Shopfront Boarding in Bracknell

Shopfront boarding in Bracknell makes a damaged shop, office, restaurant or warehouse frontage safe and secure until the glazing or doors can be properly repaired. We board broken shop windows, glazed entrance doors and side panels with exterior-grade sheet material and security fixings, clear the loose glass we’re working around, and give you the paperwork your insurer will want. A person answers the phone 24 hours a day, and we attend at any hour, including nights, weekends and bank holidays.

Call 01344 951 955 with your postcode and a rough idea of the size of the damaged glazing. We’ll work out the arrival time and give you a free, clear quote on that call.

When shopfront boarding is the right call

Commercial frontages differ from house windows. The panes are larger, the frames are often aluminium or steel sections, and the opening usually includes a glazed door that staff and customers rely on. This service fits when:

• a shop window or display pane has been cracked, holed or shattered
• a glazed entrance door or side light is broken after an attempted or forced entry
• an office reception or restaurant front has been damaged and the premises can’t be left open overnight
• a warehouse or unit has broken windows, glazed panels or a damaged personnel door
• a vacant unit’s frontage needs covering between tenancies

If the main problem is a forced or damaged door, our door boarding and securing service covers that in more detail. On a shopfront the two often go together.

Materials and fixings for commercial frontages

For most shop windows we use exterior-grade plywood, typically 18mm. It spans a large opening without flexing, stands up to the weather and is hard to force. OSB can suit smaller openings such as fanlights or narrow side panels. Wide frontages may take several sheets, cut and joined to cover the full opening.

Fixings matter as much as the board. Where security is the concern, we use security or anti-tamper fixings, so the boarding can’t simply be unscrewed from outside. Where the frame is sound and you’d like to avoid extra damage, we’ll use a non-destructive fixing method if the frame allows it. That helps when a glazier is going to reuse the existing frame.

When the frame itself is damaged

Sometimes the glass is only part of the problem. A frame that’s been bent, prised or pulled away from the wall may not hold fixings properly. In that case we’ll explain the options before starting. We may need to secure the frame or the damaged door first, or fix to the surrounding structure instead. We’d rather agree that with you than fix a board to something that won’t hold it.

Keeping the business running where it’s safe to

Many owners want to know whether they can open the next day. If only one pane is damaged, it’s usually a case of boarding that opening and leaving the rest of the frontage as it is. If the entrance door is the damaged part, we’ll talk through how the premises can be secured and what that means for access, so you can plan around it.

Plenty of Bracknell town-centre premises have something above them. Market Street, for example, mixes shops and offices with residential accommodation. If the damage reaches upper-floor glazing, a fascia-level window or anything that needs ladders, please mention it on the call. Height and access affect both the approach and the quote.

What happens on the visit

1. Making the area safe. We deal with the loose and hanging glass around the opening we’re boarding, and with debris on the pavement or shop floor where it’s part of the agreed work.
2. Before photographs. We take time-stamped photos of the damage before we start.
3. Measuring and cutting. Boards are cut to the opening from the stock carried in the van, along with the fixings.
4. Fixing. The agreed fixing method goes in, with security fixings where needed.
5. After photographs. Time-stamped photos of the finished boarding.
6. Handover. We confirm what’s been done before we leave.

If anyone’s hurt, or the frontage looks structurally unsafe, keep people back and call the emergency services first. Please don’t try to pull out broken glass yourself. Large shop panes can drop without warning.

What you receive

• Made-safe openings, boarded to the agreed specification
• An itemised invoice
• Time-stamped before and after photographs
• A written statement of the work done

Those documents are designed to support a claim. Your insurer decides what’s covered. Our guide to insurance claims and documentation explains what to gather. After a break-in, report it to the police, keep the crime reference number and contact your insurer. Our page on burglary repairs covers those first steps.

Boarding is the make-safe stage. Once the frontage is secure, you have time to arrange a glazier or door specialist for the permanent repair without a gap in security in the meantime.

What affects the quote

There are no prices on this page, because shopfronts vary too much for a figure to mean anything. On the call, we’ll ask about:

• Number and size of openings. A single small pane is a different job from a full-width display window.
• Height and access. Upper floors, high fascia glazing and anything needing ladders.
• Materials and board thickness. These depend on the size of the opening and how exposed it is.
• Fixing method. This includes whether security or anti-tamper fixings are needed.
• Door or frame condition. We need to know if a damaged door or frame has to be secured first.
• Glass and debris. How much needs making safe.

The quote is free, clear and agreed before any work starts. More detail is on our pricing page.

Shops, offices, restaurants and warehouses

We board commercial premises across Bracknell, from units off Braccan Walk and Market Street to offices, restaurants and business units further out. We can also cover Crowthorne, Ascot, Winkfield and Sandhurst, subject to confirming on the call. Landlords and managing agents are welcome to call on a tenant’s behalf. Just tell us who’ll be on site to give access.

Talk to us about your shopfront

Call 01344 951 955 or Email us. It helps if you can share:

• the postcode of the premises
• the type and approximate size of each damaged opening, and whether a door is involved
• whether any glazing is above ground level
• a few photographs, but only if you can take them safely from a distance

We’ll talk through access, give you a clear quote and work out when we can be with you.