A surface cleaning head includes a removable rotatable driven agitator, such as a brush roll, which is driven by a drive mechanism that axially engages the driven end. The removable rotatable driven agitator may be located in an openable agitator chamber for purposes of removing debris and/or removing the agitator. The openable agitator chamber may be covered by an external cover that is movable between an open position and a closed position. The removable agitator may be secured in the agitator chamber by the external cover. Different removable agitators with different characteristics may be used interchangeably in the surface cleaning head. The surface cleaning head may also include one or more transparent regions (e.g., on the openable cover) to allow visual inspection of the agitator during use.