It’s almost time for me to retire…but before I do…I’d like to offer design and consultancy services to any private homeowner who is contemplating contracting a landscaper to undertake work on their property. It can be a minefield with many "horror stories" readily accessible nowadays on "Facebook" and the like illustrating where consumers have been charged high prices for work of dubious quality, which deteriorates over time - mainly due to inadequate foundations or poor preparation - and has had to be put right by others, often at huge additional expense to the property owner who, in the first instance, thought the deal offered was very good.

My focus is to help you "get it right first time" and to give you a clear and independent view of what the cost to implement your preferred design is likely to be including an accurate guide as to the cost of the "hidden" building materials that will be required to enable a professional job to be done to a good standard.

My specialist service comprises:

1. An initial response to your e-mail/WhatsApp contact (No charge - no obligation)
2. A visit to your property to discuss your vision and to measure up.
3. A 2D plan - to scale - will be printed off at A3 size for you to use and keep and also emailed to you as a .pdf in order to enable you to visualise how the proposed layout will transform your space and hopefully fulfil the brief.
4. Visualisations in 3D - from different angles - presented on screen - that will give you different viewpoints and a sense of "walking through the space". We measure any specific items that you already own or intend to purchase and want to include in your new garden - eg Feature shrubs and trees, Hot tub, Pergola, BBQ, Pizza Oven, Fire-pit, Table, Chairs, Parasol, Children's play equipment  etc and place them within the plan, to scale, so that you get a sense of proportion
5. An optional quantified list of core landscaping and materials that will be needed to fulfill the plan priced at prevailing published prices.
6. An optional lighting and light zone switching plan...can include water feature pump and lights if desired.
7. An optional planting proposal....but only as an extra as a supplement to the purchase of a final design.
8. An optional automated irrigation plan - drip, spray and/or pop up sprinklers as required/preferred.

Likely Cost to Design your New Garden : Rates for Spring/Summer Season : From 1st March to 31st August 2025

Visit to site : from £60.00 to £100.00 including  VAT @ 20% - usually including any excess travel @ 30p per mile beyond a 10 mile radius of the office. This covers a briefing meeting and a measure up for up to a total of two hours on site. Extra time can be made available at £25 per hour, but we try to keep the first meeting focused and efficient so as to be cost effective for mutual benefit.

Design fees - studio based - are charged at £30.00 per hour, including VAT @ 20% - and are in addition to the cost of the initial survey and briefing.

Garden Band 1 : up to 100 sq m : usually costs around £480.00 inc VAT and that allows for a revision to the design following a client's initial feedback and the printing of plans and related documents.

Garden Band 2 : 100 to 200 sq m : up to £750.00 inc VAT

Garden Band 3 : over 200 sq m : specific quote to be provided based on scope and location of garden and complexity of brief.

A specific incremental cost would be quoted for any combination of optional extras requested from options 5, 6, 7 or 8 as listed above.

Although we specialise in designing the first garden for the owners of new build property, we can also consider, and help you evaluate, the potential of any size of outdoor space.....including larger scale garden makeovers if you happen to have inherited something you would like to change.

We are also very experienced at re-modelling and transforming the residual outdoor space around an extension that you may have had added to your property or are contemplating.

Final design and consultancy charges do vary 'pro rata" with garden size and proposed new content, but I always strive to give you good value and to put you in control of any future quotation you might consider from any contractor for implementing the design and building your garden.

You may even have potential for a "home extension" or a "garden studio" or a even "bespoke new build home" in your garden...we have experience in arranging adjacent spaces so that the finished buildings complement each other. We work with our preferred architect - Samrai Associates (www.samrai-associates.co.uk) - to produce designs that usually impress neighbours - and get them on board  - and which compel planners to grant planning permission, where required! (See example case studies that will follow shortly.)

If you prefer I can provide you with a fixed price quotation for consultancy and design that is specific to your outdoor space prior to any initial visit to your site being made. Just send me your prioritised "wish list", supported by photos and rough dimensions of your garden as it is now, via e-mail or WhatsApp, or Telegram....whichever you prefer... - and I'll come back to you with a price for design and consultancy as appropriate- (See my contact details below)

Payment by credit/debit card is accepted as is electronic bank transfer.

We, ourselves, have cut back on the actual number of construction projects that we undertake each year, these days. We may have a "slot" but if not we do have reliable contacts and suppliers who we can refer you to, if that might help?

The aim of my consultancy service is to share my experience with you together with my knowledge of material options and prices so as to enable you to achieve good value from the contractor you choose. With absolutely no expectation or requirement for you to appoint us to do any actual work, I can provide you with a realistic and independent guide as to the budget you will require in order to have your project implemented in accordance with the Association of Professional Landscapers’ best practice …specifically including the hugely important groundworks, foundations and fixing methods.

It all starts with a good brief followed by an accurate site survey.

We then develop a well-considered, pragmatic design for you with its associated budget for implementation and will carry out amendments and iterations (on an incremental hourly rate basis) until you are comfortable with a proposal to present to your short listed contractors in order to obtain comparable quotations. The costing we build up for you, using our iterative and versatile spreadsheet, uses current published prices for genuinely available and proven materials..so that, with "eyes wide open" and a realistic, workable budget in mind you can choose a reputable contractor so as to achieve a successful outcome which will usually add value to your home and produce a stylish garden for you to enjoy with family and friends for many years to come.

So, if you are interested and would like to see how I can help and what documents I can produce for you to help you through the process...please send an e-mail to info@verdantandbright.co.uk or WhatsApp or Telegram 07711 653496 or call 01908 669335 or complete the form below...

Thank-you.

Btw...if you are interested in having specific "extras" installed - like an automated watering system (for Verdant  lawns and lush plants)- or remote control led and/or colour change lighting (for a Bright evening ambiance outdoors) but find your landscape contractor doesn't offer those options, we, as Verdant and Bright Garden and Home Ltd, would be delighted to work alongside your contractor to supply and install them for you as an integral part of your project...please just ask!

If you decide to undertake your landscaping project yourself, we can help with sourcing and project management....weather permitting!!

Thank-you.

Kind regards

Andrew

Founding Director/Owner : Verdant and Bright Garden and Home Ltd. The Design Studio, 9 Noon Layer Drive, Middleton, MK10 9BT