Welsh slate delivers ‘uniform’ appearance

Founded by King Charles II in 1682 “for the succour and relief of veterans broken by age and war”, the Royal Chelsea has provided a retirement complex, nursing home and hospital for retired soldiers for over 300 years. Life as a Chelsea Pensioner is just as popular now as it was then, and main contractor, Wates Construction, has built a new residential block on the site, designed to complement the complex’s 17th Century, Grade 1 listed buildings.

The Royal Chelsea Hospital’s original buildings feature roof slate from the Lake District, and the challenge for the new extension was to find a comparable slate product that would offer a cost-effective alternative. Welsh Slate sourced high quality Vermont slate from the USA, lending the new building the appearance of Lake District slate “at a fraction of the cost”.

Roofing contractor EJ Roberts has laid the roof in the “diminishing course” style to match the pattern of the 17th Century buildings, with slates increasingly small as the slope of the roof rises.