Gardens in Great Harwood come to us in all conditions, from a bare new-build plot to a mature garden that has been loved for decades and now needs a rethink. Accrington Landscaping & Driveways is the landscaping team for the area, based in Accrington and building gardens in Great Harwood year-round. We design the layout, do the groundwork and drainage, build the patios, walls, steps and fences, then lay the lawn and plant the borders.
Who is it for? Families who want a garden the children can actually use. People who work from home and want somewhere to sit outside. Downsizers who want a low-maintenance garden with a good patio and not much lawn. Buyers who have just moved to Great Harwood and found the garden was last touched in the previous century.
Below is what a project involves, how we adapt it to Great Harwood plots, the steps from first visit to handover and what moves the price.
What Landscaping in Great Harwood Covers
We split landscaping into hard and soft. Hard landscaping is anything built: patios, paths, steps, retaining walls, fencing, decking, pergolas, raised beds, edging and the drainage beneath them. Soft landscaping is anything that grows: lawns, hedges, trees, shrubs, perennials and the soil they go into.
The hard work comes first and takes most of the time. Patios in Great Harwood are laid on a compacted Type 1 MOT sub-base with a full mortar bed, pointed with a brush-in or slurry jointing compound. Steps are built in block or sleeper with consistent risers. Retaining walls are sleeper, block or brick, with drainage behind them so they do not hold water. Fencing is set on concrete posts or treated timber posts in postcrete, with gravel boards to keep the panels off the ground.
Soft landscaping finishes the job. Topsoil is improved or imported, graded and firmed. Turf is laid tight with staggered joints and watered in. Borders are planted in groups with the right spacing for mature size, then mulched.
Gardens We Work With in Great Harwood
Most plots fall into a few patterns, and each one changes how we plan a Great Harwood garden. Long narrow gardens behind terraces benefit from a strong layout: a patio by the house, a central lawn, a path along one side and a second seating or storage area at the end.
If your garden in Great Harwood slopes, it needs terracing. We build one or two retaining walls to create flat levels, connected by steps, and put the patio on the level nearest the house. Drainage behind the walls and at the base of each terrace is non-negotiable; without it the lowest level turns into a pond.
New-build gardens look flat and simple but usually hide compacted subsoil and rubble under a thin skin of topsoil. We break up the pan, install land drains where needed and bring in proper topsoil before any lawn goes down. Around mature trees we check for preservation orders and keep excavation outside the root zone. If we spot Japanese knotweed we stop and refer you to a licensed treatment specialist before any soil is moved.
How a Landscaping Project Runs
- Initial visit in Great Harwood: we measure the garden, record levels and drainage, and discuss how you want to use the space.
- Design and quote: a scaled plan with materials, a planting list where relevant, and an itemised written quote.
- Clearance: existing surfaces, structures and unwanted plants removed and taken away as registered waste carriers.
- Groundwork: levels set out, drainage installed, sub-bases laid and compacted.
- Construction: walls, steps, patios, paths, fencing and decking built in sequence.
- Soft landscaping: soil prepared, turf laid, borders planted and mulched.
- Snagging and handover: a final walk-round, aftercare notes and your written guarantee.
Our team travels in from Accrington each day. Timing runs from a few days for a single patio to several weeks for a full garden with walls and terraces. We avoid laying turf in high summer unless watering is guaranteed, and keep an eye on hosepipe bans when scheduling planting.
What Affects Landscaping Costs in Great Harwood
Groundwork drives the budget more than anything visible. Levels, retaining walls, drainage and spoil removal are labour-heavy and the spoil has to be skipped or taken by grab lorry. A flat garden with a side gate costs less to build than a sloping garden with access only through the house, even if the finished design is the same.
Surface materials vary widely. Large-format porcelain and sawn stone sit above riven sandstone and block paving. Bespoke steps, curved walls and rendered finishes take more time than straight runs.
Planting depends on size and maturity. Young plants are economical; large specimens cost more. In Great Harwood, skip permits for on-street skips and the distance from the van to the garden also affect labour time. Travel is not a line on our quotes, since Great Harwood is close to our Accrington base. All of it is listed in the quote so you can trim the scope if you need to.
Other Services in Great Harwood
If the front of the house needs attention too, our Driveway Installation service in Great Harwood covers block paving, resin bound, tarmac, gravel and concrete drives with dropped kerbs and permeable drainage. Block Paving is our specialist paving service for drives, paths and patios laid to BS 7533. And once the garden is built, Garden Maintenance keeps it that way with regular visits for mowing, hedges, borders and seasonal lawn care.
Quoting front and back together from Accrington usually saves on skips, deliveries and set-up time.
Your Questions Answered
Can you landscape a sloping garden in Great Harwood?
Yes. If your plot slopes, we terrace it with sleeper, block or brick retaining walls to create flat, usable levels linked by steps. Drainage is built in behind each wall. The patio normally sits on the level nearest the house and the lawn or planting on the levels beyond.
Do I need planning permission for garden landscaping?
Most garden landscaping is permitted development. Exceptions include raised decking or platforms over 300 mm high, walls or fences over certain heights next to a highway, and work in conservation areas or near trees with preservation orders. We flag anything that might need permission during the site visit in Great Harwood.
How do you deal with poor drainage in a new-build garden?
New-build gardens often sit on compacted subsoil that holds water. We break up the compacted layer, install land drains or a soakaway where there is somewhere for the water to go, and import good topsoil before laying the lawn. Patios are given a fall and a channel drain so surface water never sits against the house.
Will the garden be usable straight after you finish?
Patios, paths and fencing can be used immediately. New turf needs a couple of weeks of light use and regular watering before it is walked on heavily, and seeded lawns need longer. Newly planted borders need watering through their first season. We leave aftercare notes for every Great Harwood garden at handover, and we are only a call away in Accrington if a question comes up.