Turfing for Claygate gardens
Largely twentieth century detached and semi-detached houses with generous rear gardens, plus older cottages nearer the village. Plot depth is the opportunity here: there is usually room for a terrace, a lawn and a separate structure at the end without any of them feeling squeezed.
Claygate sits between Esher and Hinchley Wood, so it is on our regular run. Larger gardens here often become full transformations rather than single element jobs.
The build
How we build it, Claygate or anywhere else
The method does not change: old lawn off, ground broken up and graded, screened topsoil blended in, fresh turf laid the day it arrives and watered in before we leave. What changes is how much spoil has to come out and whether the ground drains.
Turf is heavy and perishable, so access decides the day's plan. We check it on the first visit rather than finding out with a pallet on the pavement.
- Levels, drainage and access checked on your plot
- Old lawn stripped and carted away
- Ground rotavated, stones and roots removed
- Screened topsoil supplied and graded to a fall
- Fresh cultivated turf laid, tamped and edged
- Watered in, with a written first-season brief
- Full clear-up, pallets and packaging taken away
The full detail on materials, build-up and what a quote covers is on our turfing & lawns page.
Nearby project
300 sqm porcelain patio, Oxshott
Our nearest completed case study to Claygate, built to the same specification we would use on your garden.


Over 300 sqm of porcelain paving wrapped around a large Oxshott house, with a bullnosed curved step and built in planters.
- Timescale
- Several weeks
- Approximate value
- Available on request
On the ground
Working in Claygate
How we work on site
Most properties have a usable side return or a driveway that a mini digger can reach, so the groundworks stage stays efficient. The older village cottages are the exception and tend to be barrow only.
Waste and permits
Elmbridge Borough Council skip permits are arranged where needed, but many Claygate jobs can keep the skip on the drive, which avoids the permit and any parking discussion.
Reviews
What our clients say
“We had our patio laid a couple of weeks ago and couldn't be happier with the result. The team did a fantastic job from start to finish.”
Mariliz · 3 months ago
Google · 5/5
“A brilliant professional and highly skilled team which operate with a huge amount of integrity whilst offering excellent value for money.”
Nelson · 3 months ago
Google · 5/5
FAQs
Turfing questions we get asked
How much does a new lawn cost?
Most new lawns we lay come in between £1,200 and £4,000, depending on the area, how much old ground has to come out and how much topsoil goes in. Turfing is often part of a bigger garden job, in which case it is priced within that scheme.
When is the best time to lay turf?
Autumn and spring are ideal, because the ground is warm and damp and the turf knits in with little watering. We lay through the summer too, but you have to be willing to water it properly every day for the first three weeks, or it will not take.
How long before I can walk on the new lawn?
Keep off it for two to three weeks apart from watering, then light use only until after the second or third cut. Children and dogs are best kept off for a month.
Can you just lay turf over the old lawn?
No, and anybody who offers to is selling you a lawn that dies. Turf laid on old grass or compacted ground cannot root. The old surface comes off, the ground gets broken up and topsoiled, then the turf goes down.
My lawn floods every winter. Will new turf fix it?
Not on its own. If water sits on the ground, the drainage has to be dealt with first, with a regraded fall, land drains or a soakaway, otherwise the new lawn goes the same way as the old one. We will tell you which of those your garden needs at the site visit.
Turf or artificial grass?
Real turf almost always looks and feels better and is cheaper to install. Artificial grass wins in deep shade where grass will not grow, in small courtyards, with dogs, and where nobody is going to maintain a lawn. We install both and will give you an honest answer for your garden.
Free site visit
Get a fixed price for your Claygate garden
Tell us the postcode and roughly what you are after. We will come out, measure up and give you a proper fixed price for Claygate, not a ballpark over the phone.


