What profession / trade do I need? (Pics included)

[Beautifulbeard]

Hi, I've recently noticed some cracks in the exterior wall at the front of my house. They could have been there for ages and I've just not noticed them or they could be new.

I'm just not sure who I would be best to get to have a look at them. Basically I want to know whether they are a sign of anything sinister and then what I need to do to repair them.

I'd be grateful for any advice on what trade / professional would be your first port of call in this situation?

Are they underneath a window?
Are there any cracks internally?
How old is the property?
Are these the only cracks?

Structural surveyor to assess.
General builder to repair.

Daftasabroom to answer your questions, yes the cracks are under a window. There are no corresponding cracks on the inside and the house was built in the 70s.

DoginATent, a surveyor was my first thought but when I google local surveyors they all advertise the types of surveys you get when you buy a house. I just wasn't sure whether they are the same people you would get out for a specific issue like this

@Beautifulbeard - homebuyer surveys are a huge easy-money market and that's why they promote those specific services heavily, but you need a structural surveyor to investigate this. You could do it backwards, find the general builder first and ask them to recommend a structural surveyor.

I contacted a structural engineer to look at some cracks in my house as I was worried about subsidence - a common issue in my locality. His firm do surveys for buying houses but also have a specialist team to do more detailed surveys. It was not cheap though, cost over £900 with the VAT but gave me peace of mind.

Do you have home insurance? May be worth giving your provider a call first and get advice from them.

Structural surveyor. Try a local recommendation. I wouldn't ask your insurance til you know what it is.

Thanks everyone. I will ring around a few structural surveyors in the morning.

@Beautifulbeard I'm going to go against the grain here

The outside skin or bricks in the UK are very rarely structural. They're pretty much there to look pretty and keep the rain out. The extended dry followed by extended wet weather means that the ground is contracting and expanding by a greater amount than it ever has done before. This is causing the cracks.

Personally I'd keep an eye on it and measure one or two on a regular basis. If there's no change don't worry.

If you get cracks more than 1mm or 2mm internally in an 10 year plus property get a surveyor in.

It’s a settlement crack gojng down in a straight line, I’d need a picture from further back to get more of a feeling.