Family Tree
Grounds Maintenance & Construction
Patios, decking, garden maintenance and fencing in Tilehurst, from a family business in Wallingford, under half an hour away by road.
Tilehurst is about ten and a half miles from our Wallingford base, under half an hour by road, with Purley on Thames just to the north and Pangbourne to the north-west.
The centre of Tilehurst comes under Reading Borough Council, while its western edge is a civil parish in West Berkshire, so the council depends on your address. We take on garden builds, regular maintenance and fencing on both sides.
Patios · decking · garden builds
Patios, paths and decking, plus sleeper beds, brickwork and complete garden makeovers. Where the gravel cap is thin, the ground beneath is London Clay, heavy and slow to drain, so drainage and what goes under a patio both deserve thought.
More on constructionMowing · hedges · clearance
Hedges, lawns, weeding and clearance work, regularly or as a one-off, and new lawns: turfed, seeded or artificial. The RHS notes that clay soils are easily compacted when trodden on while wet, and bake hard in summer.
More on garden maintenanceCloseboard · panels · gates
Closeboarding, panels, gates and post and rail, for gardens and land. There’s no conservation area at Tilehurst’s centre, so most new fences up to two metres need no planning permission, or one metre next to a road.
More on fencingFrom Tilehurst we also cover Sulham to the west, Theale to the south-west and Englefield a little further west.
Purley on Thames is just to the north and Pangbourne to the north-west. Our base in Wallingford is about ten and a half miles away.
Jamie and team at Family Tree are awesome. We handed them a tough brief from us: build an intricate garden design, creating and updating access right through our long back garden - full of ramps and concrete staging posts to pace the journey while using. They did an UNBELIEVABLE job!! I would use them again without hesitation. And more. I'd hate to go anywhere else now, I trust them so much. A pleasure to have around, they are respectful, friendly, professional, fuss-free. Responsiveness, Punctuality, Quality, Professionalism, Value
Relayed a patio with new slabs and built some steps. A nice neat job, friendly and tidy workers, completed as scheduled. Would certainly use again. Responsiveness, Quality, Professionalism
Great guys to work with, professional, knowledgeable, friendly and great service . Responsiveness, Punctuality, Quality, Professionalism
Winter Hill Gravel · London Clay · Lambeth Group
Tilehurst’s centre is mapped on London Clay capped by Winter Hill Gravel, which the British Geological Survey describes as variably clayey and sandy gravel. Within half a kilometre, bare London Clay is mapped to the south and south-east, and Lambeth Group clays and sands to the west and north.
Where the gravel is thin or absent, expect heavy clay: it drains slowly, is easily compacted when wet and bakes hard in summer. Ground can vary from one garden to the next, so the garden next door may behave quite differently.
Reading Borough · West Berkshire
Tilehurst’s centre is in Reading’s Tilehurst ward, so Reading Borough Council handles planning there; the western edge of Tilehurst is a civil parish under West Berkshire Council. The national permitted-development rules for householders apply in both.
No conservation area or National Landscape covers the centre (the Routh Lane conservation area is about 0.8 km away), so keep a new fence, wall or gate to two metres (one metre where it’s next to a road) and planning permission usually isn’t needed. In a front garden, new paving covering more than five square metres has to be permeable — or drain to a lawn or border — to stay within permitted development.
Sources: British Geological Survey, Natural England and planning.data.gov.uk (open data); the Planning Portal, GOV.UK and the RHS. The Planning Portal is a guide — your council has the final word for your address.
Yes. Tilehurst is about ten and a half miles from our Wallingford base, under half an hour by road. Call or WhatsApp 07736 650477 and we’ll talk through what you have in mind.
Both. The centre is in Reading’s Tilehurst ward, under Reading Borough Council, and the western edge is a civil parish in West Berkshire. Your address decides which council has the final word on planning.
Gravel over clay. The centre is mapped on Winter Hill Gravel capping London Clay, with bare clay close by to the south. Clay drains slowly and bakes hard in summer, which matters for new lawns, patios and fence posts.
Yes — Sulham, Theale and Englefield, plus Purley on Thames and Pangbourne.
Please don’t hesitate to get in touch — by phone, WhatsApp or email, or through the enquiry form on our home page.
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