Block paved rear garden, Gloucester
Not every back garden wants to be a lawn. This one sat wet most of the year and was used mainly as a route to the shed, so it was taken up and relaid wall to wall in red brindle blocks with a charcoal border following the new fence line.
Key facts
- Town
- Gloucester
- Year
- 2024
- Surface
- Red brindle blocks, charcoal border
- Use
- Full-width rear garden and shed access
Can a whole back garden be block paved?
Yes, and it is a common choice where a lawn stays waterlogged or gets no sun. Blocks are laid on the same compacted sub-base and laying course as a driveway, but the sub-base can be shallower because there is no vehicle loading.
How do you set falls in an enclosed garden?
Water has to leave somewhere, so levels are set to fall away from the house towards a border, gully or soakaway. In an enclosed garden with fencing on three sides that fall is planned before a single block is laid.
- Levels pegged off the damp proof course, at least 150mm below it
- Fall of roughly 1:80 away from the building
- Border blocks haunched against the fence posts
Why does new paving look patchy at first?
The mottling seen just after laying is jointing sand and cement dust still washing out. A few weeks of rain clears it and the true colour of the brindle blocks comes through evenly.
Photographs from this job
Other projects
Gloucester · 2023
Resin bound side return
A narrow side return between two houses surfaced in gold resin bound aggregate, taken tight to the brickwork on both sides.
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Recessed manhole cover in resin bound
An inspection chamber dressed with a recessed tray cover and filled with the same gold aggregate, so the surface reads as continuous.
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Porcelain patio in progress
Mid-build: grey porcelain being laid on a full mortar bed with a recessed cover dressed in cut slab so it vanishes into the pattern.
Frequently asked
Do I lose all the planting?
No. Borders can be kept or rebuilt against the fence, and blocks are simply cut to the line of the bed.
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