No you do not need to point prior to rendering any holes or cracks will help to key the render to the structure.

When should repointing be done?

50-60 years is the average lifespan of mortar. At some point, the mortar between your bricks will have degraded to a stage where your house will need to be repointed. This process involves scraping away the old mortar from between your bricks and applying new mortar.

Can you render over crumbling mortar?

Rendering poor quality brick

Therefore if your bricks are crumbling or falling away, the only option that remains is to apply a 2 coat render over the top of the brickwork. ... Another thing that can go wrong is the mortar joints, or pointing, the lines between the bricks that hold them all in place.