Bayswater Locksmiths is a mobile locksmith Kensington, W8 residents can book day or night. We work from a van, not a shopfront or a call centre. Since we are not the biggest name in the postcode, we aim to turn up and do the job properly. You get a price before we start.
Kensington is mostly stucco-fronted period conversions and mansion blocks. Because of this, most callouts involve two layers of security. There is a communal front door shared by several flats, and your own flat door behind it.
Mansion blocks and communal front doors
Many Kensington homes are mansion blocks or grand stucco terraces that were later split into flats. That usually means a shared street door, often with an entryphone or fob system. Meanwhile, each flat has its own door behind it.
The shared door is common property. Therefore we need sign-off from the freeholder or managing agent first. It is not one leaseholder’s call.
Our guide to who fixes communal door locks in mansion blocks explains how that usually works. Your own flat door is simpler, because we can start once you show that you live there. That covers a lockout or a lock change. It also covers a BS3621 mortice deadlock where the old one has failed or falls short of your insurer’s rule.
Stucco conversions and conservation area rules
Much of Kensington sits inside a conservation area. Quite a few period conversions have limits on what can change at the front of the building. Sometimes the council sets them, while at other times the freeholder or managing agent does.
That does not usually stop us upgrading the lock itself. We keep the existing door furniture where we can. We fit hardware that meets BS3621 or your policy’s rule, and the door looks the same from the street.
See our BS3621 locks page for what the standard covers. Our period property security page has more on older doors and window furniture.
Some conversions have had a clumsy upgrade in the past, such as a bolted-on nightlatch or a visible new keep. However, we can often improve on it with a door security upgrade that is less intrusive, not more. If you want a smart lock on an older door, read about fitting a smart lock to a period door first.
South Kensington and Holland Park
We cover South Kensington and Holland Park from the same Kensington base. Neither has its own page, yet the buildings and the jobs are much the same. You will find period conversions with communal doors and mansion flats with high cylinder needs. There is the odd commercial door near a consulate too.
If you are nearer one of those than Kensington High Street, we still reach you just as fast.
What we are called out for most
BS3621 upgrades on period mortice locks are one of the steadier jobs here, since an insurance renewal or a change of tenant often prompts them. Alongside those, we handle flat-door lockouts in mansion blocks.
We also see the odd communal-door lock that is stiff, worn or has failed outright. In that case the managing agent must be in the loop first, because the door is shared property.
Nearby districts
Kensington links easily to a mobile locksmith covering Notting Hill and to a locksmith in Bayswater. See the full areas we cover list for everywhere else nearby.
Locked out or need a BS3621 upgrade in Kensington? Request a call back or send the details through the contact form for a price before anyone travels.