding allows approximately £1,000 with permits for a typical semi (Sep 2025), and MyJobQuote gives £550 to £750 for a week with the front elevation covered (Oct 2026). Those are typical UK figures, and your survey shows what your own roof needs.
At the survey we look at how the roof can be reached, what the ground is like, and whether the scaffold would stand on your property or on the highway. That decides whether a licence enters the picture. Our guide to scaffolding for a re-roof covers the job side, and the homepage shows the other work we do.
What section 169 of the Highways Act says
The legal hook is section 169 of the Highways Act 1980. Putting up or leaving scaffolding on or over a highway, where it obstructs that highway, needs the highway authority's licence beforehand.
Is every scaffold caught by this?
No. The test is whether the highway is obstructed. Scaffold inside your own boundary, leaving road and pavement free, falls outside it. A scaffold in a front garden may need no licence, while one that narrows a pavement does.
Who is the highway authority?
For Taunton and the rest of Somerset it is Somerset Council, which took over from the old county and district councils on 1 April 2023. In Devon it is Devon County Council, and in North Somerset it is North Somerset Council.
Other names are sometimes used for these permissions, but the correct term is a highway scaffold licence. Our answer on scaffolding for an emergency roof repair covers the case where the roof cannot wait.
If you are unsure whether scaffold would obstruct the highway at your house, we note it at the survey of the front elevation and say what it means for your dates.
Who applies, what it costs and how long it takes
Each council's own wording settles who applies, and it differs by council.
What does Somerset Council say?
Somerset Council limits its permits to accredited contractors, and its web page adds that the appointed contractor fills in the form. The fee is £124.60 for each 28-day period (Somerset Council, April 2026). It asks for 10 working days or more before the scaffold goes up, and only emergencies get through faster.
And Devon or North Somerset?
Devon County Council has scaffolding firms apply on their customers' behalf; the licence is £158. North Somerset Council expects the business providing the service or doing the work to apply.
Why does the notice period matter?
Because it can set your start date. If a licence is needed in the Somerset Council area, a job that is not an emergency waits those 10 working days.
Elsewhere, we arrange it with the scaffolder. These are the councils' own published words, so check the current page if a job is some months away. Our advice is to ask who is applying, and to check the quote says so. The roofing quote checklist lists what else a quote should state.
Planning around a licence
The licence is one part of getting scaffold up. A few practical points keep a job on track.
What should I tell the roofer?
How the house sits against the road, whether there is a front garden, a drive or a shared passage, and whether cars park outside. Narrow Victorian streets and terraces with doors straight onto the pavement make a licence more likely than a house set back behind a drive. A photo of the front elevation, sent before the survey, helps us judge.
Does a licence close the road?
No. It covers erecting or keeping scaffold on the highway, and the licence terms set out how it must be run. The licence holder must keep to them. If the scaffold stays beyond the permitted dates, Somerset Council says an extension needs its own application and fee.
Who pays for it?
Check the quote. Some include the licence fee in the total and some do not. We say in writing what is included, in the single price that follows the survey, so nothing is left to chance when the scaffold goes up.
If the work is on a chimney or wall that shares a boundary, the scaffold may need a conversation with the neighbour as well. See party wall roof work for when that applies.
More on scaffold
Will I need scaffolding for a small roof repair?
Often not. A slipped tile or a small patch on a low slope can be reached with ladders and a roof ladder, and a tower covers many chimney and gable jobs. Higher or longer jobs need scaffold. We decide at the survey, and tell you why.
Do I apply for the scaffold licence myself?
In the Somerset Council area the appointed contractor applies, since Somerset Council limits permits to accredited contractors. Devon County Council and North Somerset Council likewise look to the scaffolding company or the firm doing the work. Ask who is applying and check the quote says so.
The full picture: Roofers in Taunton · More short answers