“ There used to the view that a conservatory was a ‘ cheap extension ’ and of course that isn ’ t the case at all now . There ’ s certainly been a change of opinion and a change in the market , we think for the better ,” says Ryan Hulme at Connaught Conservatories .

“ Since my stepfather David Gallagher set up the company 17 years ago , We ’ ve always focused on roofs ; conservatory roofs and solid roofs , plus roof lanterns . We ’ re an approved supplier for Ultraframe and we were one of the first Guardian fabricators in the country .

“ Even when I joined the business around 10 years ago – moving over from a large developer – conservatories and extensions were regarded as very separate things . An extension was ‘ built ’ and the conservatory ‘ installed ’, now installers – and homeowners – have more options .

“ Our typical customer will order one to three roofs a month , while a bigger client will require up to five glass roofs a week – and we operate nationally up to the Borders and down to North Essex , Norfolk and Bristol , across to Manchester , Liverpool and North Wales , and we have a lot of customers across the North East . With this industry knowledge and experience , we have been there to support the conservatory installers , extension roof installations and replacements , and we ’ ve seen first-hand this shift in the marketplace for extensions .

“ At the end of 2023 we started to supply the hup ! system from Ultraframe . As an approved supplier for their roof products , this was the natural next step for us and we know it ’ s the natural next step for installers too – we ’ ve already started to see businesses take it on and see the benefits .

“ Other installation companies have been a bit more cautious in taking on a product like this , which we understand , but with the right technical expertise and support , it ’ s more than just another string to your bow , it ’ s a branch of business that can continue to thrive .”

“ At Connaught Conservatories , our focus for 2024 is the hup ! and complementary roofs , and looking at garden products for homeowners looking to make the most of their indoor and outdoor living spaces . We believe installers should be doing the same .