Laying a Patio in Elwick

The houses here

Elwick was a township in the parish of Hart until 1866, when it became a civil parish of its own. The Imperial Gazetteer of the early 1870s described it as a township four miles west by south of Hartlepool with 240 people and 55 houses. The village has grown since, but it keeps its long green, its church of St Peter (Grade II*) and a handful of older buildings: Elwick Hall, the windmill, The Forge and Wilton Cottage are all listed.

Elwick sits in the Rural West ward, which also covers the large houses of Hartlepool's Park area. Together they make the most detached part of the borough: 77.6% of homes in the ward are detached in the 2021 Census, 15.4% semi-detached and only 3.5% terraced. In Elwick itself, many homes are individual houses or small closes built around the old village.

Gardens are correspondingly generous. Many Elwick homes have deep rear gardens, often backing onto fields, with room for a large terrace, a path to the far end and perhaps a second seating area. Owners often want to replace a small or tired patio with a broader terrace that suits the scale of the house, and to connect it to the lawn with steps where the ground falls.

Clay ground in Elwick

The British Geological Survey records glacial till over dolostone of the Ford Formation under Elwick. The till is a stony clay. It is firm in summer but holds water in winter, and large patios on clay need a base that will not move as the ground wets and dries.

We dig out topsoil and any soft clay, lay a geotextile and build a compacted crushed-stone sub-base thick enough for the size of the patio. Larger terraces need careful levels so water runs off evenly; we set a fall away from the house and, on wide patios, may add a channel drain along the lower edge.

The Environment Agency shows Flood Zone 3 within 750 metres of the village centre, along the small beck that runs past the village. Gardens backing onto it, or on the lowest ground, need a drainage plan. Elsewhere, surface water is the main thing to manage.

Larger gardens bring their own design questions. A terrace that is too small looks lost against a big detached house, while one that is too large can feel empty, so we usually mark out the shape on the ground at the visit and adjust it with you. Many Elwick owners want the patio to catch the evening sun, which sometimes means placing a second seating area away from the house and linking it with a path. Countryside views to the west are worth keeping open, so low walls or planting are often better than fences around the patio. Where a garden is open to the west, a well-placed hedge or a short section of wall can give shelter from the prevailing wind without blocking the outlook.

Do you need permission?

Elwick has a conservation area covering the historic village around the green, and five listed buildings: the Church of St Peter (Grade II*), Elwick Hall, Elwick Windmill, The Forge and Wilton Cottage.

A ground-level back-garden patio is normally permitted development, even in the conservation area. Raised terraces over 30cm need planning permission, which is worth knowing on sloping plots. Front gardens, front walls and listed buildings need more care. We will mention anything worth checking with Hartlepool Borough Council at the visit.

Pricing an Elwick patio

We quote after a visit. In Elwick the main factors are:

• Size. Large gardens often take larger terraces.
• Clay. A thicker sub-base for big patios.
• Levels. Steps or retaining edges where the ground falls.
• Paths. Linking the patio to the rest of a long garden.
• Material. Sandstone and porcelain are popular for bigger terraces.
• Drainage. Channel drains on wide patios or low ground.

Around Elwick

• Patios, Hart: North-east: an ancient village with a Grade I church and windmill.
• Patios, the Park area: East: large period villas around Ward Jackson Park.
• Patios, Throston: North-east: Hartlepool's northern estates.

Pages that suit larger Elwick gardens: indian sandstone patios, garden paths and steps, porcelain patios.

All places we cover: areas page.

What Elwick homeowners ask

Sources: ONS Census 2021 TS044, Rural West ward (Nomis); Wikipedia: Elwick, County Durham; Planning Data: conservation areas; Planning Data: listed buildings; BGS Geology Viewer; Environment Agency Flood Map for Planning.