Inspired Glazing designs and installs aluminium bifold doors in Hadley Wood, offering Smart Systems Visofold and Cortizo folding doors made in our workshop at Fifield, near Windsor. Our own team drives over from Fifield to survey and fit, which normally takes about 50 minutes to an hour via the M25, and we manage the job from measurement to final adjustment.
Free survey for bifold doors in Hadley Wood
Made in our own Fifield workshop and fitted by our own team, with lead times from 10 days and a 10-year guarantee. Tell us about your opening and we will book a free survey.
Hadley Wood houses and why folding doors suit them
Hadley Wood grew up around its railway station from the 1880s, when local landowner Charles Jack began developing the estate, and it is still surrounded by Green Belt farmland and mature woodland. Today it has close to 1,000 homes, many of them large detached houses on wide plots, alongside a growing number of apartments.
Big rear elevations and wide terraces are exactly where bifolds perform best. A long run of folding panels can clear an entire kitchen or family room wall for summer entertaining. They also work across cranked or L-shaped rear walls, and Cortizo can open a corner of the house with no post at all.
Selecting a folding system
We fabricate two systems and recommend one or the other after seeing the opening.
- Cortizo Bi-Fold handles one to fourteen sashes, folding up to seven to each side, and Cortizo states it can cover openings of almost 17 metres. Sashes go up to 1200mm wide, 3000mm high and 120kg, with PAS 24:2012 certification and a Uw from 1.1 W/m²K.
- Visofold 1000 from Smart Systems offers sashes up to 1200mm by 2500mm, a 122mm typical sightline, a low threshold option, an integrated cill and dual colour finishes.
For very wide or very tall openings on a detached house, Cortizo is usually the stronger candidate. Visofold is a dependable choice for typical extension heights. Our Visofold versus Cortizo guide explains the differences, and you can browse Smart Systems bifolds and windows or the Cortizo collection for more.
Planning in Hadley Wood
The London Borough of Enfield has designated the Hadley Wood Conservation Area, supported by a character appraisal and management proposals, and an Article 4 Direction from 2006 covers the area. That can remove some permitted development rights, so alterations that would be routine elsewhere may need an application here. Check with Enfield Council before finalising a design, particularly for a new or widened rear opening. Our article on planning permission for replacement doors and windows sets out the general rules.
Apartment buildings and private roads may also have management company rules, so it is sensible to ask about those too.
Traffic doors and everyday use
Most families do not open the whole run every day, so we often include a traffic door, a single panel that opens like a normal door for letting the dog out or stepping onto the terrace in winter. Its position affects where the stack of folded panels ends up, and that in turn affects garden furniture and paths outside. We agree the traffic door, the stacking side and the opening direction at the design stage, so the doors work for daily life as well as for summer parties.
How a Hadley Wood project runs
- Survey: we measure, check floor and terrace levels, and look at structural details such as the steel above a wide opening.
- Design: you receive drawings showing panel layout, opening direction and threshold.
- Fabrication: doors are made in our Fifield workshop, with lead times from 10 days after sign-off.
- Installation: our own fitters install, seal and adjust the doors, backed by a 10-year guarantee.
Detached plots usually make deliveries straightforward, with driveway space and side access. We are Constructionline Silver accredited, which is helpful when we are working within a builder’s wider extension programme.
Bifold or slider for a Hadley Wood home?
If your rear garden backs onto woodland or open fields, you may value the view through the glass as much as the open width. In that case a large sliding door is worth considering, and our page on sliding doors in Hadley Wood explains it. The bifold or sliding doors guide compares both, and our main bifold doors page gives a broader overview.
We also fit folding doors in Brookmans Park, Hampstead Garden Suburb and Highgate.
Book a survey at your home
A free survey costs nothing and gives you drawings to discuss with your architect or builder. Call us on 01753 965 005, WhatsApp 07934 152 343, or request a visit through our free quote page. We are available Monday to Friday from 8am to 6pm and on Saturday mornings from 9am to 1pm.
Frequently asked questions
Is Hadley Wood a conservation area?
Yes. Enfield Council has designated the Hadley Wood Conservation Area, and an Article 4 Direction from 2006 applies there. That can mean some changes need planning permission even where they would be permitted development elsewhere. Check with Enfield Council before ordering bifold doors, particularly if you are creating or widening a rear opening.
What is the widest bifold door you can make?
Cortizo says its folding system can cover openings of almost 17 metres, using up to fourteen sashes, each up to 1200mm wide. In practice the structure above the opening and the layout of the room set the limit. We measure everything at survey and recommend a panel arrangement that suits how you use the space.
Can bifold doors open the corner of my house?
Cortizo's folding system allows a 90 degree open corner without a mullion, so both walls can fold away and leave the corner clear. This needs structural support above, usually designed by your engineer. We can provide the system details your engineer and builder need to plan it.
How long will my bifold doors take?
Lead times start from 10 days once you approve the drawings, because we fabricate in our own Fifield workshop. If your doors are part of a new extension, we agree a fitting date with your builder so the opening is ready, then our own team installs and adjusts the doors.
Which colours can I choose for bifold doors?
Both systems are powder coated aluminium, and Visofold 1000 can be supplied in dual colour, so the inside and outside differ. We bring samples to the survey so you can see them against your brickwork and interior. Ask us to confirm availability of any specific finish for your chosen system.