Non-slip tiles designed to stop bats sliding off

New tiles being fitted on the roof of the National Trust’s Oxburgh Hall in Norfolk have been adapted to stop bats sliding off. Part of a massive re-roofing project at the historic manor house has included installing new black-glazed pan-tiles chosen to look the same as those used over two centuries ago, which had become weatherworn, cracked and damaged. However, the black glaze on the new tiles was found to be too slippery for the property’s resident bats. Looking for a solution, bat experts carried out tests which found that a coating of paint mixed with sand of different sizes enabled bats to grip with the tiny claws on their thumbs and feet and to climb easily to the safety of the roof top roosts.