Which Alperton Roofs Squirrels Reach
The line of trees along the towpath
The banks and towpath carry trees and planting in an unbroken strip, undisturbed for most of the day, and that strip passes the backs of gardens and the edges of yards. A grey squirrel works along it at height, drops into whatever garden looks promising, and from a fence or a shed roof the rest of the climb is short.
Gardens and street trees in the older streets
Further from the water the older houses have long back gardens with mature trees, and branches that have not been cut back in years reach over roofs and extensions. A squirrel does not need a branch touching the tiles: it jumps considerably further than people credit, and it climbs brick, a drainpipe or a thick climber without effort. What it then does at roof level is set out in how squirrels get into a roof — a rotten fascia, a lifted tile at the verge, a gap where an extension roof meets the main wall.
Why the canalside blocks are a different problem
New blocks tend to have flat or shallow roofs with no habitable void beneath, so a squirrel on a balcony rail or in a courtyard tree is a visitor rather than an occupant. Noise above a ceiling in a block is much more often rats or mice in a service void, and the timing of the noise is the quickest test: squirrels or rats in the loft goes through the differences, while what squirrels sound like overhead covers the noise itself.
What Happens, and in What Order
Each stage waits on the one before it, and skipping a step is what turns a straightforward job into a long one.
- Establish what is up there: running and thumping in daylight, especially first thing, points at squirrels, while scratching after dark points at rodents
- Book the £280 trapping service, and say when the noise started and which part of the ceiling it is over
- Leave the opening alone and stay out of the loft while the work is under way
- Wait until the roof space is confirmed quiet before anything is closed up, because a squirrel shut in gnaws its way out and in spring there may be young that cannot leave on their own
- Have the roofer close the opening next, and make good any rotten timber along the same edge while the ladder is there
- Cut back the branches that give access to the roof last of all
How long squirrel control takes depends on the roof, the number of ways in and how settled they are. If you are not yet sure what you have, how to tell whether squirrels are in your loft is the place to start.
The Roofer, and Then the Trees
The repair itself is a roofer's or carpenter's work: refixing tiles, replacing soffit and fascia that have gone soft, closing the junction where a flat extension roof meets the house. Line someone up early and tell them the exact spot the squirrels were using, so the repair can follow straight on from the quiet loft rather than weeks later. What a lasting repair involves is worth reading before you brief anyone.
Branches come after that, and only where they are yours. A tree surgeon handles anything substantial, a tree may be protected by an order so it is worth checking with Brent Council before work starts, and trees on the towpath or the canal bank are not a householder's to cut at all — that is for whoever owns and manages that land.
What to Check in the Loft Afterwards
Once the roof space is quiet it is worth looking at what was damaged while it was occupied: insulation dragged into a heap, stored boxes opened up, pipe lagging pulled apart, and the lid of a cold water tank. Chewed electrical cable is the part to act on rather than note — have an electrician check anything damaged. The damage squirrels cause in a loft and squirrels and electrical wiring cover both sides of that.
Timing Through the Year
Late winter into early spring is the main period, when a female wants somewhere warm and dry for young, and there is a second spell in late summer. Calling when the noise first starts gives the best chance of dealing with adults before a litter arrives. A roof that has been used once will be tried again while the opening is still open, which is most of why squirrels return to the same loft.
Releasing a Grey Squirrel Is an Offence
Grey squirrels are an invasive non-native species. Once one has been caught it is against the law to release it into the wild or to allow it to escape, so carrying it down to the towpath and letting it go is not something anyone may lawfully do. The legal position on release sets out where that sits in law. For the borough-wide page see Squirrel Control Brent and the guide squirrels in Brent lofts; neighbouring Sudbury has the same kind of tree-lined family gardens.
