Somewhere to sit

A back garden in Stonehouse that had got away from its owner, cleared and rebuilt by our landscaping team over the summer. Here is what it looked like before, what it looks like now, and the rest of what we do locally.

Written By Wez - Published 16/09/2026

The garden behind Shaun's house in Stonehouse was not a disaster. It was the ordinary kind of overgrown: grass up past the knee, a stack of old slabs going nowhere against the back wall, a patch of gravel by the conservatory door doing the job of a path. The sort of garden that gets away from you over a couple of wet seasons and then feels too big to start on.

It is now a level lawn, a raised patio with steps down to it, a relaid side path, and a flat corner set for the dog kennel. Our landscaping team took it on through the summer. The before photographs here were taken in early July and the finished ones in September.

How it came about

We met Shaun at a rugby social run by Rugby for Heroes, the charity that supports serving and former Armed Forces personnel through rugby. He mentioned the garden. We offered to take it on at no cost, and he said yes.

That is the whole of it. There was no plan behind it and no campaign attached to it. Someone told us about a job they could not get on top of, and we had the crew and the kit to do something about it.

What the job actually involved

Nothing exotic. It is the same sequence we would run on any rear garden of this size, and it is worth spelling out because “transformed the garden” tells you nothing.

Clear and strip the existing ground, including the stacked slabs and the broken edging at the back wall.
Take away the arisings and the old hardcore.
Level and set out, then build the raised patio with retaining and steps down to the lawn.
Lay the paving.
Prepare and lay the new lawn, with a level corner set for the dog kennel.
Relay the side path and tidy the gate run, so the whole garden is reachable with a barrow.

One corner was levelled and set for the dog kennel. It is the smallest part of the job and, on current evidence, the most heavily used.

The garden is now so much more than just an outdoor space. You have created somewhere I can sit, switch off and relax. It has also given my children an area where they can play, enjoy themselves and make memories.

- Shaun

Shaun wrote to the team afterwards, and the line above is his. We have his permission to use it and to publish the photographs.

The other verdict came from the dog, who claimed the new lawn immediately and has been carrying a Mr Men toy around it ever since. Make of that what you like, but it is a fair test of a finished garden.

The rest of it

What else we are doing locally

One garden is a nice story and not much else. It only means anything as part of what the company does the rest of the year, so here is the current list, in full.

St Peter's School

Completed maintenance work in the newly refurbished indoor gym. We have also quoted, free of charge, to build an outdoor gym and training area, and offered to deliver first aid training at no cost to Key Stage 4 students on the elite sports programme.