UK Standard

BS 5534 — Slating & Tiling for Pitched Roofs

BS 5534 — Slating and tiling for pitched roofs and vertical cladding

In short: BS 5534 is the British Standard for pitched roof design, establishing requirements for tile headlap, pitch angles, fixing patterns, and structural timber batten sizing.

What BS 5534 covers

It specifies the structural sizing of roofing battens (e.g. 25x38mm for 600mm rafter spacing) and mandates graded timber marked with blue certification stamp.

The standard dictates minimum tile/slate headlaps depending on roof pitch and wind-load calculations to ensure weatherproofing against driving rain.

It covers mechanical fixing requirements, requiring all perimeter tiles and a minimum percentage of main-body tiles to be mechanically fixed (nailed or clipped).

BS 5534 minimum batten dimensions
Rafter span Batten size (width × depth) Grade requirement
Up to 450mm 38 × 25mm Fully graded (blue stamp)
Up to 600mm 50 × 25mm Fully graded (blue stamp)
Vertical cladding 38 × 25mm Fully graded (blue stamp)

Apply this standard

Calculators that use BS 5534

Roof Tile Calculator
Tiles or slates needed for any roof pitch and area, including ridge and valley.
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Cladding Calculator
Cladding boards, battens, membrane, trims and fixings for PVC, timber and cement-fibre profiles.
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Official source: BSI Knowledge — BS 5534. Figures on this page are a plain-English summary for estimating purposes — always refer to the published standard for compliance.