How long will it take to design?

Most design processes can be tailored to the pace of the client- each review stage usually needs 2-3 weeks for us to do the required work in between, and depending on your availability and clarity of feedback, that means most take at least 6-8 weeks. This can be compressed if there is a specific deadline or it is a simpler project, and some are considerably extended (usually when working on a major new build alongside the architects and team).

Is my garden too big or too small for a design?

Even a small garden will benefit from good design, and in fact smaller gardens are often the ones that need it most as you are often trying to fit a lot into a small space which can be a challenge and takes skill and practice. Sometimes it simply isn’t possible to do everything you want in the space, but having a really good designer on board will help you to make the decisions you need to make as to the priorities and how it will all look once done.

Do I need a garden designer and a landscaper?

Usually yes - some companies such as ourselves can offer both, but while the skills overlap, they are very different specialities. In most cases you don’t want your bricklayer (however talented!) to be making final decisions as to how to finish the edges of your steps or patio, nor do you want your garden designer to make the final decisions as to how to build your retaining walls.

Garden Design Process

Q: What is the design process?

We have a longer article on our garden design process ( HERE ), but a quick guide is as follows: Take the brief: Come and meet with you to understand your site and your requirements (you typically do not need to pay for that meeting) Pull together base information : Organise a measured survey of the site (to include levels if it is not flat) Tease out what will work for you: Create suitable mood boards and outputs to tease out styles and approaches that will meet your aesthetic preferences Show you their initial proposals: Draw up the proposed plans for discussion with you and create outputs to share Update and re-issue these preliminary plans to reflect those discussions Create final outputs dependent upon the needs of the project and the site- for you, your builders and other contractors as needed (including planning if required) Liaise with whoever you need them to : On larger projects there will also typically be more people involved such as architects and other contractors with whom we will need to liaise.

7 simple steps to our garden design process

All designers to some extent follow a similar process- from design brief to a final pack of drawings, although our process differs a little, in that …

We have an exceptionally broad team of award-winning Landscape Architects, Garden Designers, and Horticulturalists, and can bring in all these people to inform our designs.
We have in-house Estimating (for costings) and a Landscaping team, so we can help you refine your budget and value engineer the costs as an integral part of the design process.
This means you have all the expertise of the top specialists, with all the benefits of an optional one stop shop, without being tied to using our teams throughout if that is not the best solution for you.

We know that most of our clients want a garden, not just a design, and we are here to tailor our process to get you that in the way that works best for you. In essence this will be as follows:

1. Taking the brief

Meet on site to discuss what you want to achieve and to share our preliminary thoughts

2. Formal design proposal

We send you a formal design proposal, showing detailed fees and outputs, as well as a survey quote if you need one. If you are happy with these we can press on to stage 3…

3. First design review

We go away and create a preliminary set of drawings and 3D models to allow us to have a working session with you. We will come out of this meeting with a clear sense of what you like and don’t, how to adjust it, and what will be pushed forward into the next stage of development.

4. Detail development and additional reviews

We typically work through another 2 rounds of meetings, aiming at each stage to develop from the last- updating the modelling, increasing the level of detail, and gradually working through features, key materials and planting. This will include lighting, irrigation and other infrastructure as required until a final design is in place.

5. Optional budget and value engineering

Once the design is agreed, we offer an optional budget costing for this. We review this with you to help you prioritise and make design changes if needed. This can then go back to our Estimator to update and/or you can send to anyone you like to provide a quote.

6. Final outputs and next steps

Once the final design is agreed, we issue a formal design pack containing all you need to press on.

The main design phase is over, but we are available to help you complete your garden. We can do this ourselves or are happy to work with anyone you would like us to!

7. And afterwards….

Kick back and enjoy a glass in your new garden!

If you would like to know more contact us

“CGLA re-designed our front and back garden, as well as then implementing the designs for us. They were so good throughout the process, really listening to what we wanted, as well as coming with great ideas. They were transparent throughout the process on costs and invoice dates. When it came to implementing the designs, a team from CGLA were with us for three weeks – they were on time, polite, hard-working and very clean on site (including thorough clean up at the end). We would thoroughly recommend CGLA!”

Client: Simon Pearce

FAQs

What will my design cost?indigo tree2024-07-10T09:25:19+01:00

What will my design cost?

Professional design typically starts at around £5,000 for a smaller plot. This includes full 3D cad design, around 3 rounds of design development, and leads to a completed pack suitable for construction costing, with general arrangement plans, set out plans and detailed materials and planting schedules, lighting and irrigation designs.

Larger and more complex gardens, particularly those working around new builds obviously need a great deal more detailing and input and need to be priced specifically to ensure we capture all the work you want (but no more!)

We have a more detailed article on this subject here

What is the design process?Jo Fisher2024-05-01T14:48:06+01:00

What is the design process?

We have a longer article on our garden design process (HERE), but a quick guide is as follows:

Take the brief: Come and meet with you to understand your site and your requirements (you typically do not need to pay for that meeting)
Pull together base information: Organise a measured survey of the site (to include levels if it is not flat)
Tease out what will work for you: Create suitable mood boards and outputs to tease out styles and approaches that will meet your aesthetic preferences
Show you their initial proposals: Draw up the proposed plans for discussion with you and create outputs to share
Update and re-issue these preliminary plans to reflect those discussions
Create final outputs dependent upon the needs of the project and the site- for you, your builders and other contractors as needed (including planning if required)
Liaise with whoever you need them to: On larger projects there will also typically be more people involved such as architects and other contractors with whom we will need to liaise.

Can you create Biodiversity Net Gain Plans for planning purposes?Jo Fisher2024-07-10T13:24:14+01:00

Can you create Biodiversity Net Gain Plans for planning purposes?

Yes we can! For more information on this do have a look at our article here

What will it cost to build my garden?Jo Fisher2024-07-10T09:28:14+01:00

What will it cost to build my garden?

We have several articles on this subject (see links below). The upshot is that we have a unique process aimed at heading this problem off at the pass!

Have a frank discussion about budget and process, sharing “ballparks” for similar projects (see cost to landscape article).
Once started, we design to suit your brief, cost that as soon as it is practical to do so, and allow for the time to value-engineer and adjust the designs to optimise the budget
Final outputs are prepared to suit the value-engineered design, and once this is complete, you are welcome to obtain quotes for the work from your choice of suppliers.

An overview of the design process is here and feel free to browse our “insights” pages for more information or call us for a chat!

If you have other questions feel free to contact us or see FAQS.